Lest you’ve forgotten about this, here’s a recap: Independence Day was released in 1996, a whopping twenty years ago, and it took the world by storm. After all, a disaster movie was something relatively new then—it sort of paved the way for more of these disaster films like Armageddon and Deep Impact.
During that time, it was so revolutionary with glowing reviews and high box office takings (it was the highest grossing film in 1996) that talks of a sequel was inevitable, but it was only two decades later that we get to watch it, and boy was it so highly anticipated that on Thursday and Friday night, I failed to even buy just two tickets.
When I walked out of the cinema, I thought I was the only one who thought it was much worse than its predecessor—until I read the reviews online and realized I wasn’t alone. Independence Day: Resurgence got a rating of just 33% approval ratings in Rotten Tomatoes, while its predecessor got a 61% approval rating. The opening box office, even without taking inflation into consideration, is much worse than its predecessor: the Thursday night previews in North America generated merely $4 million, in comparison to Independence Day’s $11.1 million.
So, what exactly makes it so bad that people would rather watch older movies like X-Men: Apocalypse or Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows? Here’re the ten “oh-my-God-what-the-heck-is-wrong-with-this-movie” reasons that come to me once I realized I’ve wasted over $10 for a movie that would be better spent by buying a McDonald’s meal and watching it at home five years later in Channel 5.
It’s way too much like Independence Day
If you’ve watched Independence Day, watching Independence Day: Resurgence is more like watching a reboot of the first movie with the same plot and same action, rather than a sequel with a new storyline. Almost everything is similar: from how the aliens attack to how humans managed to stop the attack at the very last minute. The only difference is that the first is refreshing—the second is repetitive. In fact, the first is much better because you won’t know what’s coming next. The second? You can be its screenwriter halfway through the movie.
There’re way too many forgettable characters
Ask anyone who has watched Independence Day: Resurgence on who the protagonist is, and you’ll get different answers. In fact, if you need me to name one, I would say it’s the aliens. I don’t know whether it’s because we’re now accustomed to just one main hero due to the superhero movie era now, but hey, in the first movie, at least the president is memorable, cool and heroic. We even remember his speech until today. Independence Day: Resurgence? I just remember there’re three presidents (one ex-president) in one movie. Gosh.
The pace is so slow, I nearly fall asleep
In Independence Day, you get to know that something huge is coming right from the very first minute, and tension moves the movie quickly. In Independence Day: Resurgence, we’re faced with LOTS and LOTS of exposition before the aliens make their way to Earth. There’re so many expositions, they even need to tell us the reason why Will Smith isn’t in this movie except for a poster and a photograph.
The Marina Bay Sands scene is less than five seconds
Remember how the trailer made all Singaporeans go crazy when they see Marina Bay Sands falling? We thought we’ll finally see our soldiers flying up to the alien ships and fighting them with their F16s. Instead, all we have is a forgettable scene. To rub salt into the wound, the aliens didn’t even directly attack Singapore—we were all pulled up to space due to the gravitational force of the large ship. What a waste.
Characters are so dull, boring and forgettable
With so many characters, you’ll hope that one of them stands out. Other than Brent Spiner as the humourous Dr Brakish Okun, everyone else is just there to move the plot. I guess Spiner must have been glad that people will now still remember him as the Star Trek: The Next Generation actor instead of the Independence Day actor.
The heroes just won’t die while everyone else dies
They’re either trapped in an alien ship or facing lots of aliens, but they just won’t die, while others who have hidden deep die. Talk about convenience—way too convenient.
The aliens have a face, a name and a queen—and a big weakness
The success of Independence Day is primarily due to the alien’s secrecy—we didn’t know much about them, and initially didn’t even know if they were hostile. In this sequel, we knew so much about them that they didn’t become aliens anymore: they became an enemy. An enemy with a weakness and a name. That’s so boring.
The film tries too hard to show us an alternate universe
I completely understand how alien technology has changed the world into a better place, but replacing bullets with lasers just doesn’t relate to me, the average guy who thinks he could be a hero saving the world. The best part about Independence Day is how mankind, similar to us, fight a threat. But this time round, mankind no longer uses fighter planes and cars, so I’ll rather watch Star Trek or Star Wars instead.
It’s so unrealistic, I nearly wanted to call them to give them advice
Here’s a quiz: if you’re the commander-in-chief, would you rather let a veteran who might not have flown for twenty years on an important mission that would determine the future of mankind, or would you choose one who has been flying regularly for the last few years? I’ll choose the latter, since the veteran might not even know how to fly anymore. But for dramatic effects, you know what the choice in the movie is.
It fails its predecessor badly
Remember all the twists in Independence Day? The funny moments in Independence Day? And the memorable scenes in Independence Day? You’ve nothing in this movie. The only thing I can remember is when Marina Bay Sands appeared, people in the cinema were all pointing at the screen. Then, after a one hour of trying to stay awake, it was time to leave the cinema.
This article was first published on goodyfeed.com
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