Battle: Los Angeles -- Film Review

THE NINJA vs BATTLE: LOS ANGELES (2011)

I’m going to go ahead and inform the obvious: Battle: Los Angeles is as fresh as a pair of dirty boxers in a drawer of other dirty boxers. It’s sort of like watching any film that set in World War II, as in we get the same concept that Nazi’s are the villains, the Allied Forces were the good guys, and good ol’ Adolf Hitler and friends get their asses kicked in, eventually. The only major difference between these films in this backdrop in history? Different squad, different battlefield, same bloody war. The concept of aliens invading Earth to (naturally) harvest our natural resources or our brains – whatever the case – and all of humanity sets aside their differences to send E.T. packing back to the far side of the Milky Way, is a parallel one.

Now that we are done with the topic concerning originality, the challenge remains for Battle Los Angeles: how does it compared to such other dirty boxers like mega-hits Independence Day. Overall, about the same.

The story is very forthright. Aliens invade Earth, under the guise of crashing meteorites. They want our water (surprise, surprise) and they intend to kill off the human race to get it. The US Marines, the finest examples of American patriotism and can-do G.I. Joe mentality that can be asked for, are immediately dispatched to combat the threat. Forced out prematurely from retirement, Staff Sergeant Muntz (Aaron Eckhart) leads a squad to evacuate civilians from the Santa Monica district before a bombing operation blows the place to high hell, destroying the aliens. The film does not try hard to flesh out any characters save for Muntz, and probably for the best considering how most of these soldiers are picked off quite quickly throughout, with any screen time dedicated to such people shouting military jargon.

Naturally, the lack of complex storytelling allows the film to focus more on the carnage presented in the film. And carnage is plentiful, and rarely without a dull moment between heart-racing gunfights. It’s just too bad that we can’t watch this without the jarring camera shots. I’ve watched Cloverfield, District 9, and Black Hawk Down, all movies notorious among critics for the intentional “shaky camera” and had little complaints. We’re talking almost on par with both Transformers films, here. If nothing else, this is my biggest quip with the film. I understand that shaky cameras can add to a chaotic scene, but what I wouldn’t give to be able to grab the camera and force it steady.

The Bottom Line: Modestly delivers on what it aims for – aliens, Marines with firepower, and the chaos that ensues when worlds collide. Whatever morsels of storytelling are wedged between is just enough to remind audiences that they are rooting for the humans, and the frantic firefights, shaky cams, and explosions do the rest of the talking.