With summer in full swing, we’re seeing a lot of really big-budget action movies. We’ve already gotten Captain America: Civil War, X-Men, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Warcraft out of the gate. July’s creeping up on us as is the Fourth of July, otherwise known as Independence Day. It’s a bit of a big day for the United States. People are going to be out celebrating, camping and going to the movies. I figure now’s the best time to start celebrating some of my favorite directors. Speaking of Independence Day, German director Roland Emmerich is rolling out the red carpet for his follow-up to the 1996 box-office smash, Independence Day. I will be discussing that film a little later, but suffice to say, that was a hugely popular movie. Roland Emmerich has made a name for himself by crafting some of the most spectacular disaster movies over the past 20 years. For this series of The Best, I’m going to discuss some his best movies. Let’s start, shall we? This is The Best Directors: Roland Emmerich.
Universal Soldier
Starring Jean-Claude Van Damme and Dolph Lundgren, Universal Soldier was the sleeper hit of 1992. I don’t think anybody really saw this one coming. While it didn’t really set the box-office on fire, it did moderately well. The story is that you have two Vietnam-era soldiers who killed each other during the war, that find themselves brought back to life because of a secret government project. Problem is, Van Damme’s character has flashbacks, and Lundgren is a complete psychopath. This was probably one of the funnest movies during the early 90’s. It was certainly violent, but it was awesome. Dolph Lundgren stole the show as Sgt. Andrew Scott. It was a wild ride.
Stargate
Following on the heels of Universal Soldier, Roland Emmerich stunned the world with his first major box-office hit, Stargate. With an original story that takes place millions of light years away from Earth, Stargate features an all-star cast with Kurt Russell and James Spader taking the helm, and the results were absolutely phenomenal. You had great special effects, great costume designs and amazing sets. All of this is set to an epic soundtrack by composer David Arnold. The grand and epic scale of the film made it an absolute blast to watch, and had some really good performances. This movie also spawned an expanded universe featuring books, comics, several TV series including Stargate SG-1. The word on ‘net is that Roland Emmerich is working on a reboot of the film, which supposedly allows him and Dean Devlin to tell the story that they really wanted to tell. That’s a ways off, however. Still, Stargate is a phenomenal science fiction film.
Independence Day
In 1996, there were few movies that were as large and bombastic as Independence Day. This was the movie that people really wanted to see. With an ensemble cast which included Jeff Goldblum, Bill Pullman, Robert Loggia, Brent Spiner, Randy Quaid, and Judd Hirsch, the star power in the film was enormous. However, Independence Day kickstarted the film career of Will Smith, who would go on to have an astounding career as a leading man. He had the acting chops, the charisma and comic timing. Independence Day ended up being the biggest movie of the year. Yeah, the story wasn’t particularly original, but its execution was superb. Roland Emmerich basically turned a conventional alien invasion flick into a disaster movie, and the results were explosive. The film actually won an Oscar for best visual effects. This was one of the last movies in the 90’s to feature models and miniatures as much as it did. It employed nearly every single visual effect trick in the book, and it’s STILL fun to watch. Yeah, the movie’s got its haters, but I love it, and the rest of the world loved it too. It’s been nearly 20 years since the film came out, and now we have a sequel that will be released on Friday, the 24th of June. Bring it on, baby.
The Patriot
Not all of Roland Emmerich’s movies were about disasters or alien invasions. The Patriot was a look at a family during the height of the American Revolution. While this particular story is fictional, the events surrounding it are not. While there are big and epic battle sequences, the film focused more on the characters during this time. Mel Gibson plays Benjamin Martin, a former soldier who has seen some horrible things, trying to make a living by making rocking chairs. All of that changes when the Revolution reaches his doorstep and one of his children ends up a casualty. The film is an emotional roller coaster, with Mel Gibson delivering one of his finest performances ever. Roland Emmerich wisely doesn’t go over the top with spectacle, but it is a violent movie and earns it R-rating. The cast is loaded with star power, featuring Jason Isaacs, Heath Ledger, Chris Cooper, and Tom Wilkinson. This was an astounding film is probably Roland Emmerich’s best effort to date.
2012
It seems to me that Roland Emmerich keeps trying to top himself when it comes to disaster movies. He really outdid himself here. A lot of people call Mr. Emmerich the master of disaster, and 2012 definitely proves it. When it comes to destroying the world, few people do it as well as he can. This is a special effects film, through and through. It takes about 40 or so minutes before things go haywire, but when they do……wow. The entire California sequence is mind-blowing. The eruption of Yellowstone was also freaking amazing. I consider 2012 to be one of the most epic disaster movies ever made. If you can ignore the “science” behind the movie, you’ll have a great time. With awesome actors like John Cusack, Chiwatel Ejiofor, Oliver Platt, and Woody Harrelson, there’s a lot to like here, I think.
While Roland Emmerich made more movies than what I’ve listed here, they weren’t as good or as memorable. With Independence Day: Resurgence literally right around the corner, Roland Emmerich has proven that he’s one of the most interesting directors alive, because he knows how to film action and bring good performances to otherwise wooden characters. I honestly can’t wait to see what this guy has up his sleeves.