Bill Pullman's speech near the end of the original Independence Day has become an iconic scene in movie history. It's not surprising that the movie has become part of the pop culture lexicon, however, the places where the film gets referenced do seem to get a bit strange. Case in point, Pullman himself says that he once saw a reference to President Whitmore scrawled, out of all places, on a wall in the middle of nowhere. You can hear the man himself describe his discovery in the video below.
Today is the Fourth of July, so it's fitting that the most famous scene from the film Independence Day would be discussed. And discussed it was, courtesy of a new video released on the Independence Day: Resurgence Twitter feed. This video looks back at the impact that the speech given by Bill Pullman's President Andrew Whitmore has had, and how iconic that moment has become in two decades of circulation. Pullman himself says that he's seen videos of people performing the speech at weddings, but the strangest place that he saw how much the film had resonated with people, was in the following scenario:
I went to a bathroom in this ghost town and there, carved into the wood, was Whitmore For President. I remember thinking 'How did it penitrate to this place, that movie?'
It's impossible to think of the movie Independence Day without thinking of that speech. Just before the remaining military forces of the world are about to make an assault on the alien threat, the President of the United States gives a speech to the assembled fighters. The people he's talking to are Americans, and so the fact that the fight takes place of the Fourth of July is meant to have a special significance to them.
However, what makes the speech so great is that it's not about fighting simply on behalf of one nation, but all of them. It puts forth the idea that if they are successful, the Fourth of July will almost cease to have meaning as an American holiday, because it will become the day that the entire world achieved freedom. If you know the words, then say them along with the video of that landmark speech below.
As odd as it is, finding Whitmore for President carved into a bathroom stall does show just how far Independence Day has come. Of all the graffiti that somebody could have put there, for whatever reason, they chose a reference to this particular movie. And even more specifically, they used Bill Pullman's commander in chief being the avatar for their message. You can't make this stuff up!
Will you be celebrating Independence Day by watching Independence Day? In addition to reliving the past glory of the intergalactic saga, you can also hit the theater and go see Independence Day: Resurgence. It could use the help, as the sequel doesn't seem to be resonating with people the way the original movie did. Note to Fox: add more Whitmore speeches to the Blu-ray extended cut.
