---
title: "Independence Day"
year: 1996
kind: "film"
canonical: "https://film.one/film/independence-day"
fi1m_id: "independence-day"
imdb_id: "tt0116629"
tmdb_id: 602
wikidata_id: "Q105387"
fi1m_score: 75
critics_score: 64
critics_reviews: 7
published: "2026-09-13"
updated: "2026-09-18T08:38:18.853228+00:00"
region: "US"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Independence Day (1996)

Directed by Roland Emmerich · 2h 25m · MPA PG-13 · Action, Adventure, Science Fiction

## Identity

Independence Day

- **Canonical:** https://film.one/film/independence-day
- **Type:** Film
- **Fi1m ID:** independence-day
- **IMDb ID:** tt0116629
- **TMDB ID:** 602
- **Wikidata ID:** Q105387
- **Same entity:** https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0116629/, https://www.themoviedb.org/movie/602, https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q105387

**Fi1m score: 75** · Critics 64 from 7 reviews

*In a sentence:* The planet is in danger, but nobody is giving up their chance to deliver a good line

> Roland Emmerich’s alien invasion film earns its size with patient menace and enormous destruction. The script is foolish, the patriotism overdone, but the cast makes the business of saving the world unusually cheerful.

## Synopsis

An alien invasion threatens the United States, bringing civilians, military personnel and the president into the same crisis. Will Smith plays Captain Steven Hiller, Bill Pullman is President Thomas J. Whitmore and Jeff Goldblum is David Levinson. As the scale of the threat becomes clear, they face an emergency beyond their experience. The story moves among those trying to understand the danger and those expected to respond to it, bringing science fiction, disaster and warfare together. Mary McDonnell, Judd Hirsch and Robert Loggia also appear, as Marilyn Whitmore, Julius Levinson and General William Grey.

## Review

*Independence Day* is good, foolish entertainment, and Roland Emmerich understands how much waiting an alien invasion needs before the destruction can begin. He wants the audience frightened enough to pay attention and comfortable enough to enjoy itself. We recommend it for the scale, the cast and the patient preparation, with a warning that the writing becomes much less convincing once the spectacle has to support a story. Its ambitions are straightforward, and for a substantial stretch it meets them.

Karl Walter Lindenlaub’s cinematography makes the shadows do useful work: the threat is frightening before the damage has even started. We were unnerved by the way familiar places seemed suddenly defenceless under that darkness. There is time to look and to imagine what might follow. The effects give the invasion enough physical weight to sustain that feeling without requiring much explanation. This is the strongest part of the film, when the danger has arrived and nobody has a satisfactory response.

Production designers Patrick Tatopoulos and Oliver Scholl give the threatened world sufficient solidity to make its destruction count. Recognisable American landmarks supply a ready sense of scale, and Emmerich knows how readily an audience reads them. We do not need a lengthy account of what a building represents to understand the shock of seeing it threatened. The design and effects serve the same practical purpose, keeping the size of the danger clear.

Will Smith, as Captain Steven Hiller, gives the film an ease that all this grand machinery badly needs. Jeff Goldblum’s David Levinson is just as useful, bringing enough individual character to keep the dialogue from sounding entirely manufactured. Their appeal matters because the screenplay offers types more readily than people. Bill Pullman’s President Thomas J. Whitmore has the harder assignment, making official seriousness watchable amid such cheerful nonsense. The ensemble keeps us interested in who is facing the danger, even when the characters have been supplied with little depth.

The screenplay by Emmerich and Dean Devlin is much less reliable whenever excitement depends on believing what we are being told. Implausibility is part of the bargain with an alien invasion film, but it is still fair to expect the human behaviour to make sense. Here, thin characterisation and patriotic insistence too often substitute for persuasion. The generous mood helps, yet the insistence that American heroism should stand in for everybody’s experience grows tiresome, especially in a film that makes such broad claims on our sympathy.

David Brenner’s editing gives the first half enough pace to manage the large cast without making every introduction feel like an interruption. Later, the weak plotting becomes harder to ignore, however briskly the film moves. David Arnold’s music helps sustain the excitement, giving the spectacle some of the exuberance missing from the dialogue. We have less patience for Emmerich’s insistence on heroics; the danger is enough to hold our attention without so much reassurance about the people confronting it. At 145 minutes, there is also more of that reassurance than we need.

As an alien invasion picture, this is happier with mass destruction than with making the invaders themselves interesting. That limits the fear once the initial menace has passed, but the mixture of disaster, warfare and broad comedy remains companionable. There is pleasure in a large-scale action film that wants its people to be liked, even when it writes them badly. Choose it for an evening of expansive, undemanding spectacle, provided flag-waving does not spoil the fun.

*Fi1m score 75, published 13 September 2026.*

## What the critics say

Most critics find Independence Day entertaining despite its thin writing, with praise concentrated on the scale of the alien invasion and the effects-driven destruction. The spectacle supplies much of the excitement, while the upbeat mood and ordinary-people-as-heroes ensemble make the catastrophe surprisingly cheerful. Several reviews welcome its comic-book simplicity and cheerful mixture of science fiction, disaster film and action, accepting the corniness as part of the pleasure.

The reservations centre on implausible plotting, shallow characters and patriotic excess, though critics differ sharply on how much these matter. The New Yorker enjoys the film’s enthusiastic view of American patriotism, while Empire finds that enthusiasm excessive. The spread runs from warm approval to outright boredom: The Independent rejects the escapism itself, finding the villains insufficiently frightening and the character introductions pointless. Even favourable reviews tend to concede that the spectacle offers more than the script.

## Straight answers

**Is Independence Day worth watching?**

*Independence Day* is worth watching for anyone who wants a large, cheerful alien invasion film and can forgive a foolish script, and we scored it 75. Roland Emmerich builds the menace patiently and the destruction has real weight, while Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum keep the business of saving the world likeable. The flag-waving and the thin plotting wear on you before the 145 minutes are up.

**How long is Independence Day, and what is it rated?**

*Independence Day* runs 2h 25m and is rated PG-13 by the MPA in the US. It is an action and adventure film.

**Where can I watch Independence Day in the US?**

*Independence Day* is streaming on Disney+ in the US, and it is also available to rent from Amazon Prime Video from $3.99. Availability is checked daily; the links above go straight to each service.

**How violent or frightening is Independence Day, and is it suitable for children?**

*Independence Day* carries a UK 12 certificate, and its violence is mostly large-scale destruction rather than anything close-up or bloody. The early stretch, with familiar cities suddenly defenceless under the alien shadows, is the frightening part, and it unnerved us; the invaders themselves become less scary once the spectacle begins. Older children and teenagers should manage it comfortably, and younger ones may find the opening menace too much.

**How does Independence Day compare to Attack the Block?**

*Independence Day* and [*Attack the Block*](https://film.one/film/attack-the-block) are both alien invasion films, but they work at opposite scales, and the smaller film is the sharper one. Emmerich offers whole cities and a large, likeable cast supplied with little depth; Joe Cornish defends a single London estate with funnier jokes and characters worth caring about, though his social lessons are sometimes underlined too heavily. Choose the first for expansive, undemanding spectacle and the second for wit and people.

**What should I watch after Independence Day?**

After *Independence Day*, try [*Attack the Block*](https://film.one/film/attack-the-block) (2011, Fi1m 84): A smaller patch of London proves worth defending, with sharper jokes and characters. Then [*Shin Godzilla*](https://film.one/film/shin-godzilla) (2016, Fi1m 74): Another national emergency, this time with more procedural delay and less stirring rhetoric.

### Reviews we read (9)

- **The New York Times**, Janet Maslin (80/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's gleeful, audience-friendly exhilaration and inspiring notions of bravery, noting its comic-book sensibility and spectacle as a welcome change from macho cynicism. They single out the well-wrought special effects and the ensemble of Everyman characters for making the sci-fi Armageddon entertaining and benign. [Read](https://www.nytimes.com/1996/07/02/movies/film-review-space-aliens-action-and-a-chance-to-save-the-planet.html)
- **Empire**, Kim Newman (75/100, inferred): The critic praises the film's spectacular destruction and special effects as delivering on epic sci-fi imagery but criticizes the ridiculous script, patriotic excess, and implausible plot elements. She singles out the breadth of the visual spectacle for praise while noting the lack of depth. [Read](https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/independence-day-review/)
- **The New Yorker**, James Wolcott (75/100, inferred): The review celebrates the film's massive scale of destruction and iconic targets like the exploding White House, structured like a three-act play with meta pop-culture awareness. It praises the director's awestruck tourist view of American patriotism and the entertaining, upbeat Armageddon despite the lack of subtext. [Read](https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/1996/07/15/reborn-on-the-fourth-of-july)
- **Variety**, Todd McCarthy (70/100, inferred): The review calls it the biggest B-movie ever made, a spectacularly scaled mix of '50s sci-fi, disaster epics, and action that is unavoidably entertaining and cornball. It praises the sheer volume of effects-driven destruction and heroic elements while noting it lacks plausibility and is not always state-of-the-art. [Read](https://variety.com/1996/film/reviews/independence-day-3-1200446236/)
- **Los Angeles Times**, Kenneth Turan (60/100, inferred): The critic highlights the spectacular special effects that revive the 1950s alien invasion genre with impressive visuals, shadows, and fast pacing. They single out the cornball script, cardboard characters, and stereotyping for complaint while noting the adolescent charm and effects work. [Read](https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-independence-day-review-19960703-snap-story.html)
- **The Independent**, Ruth Picardie (20/100, inferred): The critic finds the film a colossal bore that fails as escapist action due to a plot full of holes and uninteresting villains. She singles out the lack of proper scary antagonists and pointless character setups for complaint. [Read](https://www.independent.co.uk/incoming/independence-day-battle-begins-here-5604182.html)
- **The Hollywood Reporter**, Duane Byrge: The critic calls the film a blast and a generic juggernaut that splices sci-fi, disaster, and war genres effectively, predicting it will set off box-office fireworks worldwide. Visual effects, production design, and the performances of Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum are singled out for praise as masterful and appealing. [Read](https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-reviews/independence-day-1996-movie-original-905775/)
- **Time Out**, TCh: The critic describes the film as a scrappy, spectacular, juvenile remake of War of the Worlds that can be taken at face value as an index of American populist fantasy. They note its pluralist casting and upbeat mood about the apocalypse, concluding that the moral is clear: it's the end of the world as we know it, and we feel fine. [Read](https://www.timeout.com/movies/independence-day)
- **Den of Geek**, Simon Brew (70/100, inferred): The film is a jingoistic blockbuster that excels in its first half with unmatched spectacle and alien invasion setup but falters with a weak final act. It remains enjoyable today as a passable trade-off of grand effects over story. [Read](https://www.denofgeek.com/movies/independence-day-blu-ray-review/)

## Details

- **Director:** Roland Emmerich
- **Director:** Roland Emmerich
- **Screenplay:** Roland Emmerich, Dean Devlin
- **Cinematography:** Karl Walter Lindenlaub
- **Editor:** David Brenner
- **Music:** David Arnold
- **Production design:** Oliver Scholl, Patrick Tatopoulos
- **Costume design:** Joseph A. Porro
- **Producer:** Dean Devlin
- **Cast:** Will Smith as Capt. Steven Hiller; Bill Pullman as President Thomas J. Whitmore; Jeff Goldblum as David Levinson; Mary McDonnell as Marilyn Whitmore; Judd Hirsch as Julius Levinson; Robert Loggia as General William Grey; Randy Quaid as Russell Casse; Margaret Colin as Constance Spano
- **Runtime:** 2h 25m
- **Certificate (MPA):** PG-13
- **Release (the US):** 2 July 1996
- **Genres:** Action, Adventure, Science Fiction
- **Budget:** $75 million
- **Box office:** $817 million
- **Trailer:** https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B1E7h3SeMDk

## Where to watch in the US

- Disney+: add-on, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: rent $3.99, uhd
- Amazon Prime Video: buy $4.99, uhd

*Checked 2026-09-13.*

Also available in: AR, AT, AU, BE, BG, BR, CA, CH, CL, CO, CZ, DE, DK, EC, EE, ES, FI, FR, GB, GR, HK, HR, HU, IE, IS, IT, JP, KR, LT, MX, NL, NO, NZ, PA, PE, PL, PT, RO, RS, SE, SG, SI, TR, US. Add `?region=XX` to this URL for another country.

## Awards

- Academy Awards 1997: Best Sound (nominated); Best Visual Effects (won)
- Amanda Award for Best Foreign Feature Film 1997: Amanda Award for Best Foreign Feature Film (won)
- BAFTA Film Awards 1997: Best Sound (nominated); Best Special Visual Effects (nominated)
- Hugo Awards 1997: Best Dramatic Presentation (nominated)
- Japan Academy Prize for Outstanding Foreign Language Film 1997: Japan Academy Prize for Outstanding Foreign Language Film (nominated)
- Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Movie 1997: Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Movie (won)
- MTV Movie Award for Best Action Sequence 1997: MTV Movie Award for Best Action Sequence (nominated)
- MTV Movie Award for Best Breakthrough Performance 1997: MTV Movie Award for Best Breakthrough Performance (nominated)
- MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss 1997: MTV Movie Award for Best Kiss (won)
- MTV Movie Award for Best Male Performance 1997: MTV Movie Award for Best Male Performance (nominated)
- MTV Movie Award for Best Movie 1997: MTV Movie Award for Best Movie (nominated)
- Satellite Award for Best Editing 1997: Satellite Award for Best Editing (won)
- Satellite Award for Best Visual Effects 1997: Satellite Award for Best Visual Effects (won)
- Saturn Awards 1997: Best Director (won); Best Science Fiction Film (won)

## If you liked this

- *The War of the Worlds* (1953): The invasion is less cheerful, and the human defences look no more adequate.
- *Attack the Block* (2011), Fi1m 84: A smaller patch of London proves worth defending, with sharper jokes and characters. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/attack-the-block.md)
- *The Host* (2006): Family bickering survives a monster attack, and the comedy makes the danger matter.
- *The Day the Earth Caught Fire* (1961): A newspaper office gives a planetary emergency human scale and a sceptical voice.
- *Shin Godzilla* (2016), Fi1m 74: Another national emergency, this time with more procedural delay and less stirring rhetoric. — [Fi1m page](https://film.one/film/shin-godzilla.md)

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/film/independence-day