Independence Day

Strange phenomena surface around the globe. The skies ignite. Terror races through the world's major cities. As these extraordinary events unfold, it becomes increasingly clear that a force of incredible magnitude has arrived. Its mission: total annihilation over the Fourth of July weekend. The last hope to stop the destruction is an unlikely group of people united by fate and unimaginable circumstances.

A gleefully dumb blockbuster that critics split on almost down the middle: the spectacle — particularly the White House destruction — was widely declared a landmark in visual effects, but the cardboard characters, weak dialogue, and nationalistic bombast drew real scorn, especially from reviewers outside the U.S. Audiences embraced it far more warmly than professional critics did, and its reputation as a defining summer movie has only grown since its mixed initial reception.