Not a sequel says Independence Day director

LOS ANGELES — German film director Roland Emmerich cemented his place in Hollywood history on Monday with a hand and footprint ceremony before rolling out the red carpet for the premiere of his latest action movie Independence Day: Resurgence.

Emmerich, known for films like White House Down, The Patriot and Independence Day, left imprints of his hands and feet in cement at the famed TLC Chinese Theater.

“Naturally, I’m very emotional about it,” he said. “This is more like being part of Hollywood history and this is happening to someone… born in Stuttgart, Germany. It is truly something.”

Emmerich’s latest movie follows the 1996 alien invasion hit Independence Day. Starring original cast members Jeff Goldblum and Bill Pullman as well as new additions like Liam Hemsworth.

While, the aliens may be back, Emmerich said earlier this month that Independence Day: Resurgence is too different from the 1996 blockbuster science fiction adventure to be considered a sequel.

“It is now 20 years later since the world has been rebuilt and it has tried to get prepared for a new attack; there is a new generation however, many of the old guard are back as well,” Emmerich told reporters about the film in Berlin.

“It is rather a continuation than a sequel because sequels you do after two or three years, and often it is not that different. I think this film is very different from the first.”

“I play a young fighter pilot who has got his wings clipped and as punishment is now working on (a) moon base … for the earth space defense system,” Hemsworth told Reuters on his role. — Reuters

Twenty years following an attempted alien invasion, Earth must once again band together to face an extraterrestrial threat in Independence Day: Resurgence. “The main thing consumers will be looking for from Resurgence is bang-for-buck entertainment, and that it delivers reasonably successfully,” writes the Hollywood Reporter’s Leslie Felperin. Meanwhile, Jason Solomons of TheWrap opines: “While it would be foolish to say Independence Day: Resurgence lacks spectacle, scene after scene of the stuff becomes repetitive due to its victimless violence. It feels like no one ever gets hurt, despite the destruction of half the planet.”

MTRCB Rating: PG