Independence Day: Resurgence, A Dose of Counterterrorism Kumbaya?
Earlier last month, the latest trailer was released for Independence Day: Resurgence, the long awaited sequel to the 1996 film by Roland Emmerich, a filmmaker known best for his penchant for boundless cinematic destruction. Set twenty years after the “War of 1996,” that fateful battle between a civilization of menacing extraterrestrials and well…all of Earth, the story appears to focus on how the world has changed in the two decades since mankind came face-to-face with the brink of extinction. Based on the trailer, the good news is, it looks like we turned out alright!
The human race defeated the aliens, put aside silly little differences like geo-political rivalries, ancient religious fissures, and sectarian violence, to build, and re-build, some really cool things. Space-age helicopters that fly without propellers? Check. Fully rebuilt U.S. Capitol? Check. Moon base…oh yeah, you betcha!
But despite all of this scientific and technological progress, it unfortunately looks like the big bad aliens have returned and this time they’re back with a ship that spans the length of the Atlantic Ocean — so large in fact that cinematic national treasure Jeff Goldblum ominously tells us “it has its own gravity!” Raising the bar above his previous films where he has wrought destruction upon national landmarks with everything from alien death rays, earthquakes, and apocalyptic floods — in this movie Roland Emmerich looks like he’s ready to destroy entire cities…by having the aliens drop them right on top of other cities.
Other than giving America some overdue popcorn and Milk Dud entertainment this summer that doesn’t involve anyone wearing a cape or cowl, is there anything that this upcoming film and its predecessor can tell us about homeland security?
Being released five years before the September 11th attacks, Independence Day was a rare kind of alien invasion movie. One of the reasons that this special film still holds up against the test of time is because of its powerful and positive message about the enduring human spirit. Against an imminent existential threat, nations of the world put aside their petty differences, pooled their military resources, and acted in a unified effort to fight for their very right to live.
Although the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) likely doesn’t represent the same scale of an apocalyptic threat posed by an extraterrestrial race armed with city destroying battleships, these two groups take similar delight in sewing death and chaos. In the past, devastating tragedies have been pivot points and reset buttons for international affairs, at times making new allies out of old adversaries. For example, following 9/11 (albeit briefly) the United States and Russia saw violent extremism as a shared threat requiring their combined efforts, forcing a change in the way the U.S. viewed the issue of militant separatism in Chechnya. Opportunities for meaningful collaboration among nation states with a longstanding history of conflict, from Iran and Saudi Arabia to Pakistan and India, should be seized as a consequence of the ongoing effort to degrade and defeat ISIL.
ISIL has inspired well over 90 attacks in over 21 countries worldwide. The terrorist group’s vast network of foreign fighters flows from over 81 nations across the globe. Perhaps it is too much to hope for that a summer movie (alas, without Will Smith) can again offer the world a little glimpse of what we are capable of when humanity unites against a most inhumane foe — then again, maybe its just the reminder we all need. At the very least, Bill Pullman’s climactic speech never fails to inspire.
