This is a bad movie. It is a bad movie that blew up the box office in the '90s due to a Super Bowl spot that showed a giant laser exploding the White House. It looked pretty goddamned amazing, to be fair. Most of the movie looks amazing. Roland Emmerich, who peaked with Stargate and has since rolled downhill with ever-more expensive flaming heaps of "cinema," spent half his budget blowing up the other half, and it absolutely shows. However: Being bad doesn't preclude being enjoyable, and Independence Day is very much that, too. Will Smith owning his inevitable superstardom. Jeff Goldblum owning his brainy beefcakery. A dog escaping a fireball by jumping into an alley. Bill Pullman's speech. That one guy saluting vigorously in response to Bill Pullman's speech. Randy Quaid, as plane-and-meat enema, as climax. It may be bad, but it's not really the Fourth of July until the Fresh Prince welcomes you to Earth. by Bobby Roberts