IMDb > Independence Day (1996)
Independence Day
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Independence Day (1996) More at IMDbPro »

Photos (see all 104 | slideshow) Videos (see all 15)
Independence Day (1996) -- The aliens are coming and their goal is to invade and destroy. Fighting superior technology, Man's best weapon is the will to survive.
Independence Day (1996) -- People get excited when an alien aircraft begins to open up.
Independence Day (1996) -- The aliens are coming and their goal is to invade and destroy. Fighting superior technology, Man's best weapon is the will to survive.
Independence Day (1996) -- CineMagia.ro - Trailer (Flash)

Overview

User Rating:
6.5/10   138,178 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
Down 51% in popularity this week. See why on IMDbPro.
Director:
Writers (WGA):
Dean Devlin (written by) &
Roland Emmerich (written by)
Contact:
View company contact information for Independence Day on IMDbPro.
Release Date:
3 July 1996 (USA) more
Tagline:
We've always believed we weren't alone. Pretty soon, we'll wish we were. more
Plot:
The aliens are coming and their goal is to invade and destroy. Fighting superior technology, Man's best weapon is the will to survive. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
Awards:
Won Oscar. Another 26 wins & 21 nominations more
NewsDesk:
(651 articles)
Hollywood vs. New York: Four Decades of Destruction
 (From Slash Film. 30 November 2009, 11:50 AM, PST)

The Sunday Movie Quiz – The Answers
 (From HeyUGuys. 29 November 2009, 4:01 PM, PST)

User Comments:
Suspenseful Feel Good Fun! more (715 total)

Cast

  (Cast overview, first billed only)

Additional Details

Also Known As:
ID4 (USA) (promotional abbreviation)
more
MPAA:
Rated PG-13 for sci-fi destruction and violence.
Runtime:
145 min | USA:153 min (special edition)
Country:
Language:
Color:
Aspect Ratio:
2.35 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
DTS 70 mm (70 mm prints) (Europe) | DTS (35 mm prints) | Dolby Digital (35 mm prints) | SDDS (35 mm prints)

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
Harvey Fierstein, who plays Marty Gilbert, makes reference to his psychoanalyst, Doctor Katz. Fierstein had just made an appearance on the Comedy Central show "Dr. Katz, Professional Therapist" (1995). more
Goofs:
Revealing mistakes: When the helicopter is sending the welcome message, the aliens destroy it with a laser blast. The helicopter blows up before the laser blast hits it. more
Quotes:
[first lines]
SETI Chief: [answering telephone] If this isn't an insanely beautiful woman, I'm hangin' up.
SETI technician: Sir, I - I- I think you should listen to this.
more
Movie Connections:
Soundtrack:
It's the End of the World As We Know It more

FAQ

Will there be a sequel?
Who would have become President if Whitmore (Pullman) had been killed in the dogfight?
Chapter Headings, v1.00
more
155 out of 234 people found the following comment useful.
Suspenseful Feel Good Fun!, 26 May 2001

I am just shocked at all the negative reviews by pseudo-intellectuals saying the film was heavily flawed, incomprehensible, devoid of any merit, and "lame", to quote a few. What were they expecting? A remake of 2001: A Space Odyssey. Sure, I am not going to pretend the film does not has many glaring weaknesses. The plot is hardly original; its execution is even less inspiring. Roland Emmerich goes out of his way to use every cliche in the book, over-sentimentality, weak, flat characterizations, incredible jumps in logic and reasoning made on the viewer, and the use of special effects to overcome these shortcomings. But what some of the reviewers seemed to have missed, and its there as substantiated by the huge popularity of the film, is heart. The film has a lot of heart. It makes you feel good after watching it. And although that quality does not make it a great film, it certainly makes it a good film in my book. The film is vastly entertaining, very suspenseful, a delight for the eyes with dazzling special effects, and even has some dialogue that does just rise above its hackneyed origins. The acting is adequate all around with no one pulling off a great performance, but a few doing marvelous jobs with what they have to work with. Judd Hirsch easily out acts his fellow colleagues as a Jewish father with a gift for common sense and lack of tact. Jeff Goldblum also gives a pretty good performance as his son. Yeah, Will Smith is just Will Smith..lots of one liners and little meat so to speak. But he is bearable. Watch for Brent Spiner in an outrageous role as a hippie scientist. His performance is a real hoot! If you are looking for philosophical science fiction, this is not it. See Starship Troopers(a great film). This is just good old Americans against the universe stuff, lots of action but little substance. But whatever it may have as its faults, it is a fun, happy, sad, charming, engrossing film to watch...time and time again.

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Message Boards

Discuss this movie with other users on IMDb message board for Independence Day (1996)
Recent Posts (updated daily)User
July 06, 07, 08... coryball7
About the virus. Couldn't it be... andre-soares-silva
Question about the Ending Zerg__
sequel plot. if or when it comes out Midge82
So, a more advanced species is using the same OS? croak-1
Things I learned from this movie matthijs-tieleman
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