Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 7/10

Cast: Jeff Goldblum, Liam Hemsworth, Jessie T. Usher, Bill Pulman, Maika Monroe, Sela Ward, William Fichtner, Judd Hirsch, Brent Spiner, Patrick St. Esprit, Vivica A. Fox, Angelababy, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Deobia Oparei, Nicolas Wright, Travis Tope, Jenna Purdy, Ryan Cartwright.

Inevitable when you think about it, of course there would be a sequel to the glossy and fun Independence Day, the story line was just too enjoyable and fairly bonkers to not have left a film child behind somewhere in the dark, salivating over the prospect of taking a cinema audience on the road to yet another round with creatures from beyond our universe.

When a 3000 mile wide space ship lands upon the Earth, having blown some more of the favourite landmarks that mark out various cities to kingdom come and only just stopping short of destroying the White House again, probably not the best idea in an election year with two deeply unpopular contenders scrapping it out for the presidency, to be seen blowing apart the symbol of democracy for the second film in a row, it can only be a job for Jeff Goldblum, Brent Spiner and Bill Pullman to once more save the planet from the alien invasion.

Independence Day: Resurgence gallops along at a fair old pace, it revives the spirit where it must and is wonderfully absurd where it needs to be; a singular point where Earth stands on the brink of annihilation is framed with just enough tension to believe that the film owes its life to the stock in trade last minute save of the James Bond franchise or the slight embarrassment that accompanied Starship Troopers. Regardless of this, the film is enjoyable fun, it might allude that it be taken seriously, certainly the sight of a huge alien Queen striding across the salt plains after a bus full of kids is enough to have the graphics department salivating over their creation for years to come, but it is still enjoyable fantastical fun.

With Jeff Goldblum returning as David Levinson and Brent Spiner’s Dr. Brakish Okun making a stunning recovery from his 20 year coma just in time to help save the world, all the ingredients are there to keep the film interesting for the two hours it is on screen. Jeff Goldblum rarely makes a bad film, his nervous energy almost a joy to watch in itself and so Independence Day: Resurgence adds to that list of great American B list films that should be enjoyed for what they offer, good fun, science saves the day and the heroic stand tall and eager to fight once again. Good fun.

Ian D. Hall