WI: The movie "Independence Day" in 1984

Let's say that a movie with a plot line similar to that of the 1996 film Independence Day was made in 1984. In this movie massive alien space ships blow up every major city on earth. A hacker finds out a way to get through their shields, A black pilot marries his striper girlfriend, before taking out the mother ship on a stolen alien space craft, while the young president, watching his wife die, goes gets in a fighter jet for the first time in years and attacks one of the alien ships, while all over the world every country is joined together in the common cause of killing all the aliens. also the name and date are kept the same, and it's given the same kind of budget. How do people in the 80s react to the movie?
 
Well, due to it being shot 12 years earlier there would probably be mostly different actors so that could change things (What was Will Smith doing in 1984? I'm to lazy to look it up.), but assuming the acting and special effects were similar to OTL, I think the public's reaction would be similar. Some people might find it unrealistic for the world to unite in the face of the alien threat, especially at the height of the cold war (an alliance with the commies!? :eek:), but that's a fairly minor difference.
 
It becomes a hot election non-issue. The Conservative press lambasts it for its pro-communist and sleezy tendencies. The liberals lift it up for its black hero and for showing that all men can band together if they want.
 
Lots of flashing lights on the alien space ships, a catcchy little tune used to communicate- mass destruction... Danny Glover as the pilot? Eddie Murphy goes serious ala Will Smith... Richard Dreyfuss as the drunk broken down Grenada veteran, well, I guess stick with Vietnam, or make someone older a Korean fighter pilot. There were some cheesy 80s movies with the Reds and US teaming up, just can't remember them.
 
Well, due to it being shot 12 years earlier there would probably be mostly different actors so that could change things (What was Will Smith doing in 1984? I'm to lazy to look it up.), but assuming the acting and special effects were similar to OTL, I think the public's reaction would be similar. Some people might find it unrealistic for the world to unite in the face of the alien threat, especially at the height of the cold war (an alliance with the commies!? :eek:), but that's a fairly minor difference.

High School or starting his Rap career.
 
No real big impact. It's just a movie and not that much of an original one. Something to watch for the visual effects and the violence but not of any true great importance.
 
For some reason I took this to mean what if ID happened in the 1984 universe.
Major differences. The ending where America Fuck Yeah saves the world would have Soviets and Nato fighters instead of Israeli and Saudi fighters working together.
 
It becomes a hot election non-issue. The Conservative press lambasts it for its pro-communist and sleezy tendencies. The liberals lift it up for its black hero and for showing that all men can band together if they want.

Actually I might see Reagan using this movie for his reelection campaign as a "patriotic" movie.
 
If it came out in 1984, it would probably end up tied closer to Star Wars, at least in some visual/effects choices and marketing plan. We'd be hot on the heels of return of the Jedi, and any studio greenlighting a science fiction movie would be trying to capitalize off of it.

So maybe we'd see Billy Dee Williams in the Will Smith role? Already too old?
 
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