There aren’t a lot of movies I have multiple times going to where I remember the circumstances of some of those viewings in theatres. But even before it came out, Roland Emmerich’s “Independence Day” just felt different than anything else that had come out, at the time. I guess blowing up the White House in your trailer will do that for you.
One of my favorite moviewatching experiences of all-time was when, after Atlanta Olympic Band one night, a bunch of us from Lassiter (including future Yahoos With a Microphone contributors David Miles and Michael Caudle) went to a late-night showing of “ID4”. I don’t know that I’ve had more fun watching a movie with friends in the theatres, but in a way, it also felt like- to me- the last high school memory shared with friends before we went our separate ways, starting the next chapter of our lives. Of course, we were also in the middle of another final moment for our high school selves- taking part of an experience which saw us perform during the Opening and Closing Ceremonies of the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. Just those two experiences alone make the summer of 1996 worth remembering.
The summer moviegoing season began with flying cows in “Twister”, and ended with a flawed sequel to one of my favorite films of all-time (“The Crow: City of Angels”). Even though my mom and I watched it earlier in the day, another memorable moviewatching experience started with the Atlanta premiere of “Twister” at the Fabulous Fox Theatre in Atlanta. It was the first time I thought to watch a movie there, and over the next two decades, I would go back to watch some of the best movies ever made. Needless to say, Jan de Bont’s tornado adventure, on that screen, made an impression.
If you look at the domestic box-office for 1996, you see as great a disparity between blockbuster tentpoles and mid-tier and indie film box-office as we’ve ever had since the box-office had become an ongoing concern in movie discussions. The big hits of the summer were from reliable ’90s brands- Steven Spielberg and Michael Crichton (“Twister”); Tom Cruise (and there’s a whole essay that could be written on how he has made the “Mission: Impossible” franchise one of the most reliable in modern times); John Grisham (“A Time to Kill”); Don Simpson and Jerry Bruckheimer (“The Rock”, which I saw the day I graduated with my mom and grandfather); even Disney had success with one of its riskiest gambles with the animated “The Hunchback of Notre Dame. And Arnold Schwarzenegger found some success with an ok, but relatively forgettable, action thriller in “Eraser”, one of the last, real times he had that outside of the “Terminator” movies.
One of the most interesting things from the summer of 1996 is how star vehicles did. The actors who broke the salary barriers at the time, Jim Carrey and Demi Moore, both had the films they did that with in theatres this summer in “The Cable Guy” and “Striptease”, respectively; audiences weren’t ready for the films they delivered, though, and neither were that successful, or well-received. John Travolta had a schmaltzy hit with “Phenomenon”, Denzel Washington and Meg Ryan were moderately successful in Edward Zwick’s “Courage Under Fire”, and Kevin Costner found a welcoming audience for his and Ron Shelton’s inviting golf comedy, “Tin Cup”. Nobody delivered a star vehicle as successfully as Eddie Murphy, though, who found one of his biggest hits under Rick Baker’s makeup in “The Nutty Professor”. Other star vehicles weren’t so lucky: multiple Michael Keatons didn’t engage with “Multiplicity”; Robin Williams seemed to be trying too hard with “Jack”; and Robert DeNiro’s psycho persona didn’t connect with “The Fan”.
On the indie front, studios like Miramax and Sony Pictures Classics found ways to sell their films off of controversy and critical acclaim. Danny Boyle’s “Trainspotting” brought his tale of drugs and youthful energy to theatres, and audiences were game for it. Gwyneth Paltrow’s star continued to rise with “Emma”. And John Sayles’s “Lone Star” was able to find an audience by Matthew McConaughey, the star-to-be of “A Time to Kill”, having a role in it. (That it’s also a terrific film helped.) And what of “The Spitfire Grill”, the big acquisition from Sundance that year? If you don’t recognize that title, that kind of tells you everything you need to know.
Among some of the other noteworthy titles of the summer, “Kingpin” and “The Frighteners” didn’t make big dents at the box-office, but would grow into cult hits. (The same with “The Cable Guy”.) “Escape From L.A.” failed to land, but any Snake Plisskin fan has to find something worthwhile in this sequel. “Dragonheart” found moderate success, and launched a direct-to-video franchise for Universal. And families were charmed by “Harriet the Spy” and “Matilda”.
In the end, however, this summer comes down to “The Day We Fought Back.” That’s a powerful tagline, isn’t it? Say what you will about Emmerich and Dean Devlin as filmmakers, but in titling their modern spin on War of the Worlds “Independence Day”, having it about an American-led response to a cataclysmic alien invasion that builds to a thrilling July 4 battle, they absolutely understood not just how to cater to American audiences, but built a blockbuster that had enough action to make it the must-see film worldwide. Their screenplay traffics in stereotypes, cliches and ridiculous coincidences, but it’s also brilliantly constructed in terms of structure, the way it presents exposition, and gives its actors a way for their strongest traits as performers to come through. It makes all the sense in the world that Will Smith became one of the biggest stars in the world after this, and he and Jeff Goldblum in the third act are still one of the best teams in movie history. They learned the best lessons from “Star Wars”, “Raiders of the Lost Ark” and “Jurassic Park”; no wonder even Steven Spielberg recognized that they had changed the blockbuster game, as has been related in a recent oral history about the film to commemorate its 25th anniversary.
I’ve been watching “Independence Day” as I’ve written this, and all the emotions I’ve had during this movie since 1996 continue to come through. There’s a sincerity in this film that makes every moment, from Steven Hiller saying “Now that’s what I call a close encounter” to the famous speech by Bill Pullman’s President Whitmore, still carry weight or make us laugh. Seeing the White House and Empire States Building get blown up is alternately thrilling and horrifying- that’s why it connects with us. There are wonderful moments of special effects that are still tremendous now- one thing that hasn’t dated in this movie is how the VFX look, that and a soundtrack by David Arnold that is as inspiring and heroic as anything a composer has written for a movie.
1996 is a weird movie year in a lot of ways, but it also predicted how a lot of summers moving forward would look. Or at least the best ones. That makes it a significant year, even if- upon first glance- it doesn’t really look like it. Even in 1996, I was able to recognize that.
1996: The Movies and Me
1996 Movies: Kidnapping Audiences
1996 Movies: The “Indie” Oscars
Viva La Resistance!
Brian Skutle
www.sonic-cinema.com
