Happy 4th of July weekend, everyone! I’ve got one foot out the door heading to the long weekend, so I’m going to let some Youtube clips do most of the heavy lifting. As you’re waiting two hours for your charcoal to get hot enough to grill some hot dogs or you’ve got some time in the hospital waiting room after a fireworks mishap, pull these clips up on your phone and just get all America on everyone around you. Here’s 5 Movie Scenes That Are Sure to Give You a Huge America Boner For the 4th of July.
5. The Patriot
Leave it to an Aussie to bring us the most flag-wavingest war scene in film history. Mel Gibson and Roland Emmerich team up to basically bring us what is essentially Braveheart in America.
4. Field of Dreams
This speech is primarily about baseball, but there’s no denying that the last 150 years of American history has been closely tied to the invention of baseball. This here is one of the best meditations on just how meaningful the national pastime is to our culture.
3. Rocky IV
I just want to run through a goddamn brick wall right now. This was the final death knell of the Cold War and the Soviet Union, all thanks to Rocky Balboa. Rocky took a beating so that people in the former Czechoslovakia could finally get a cassette of the Scorpion’s Blackout album. He probably wound up with CTE, but at what price, glory?
2. The Sandlot
Another baseball moment, but this one is all about the best parts of summer: long days, perfect baseball weather, hot dogs and fireworks. And this moment falls on the birthday of this nation, no less. The Sandlot is a perfect baseball movie, one that captures what a truly remarkable feeling it could be to just grab a glove and spend a whole day on the diamond.
1. Independence Day
Roland Emmerich really loves America. Despite how silly Independence Day is as a whole, this speech just jacks you right up, no matter how self-aware you are. I still mix up Bill Pullman and Bill Paxton from time to time, but I’ll never forget who gave this speech. It’s Bill Paxton, right?
What movies will you be watching this 4th of July weekend? Let us know in the comments or on Twitter.
The Main Damie 