# Independance Day is FAN-TASTIC! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 27, 2005, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828 "2005-08-27T02:11:01Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 12:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/21 "2005-08-27T12:11:30Z")
> [@detop](#): > > I like it. It’s a fun movie to watch **and** to nitpick. That’s an interesting point. It may actually be a more enjoyable movie _because_ of the technical flaws. ---
**Author:** ![ftg](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ftg/32/2801_2.png) [@ftg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ftg)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 12:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/22 "2005-08-27T12:48:42Z")
Sorry, but I just have to join the pile on. Them: Mastered interstellar space travel and have huge fleets of high speed ships. Us: Been sending stuff into space for 40 years (as of 1996). What do they do when they get here? They hijack _our_ comsats for communication. Right. ---
**Author:** ![ivylass](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9de053/32.png) [@ivylass](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ivylass)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/23 "2005-08-27T13:11:41Z")
I also rolled my eyes at the rest of the world sitting on their butt waiting for the Americans to come up with a solution. What did the Brit say? “About bloody time!” :rolleyes: And how come the Prez gave up after launching one nuke attack which didn’t work, but when his initial missile attack didn’t work, he cocked his head to the side and said, “Let me try that again?” Still, the movie does blow up a bunch of stuff. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Baldwin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baldwin/32/7264_2.png) [@Baldwin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baldwin)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/24 "2005-08-27T14:47:15Z")
_Independence_. That’s one of the words that Americans really should know how to spell. Oh yeah, and it was a stupid movie. Roland Emmerich has been involved in several prominent stupid movies – _Stargate_, _Independence Day_, _Godzilla_, _The Day After Tomorrow_ – all of which could have been good if a competent science fiction writer had worked on the screenplay. Why do we get $100 million movies with stupid half-baked scripts? ---
**Author:** ![Bill\_Door](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/50afbb/32.png) [@Bill\_Door](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bill_Door)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 3:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/25 "2005-08-27T15:01:13Z")
I just thought of a work around for the Mac OS interfacing with the mothership to transmit the virus. Didn’t Brent Spiner say that some of the alien technology had been analyzed? Obviously the Mac is based on alien computer systems, so there was no compatability issues, _ipso facto_. ---
**Author:** ![jsc1953](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/5daacb/32.png) [@jsc1953](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jsc1953)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/26 "2005-08-27T16:57:40Z")
Of all the silly things about this movie, the thing that bugs me the most is the flight path of the swarms of alien fighters – they’re all moving randomly at incredibly high speed, with no attempt at anything like formations. If it wasn’t CGI, the invasion would’ve failed due to massive mid-air collisions. But the film is almost worth watching, for Will Smith’s dogfight, and his “got you and your raggedy ship/welcome to earth” rant. ---
**Author:** ![vibrotronica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/a9a28c/32.png) [@vibrotronica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vibrotronica)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 5:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/27 "2005-08-27T17:49:40Z")
> [@kingpengvin](#): > > Is there anyone outside of the US who actually liked this turd of a film?? [Boxofficemojo.com](http://Boxofficemojo.com) reports that the movie made $306 million domestically and $511 million overseas. ---
**Author:** ![Driver8](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b5a626/32.png) [@Driver8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Driver8)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/28 "2005-08-27T18:02:27Z")
A terrible, terrible film. I did get a kick out of the moment the army guy orders “Fire at will”. And then of course the next thing we see is Will Smith in his fighter jet. ---
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2005, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/29 "2005-08-27T21:18:49Z")
I’m usually someone who really HATES big budget sappy jingoistic dumb movies. I got yelled at for laughing during tender moments of both **Armageddon** and **The Patriot**. But, for whatever reason, I was able to enjoy **Independence Day** as just mindless silly fun. You don’t get the feeling that the people making the movie take it any more seriously than you do. And the white house exploding, and similar scenes, were REALLY amazing visuals, at the time. ---
**Author:** ![MrFantsyPants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ba0ec/32.png) [@MrFantsyPants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrFantsyPants)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 1:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/30 "2005-08-28T01:26:11Z")
well, I like ID4 for one reason, and one reason only. I have found that watching it and then Mars Attacks immediately after makes Mars Attacks infinitely more funny. Other than that, there are a few enjoyable scenes, but on the whole it’s worthless crap. ---
**Author:** ![pesch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pesch/32/4925_2.png) [@pesch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pesch)\ **Post date:** [August 28, 2005, 3:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/31 "2005-08-28T03:21:35Z")
> [@fruitbat](#): > > My favorite moment is the dog escaping from the massive fireball. In a movie that does OK with effects showing city sized space ships, the dog is clearly cut and pasted into a background with cars exploding and people running around willy nilly. Don’t forget that the dog survived by turning right, into the doorway, just as the fireball moved past. Because, if you remember from your science class, heat always flows IN A STRAIGHT LINE. I love a movie that has the balls to do that. I’ve seen ID4 several times and even bought the DVD (used, I admit). I admit to all its stupid flaws, yet it still works for me. ---
**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 8:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/32 "2005-08-29T08:25:50Z")
Undeniably, unequivicably, inarguably, unrelentingly: **Worst. Movie. Ever.** ---
**Author:** ![Askia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Askia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askia)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 11:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/33 "2005-08-29T11:31:41Z")
> [@Hail Ants](#): > > Undeniably, unequivicably, inarguably, unrelentingly: > > **Worst. Movie. Ever.** No movie that does not feature an appearance by Martin Lawrence, Will Ferrell or Rob Schneider can possibly hold that claim. ---
**Author:** ![detop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bcef8e/32.png) [@detop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/detop)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 12:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/34 "2005-08-29T12:46:25Z")
> [@Hail Ants](#): > > Undeniably, unequivicably, inarguably, unrelentingly: > > **Worst. Movie. Ever.** Obviously, you haven’t watch _Battlefield Earth_ yet. ---
**Author:** ![Revtim](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/revtim/32/1042_2.png) [@Revtim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Revtim)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 1:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/35 "2005-08-29T13:17:06Z")
> [@Hail Ants](#): > > Undeniably, unequivicably, inarguably, unrelentingly: > > **Worst. Movie. Ever.** Watch “House Of The Dead” and “Freddy Got Fingered”, and get back to us. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/36 "2005-08-29T16:10:34Z")
> [@Priceguy](#): > > Them’s fighting words. No, fighting words would be, “Cue _Saving Private Ryan_ hijack.” [sub]Not that **Cervaise** doesn’t have a point about Gump…[/sub] ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/37 "2005-08-29T16:30:46Z")
I saw this movie on a DVD I borrowed for free. And I still got ripped off. ---
**Author:** ![sleeepy2](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e9a140/32.png) [@sleeepy2](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sleeepy2)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/38 "2005-08-29T17:50:03Z")
It did have some fine scenes of people outrunning fireball-explosions. As awful as this movie was, what bothered me the most was the computer animated fighter jet scenes. The F-18 is a wonderful aircraft, but it can not turn on a dime. Airplanes have mass and momentum, and it takes a bit of space to turn one around mid-flight. I guess the animators thought it looked “kewl” but it was distracting. Maybe being distraced from a peice of crap movie like this isn’t all bad, though. ---
**Author:** ![Gangster\_Octopus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a8b319/32.png) [@Gangster\_Octopus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gangster_Octopus)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/39 "2005-08-29T17:56:08Z")
It’s funny, out of all the problems in this movie, the thing that bothered me most was that Will Smith was able to find his wife when he stole that helipcopter. ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [August 29, 2005, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828/40 "2005-08-29T18:08:08Z")
> [@Queen Tonya](#): > > And not only is it daylight, the rest of the world was just sitting on their asses waiting for the 'merkins to figure it out. No alternate plans, just oh, okay, they say to do this, let’s do that! 😃 Why should the movie be any different from real life? [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/independance-day-is-fan-tastic/318828.md?page=3)