ID4: The Marty Lipton Story

Apparently, we’re not the only ones with a not so secret man-crush on kingpin M&A lawyer, Marty Lipton. Sir Marty has become a cultural icon engrained in the American psyche. He has become a symbol of all that is American. Proof positive of his popularity is the fact that over the past 25 years, there have been at least a dozen Marty Lipton inspired Hollywood films. One that comes to mind is the 1996 blockbuster and Oscar winner, Independence Day.

Grossing $816,969,268 at the box office, Independence Day, or ID4 as it is slickly referred to, proves that Marty Lipton and his edge of the seat theatrics appeal to a diverse audience, not just Wall Street suits, international financiers, and economic wonks. That’s right, America paid close to a billion dollars to stuff their collective pie holes with popcorn and experience a small slice of that which is Marty Lipton.

ID4 (Which makes perfect sense if you think about it) is a thinly veiled homage to Marty Lipton. It is the story of one brave man who rebuffed a hostile takeover of epic proportions using nothing more than his raw wits and yes, a poison pill! After several large extra terrestrial (pill shaped) disks engulf earth’s major cities, cable repair man David Levinson (superbly played by Jeff Goldblum) has the foresight to realize that what at first appears to be a friendly tender offer, is really a hostile takeover. As the plot unfolds, it is reveled that the acquirer is determined to “liquidate” earth of all its recourses before moving on to its next “target.” In the process, the “looters” have no qualms about issuing “pink slips” to the human race.

When mankind is unable to fend of the acquirer with convention weapons, Levinson takes matters into his own hands. In the final showdown, ID4’s “white knight” covertly infiltrates the raiders “parent” ship and successfully fends off the takeover plot by uploading a computer virus (a “Poison Pill”). So simple yet so elegant.

Not only is ID4 a thrilling roller coaster ride through a day in the life of Marty Lipton, it removes all doubt as to whether Marty Lipton could quash an invasion of aliens in spaceships several miles in diameter and armed to the teeth with green lasers.