Occasionally a trailer comes along that really gets you excited about a film, and wows you in a way you weren’t expecting. Just about everything I’ve seen from BATTLE: LOS ANGELES has looked great, and felt like we were in for a gritty and no nonsense alien invasion epic. Last year at San Diego Comic-Con there was plenty of advertising to be seen, though I couldn’t help but wonder why the marketing guys didn’t push for the film to be BATTLE: SAN DIEGO instead… especially since all the battleships dock at the San Diego harbor anyway. Just imagine the crossover promotion they could have had with the world’s biggest pop culture event. But alas, L.A. it is. And as I said, this was a movie that had me excited from the word go. But with great anticipation can sometimes come great disappointment.

The film opens in the thick of the attack, showing us a troop of Marines armed for battle waiting in a helicopter, as explosions and carnage takes place around them. We then flashback several hours earlier, as Staff Sgt. Michael Nantz (Aaron Eckhart) is jogging on the beach, and coming to grips with the fact that his age is catching up with him. Soon after he’s given his retirement papers, and we learn through exposition that his late tour of battle ended with many of his men losing their lives. One by one we’re introduced to various Marines: Corporal Jason Lockett (Cory Hardrict) is the bitter brother to one of Rantz’s fallen soldiers, Corporal Nick Stavrou (Gino Anthony Pesi) seems to be ready for battle at any second, Pfc. Shaun Lenihan (Noel Fisher) is the young and inexperienced of the group, Cpl. Kevin Harris (Ne-Yo) is the newly engaged officer, Corpsman Jibril Adukwu (Adetokumboh M’Cormack) is the Nigerian doctor, LCpl. Peter Kerns (Jim Parrack) is one step away from shellshock, Cpl. Lee Imlay (Will Rothhaar) is the highly dedicated whatever-is-necessary guy, LCpl. Richard Guerrerro (Neil Brown Jr.) is the wise-cracking smooth guy… you get the idea.

During these introductions, we see on the news reports there’s a meteor shower headed for earth. Once our Marines are called in for a briefing, it’s revealed that meteor shower is not what it appears. Within minutes it seems Earth finds itself under attack from alien invaders, and their highly advanced weaponry is more than our armed forces can handle. Sgt. Rantz is brought out of retirement to assist a younger and much less-experienced commanding officer, 2nd Lt. William Martinez (Ramon Ramirez), leading a squadron of the various Marines we’ve met up until now. Martinez and Rantz’s team are assigned to reach a police station, where survivors are believed to be holed up. But this may be a suicide mission, and many portions of the earth appear to already be overrun.

Imagine BLACK HAWK DOWN meets INDEPENDENCE DAY, and somewhere in there you’ve got BATTLE: LOS ANGELES… though sadly, like BLACK HAWK DOWN there’s little character development or emotion to invest ourselves in, and unlike INDEPENDENCE DAY there’s no moments of humor of levity to relax the audience. Instead this film throws you into fierce and gritty battle, and never really gives us a chance to get to know our heroes, much less care about them. Put quite simply, there’s no heart or soul in the movie, and ultimately that’s the downfall. Aaron Eckhart tries very hard to make his character layered and interesting, but the material just isn’t there. Some scenes, like a moment where he’s trying to figure out exactly how to kill the intruders by repeatedly stabbing a captured alien… just comes across as silly and over the top. Bridget Moynahan and Michael Pena appear to attempt adding a less-miltiary and more human element, but like most of the actors are given very little to work with. Michelle Rodriguez shows up as the tough female soldier (I know, shocking), but has little more to do than tell the guys she can keep up with their machismo. This is one of those films where when people die, you as the audience have nothing invested in them, so it’s hard to feel much when they’re gone.

That’s not to say the spectacle of it all isn’t impressive, because it is. The special effects are nothing short of spectacular, and the action sequences are intense and effective. But all of it is hollow, and after a while a bit tedious. Director Jonathan Liebesman has crafted what would work quite well as a motivational sci-fi film for Marines, complete with more inspirational speeches than you can shake a stick at, but as entertainment for moviegoers he’s dropped the ball. It should also be noted that the incredibly excessive use of shaky camerawork came close to making me nauseous multiple times. I’m not sure when the last time was I walked out of a theater this let down based on what I went in hoping for. As an action movie or sci-fi film, there’s a few rewards in BATTLE: LOS ANGELES, but only if you can look past the glaring faults of the overall presentation.

Be Sociable, Share!

• 
•