10 Most Gratuitous Citywide Destructions In Movie History

Perhaps the single most indelible image in the history of disaster movies - an alien ray devastating the White House - the key money shot in Roland Emmerich's destruction-heavy invasion thriller is only the first salvo in the subsequent sacking of the nation's capital, as the District of Columbia meets its maker in explosive fashion.

Glass structures shattered, cars sent sprawling by the shockwaves, fire racing through the streets - all the big hallmarks are here and here with panache at that. It's a particularly breathtaking spectacle nearly twenty-five years later, especially in a genre whose CGI-glut can sometimes seem particularly anonymous.

The German director gives it all a surprisingly tangible kick - and it reverberates throughout, as Air Force One rises in its attempts to escape the turmoil beneath.