Summer of 2016 is not shaping up to be very good for adult movie goers. The children are having a blast. Movies like Finding Dory, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Out of the Shadows, Zootopia, Alice through the Looking Glass and the Angry Birds Movie are making a killing at the box office with pretty good ratings. With a few exceptions, the adult movies like Hail Caesar, Money Monster, The Nice Guys, Neighbors 2, and Independence Day: Resurgence have been total disappointments. When I saw the supposedly dead Dr. Brakish Okun (Brent Spiner) in the trailer and heard Will Smith wasn’t going to be in the sequel, I figured Independence Day: Resurgence, “ID: Resurgence” was doomed. (I heard between unresolved money issues and lack of motivation toward big sci-fi block buster movies after his last one (After Earth) bombed was the reason Will backed out). After actually seeing ID: Resurgence, I can say (Will made the right decision) the special effects were fantastic but the overall movie stunk! Bill Pullman returned as President Whitmore and may have had the worse role of all. Sick, old and somewhat mentally impaired, the former president managed to perform some remarkable feats for someone in his condition. Speaking of condition, without saying too much, Dr. Okun displayed abilities unknown to a person who had been in his situation. I was so frustrated to see how they played the audience for stupid by even presenting the good doctor as they did. Thank goodness for one of my all time favorites, Jeff Goldblum as Davie Levinson and his father Judd Hirsch as Julius Levinson. Together they stole just about every scene they were in, adding some comedy and honesty to the story. Jessie T. Usher plays Dylan-Dubrow Hiller, Captain Steven and Jasmine Hiller’s son who is all grown up and a pilot and captain in ESD*. The gorgeous Liam Hemsworth plays Jake Morrison who is Dylan’s BFF and is a pilot and lieutenant in ESD*. Jake’s parents were killed by the aliens in the first Independence Day, which caused him to grow up in an orphanage. Maika Monroe plays Patricia Whitmore, the former president’s daughter, all grown up and Jake’s fiancée. Sela Ward plays President Lanford who is the current president, which plays right into modern times since we are anticipating a female as president. Vivica Fox returns as Jasmine Hiller, who is now a hospital administrator and is only in a couple of scenes. She mentions her husband’s accidental death, giving us an explanation for Will’s absence.
*FYI: In case you are wondering what ESD stands for, here is the defination. It’s fictional for this movie:
The Earth Space Defense (ESD) is a program that serves as an early warning system and united global defense unit against future extraterrestrial threats. It was founded by the United Nations on May 25, 1998.
Other than the special effects, ID: Resurgence has little to offer. For me, it was too long, had too many battle scenes (they were tiring to watch over and over), had too many goofs in the story telling and didn’t really make us feel the threat. Everything seemed so routine and a lot of the fighting gear seemed cheap and a bit childish. I didn’t get the big block buster feel nor was I entertained as I usually am by these types of movies. In my opinion, no comparison to the original can be found in this sequel. You should probably wait for the DVD or if you haven’t seen the original Independence day, rent it!
CAROL's WORLDS 