Independence Day: Resurgence

The alien invaders who were narrowly defeated 20 years ago return for a second assault, and once again the people of Earth rise to the occasion against seemingly impossible odds. The cast is a mix of returnees (Bill Pullman, Jeff Goldblum, Brent Spiner, Judd Hirsch) and newbies (Liam Hemsworth, Jessie T. Usher, Maika Monroe, Charlotte Gainsbourg, William Fichtner), and somehow it took director Roland Emmerich and four other writers to concoct the script (which has many twists but few surprises). The result feels just as long as the original (though, in fact, it’s 25 minutes shorter), and the visual effects are surprisingly cheesy in spots, but the movie delivers the goods as a decent, undemanding summer popcorn epic. It all ends with the promise (threat?) that it won’t be 20 years till the next sequel.