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Roland Emmerich

White House Down – Roland Emmerich (2013)

  • action

There is nothing that I really want to see on my usual channels, so it is not too bad that there are some Hollywood blockbusters that I had not yet seen, but which are not all that bad. “White House Down” is one such.

The USA has a black president and he plans to leave the Middle East in order to be able to invest money that now goes to wars to battle poverty. Resistance rises both within politics and outside, such as the “gun lobby”. An elaborate plan is conducted to have a straw man as president.

Ex military man Cale finds himself in the White House when a heavily armed troupe comes to take over. Of course Cale turns out to be a one man army who will take back control. With a little help of his daughter and the president.

The story may not be all that surprising, but it develops nicely. What was going to be a quick takeover turns out to be mayhem, so the movie becomes more and more of an action film with shootings, bombings and crashing helicopters.

Independence Day: Resurgence – Roland Emmerich (2016)

I am sure that I saw the 1996 original, but do not remember much of it. The follow up has so many references back, though, that things have come back.

20 Years after the original film, the world still celebrates the victory over the alien invaders of 1996. A new attack follows on that very day though and some people from the previous victory are brought back to fight the new danger.

“ID: Resurgence” has all elements of a corny Hollywood spectacle. The action is overwhelming, there are bad jokes in scenes with high tension, obligatory romance, good-looking heroes and of course a big dose of American nationalism. The story is thin and I do not find the CGI really groundbreaking.

So, this second ID film is a typical Hollywood production. Not badly done but in not a single way surprising. A typical film for a night with brainless action.

Anonymous * Roland Emmerich (2011)

It has been a point of controversy for some time, did William Shakespeare write the things that made fame with his name? Emmerich (the director of several blockbusters) took one theory that he did not and worked this out into “Anonymous”. It is hard to say anything about the film without giving away that theory, but the box already does give it away. In any case, Shakespeare’s name appeared quite by accident according to Emmerich. It had been a while since I saw a costume film and I must say that I like the genre, especially when it looks as elaborate as this film. Queen Elizabeth is old, the intrigues around her follow-up are in full swing so you also get a bit of history. You also get a pick into the earliest form of mass-media, theatre, and the way the authorities try to keep grip on the thoughts of the common man. The film jumps back and forth in time and I sometimes had troubles telling who was who, but the film is very well done and the whole Shakespeare controversy is only a part of an interesting historical film.