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Rating: 3.5***

Directed By: Jonathan Liebsman

Starring:

Michelle Rodriguez
Ramon Rodriguez
Bridget Moynahan
Ne-Yo
Michael Pena

Battle: Los Angeles is a film of epic proportion. It does not settle for anything less. It has an epic John Wayne hero in Aaron Eckhart. His  character concludes that he wants to leave the service, and epically says that all the promotions and the glory was an interest of  the past. The film has an epic young Platoon leader, Lieutenant that Michael Nantz. The film has epic aliens which are so various that we often think they came from a planet which was epically advanced. So advanced that they lack the usual lobes of the brain, and ordinary organs. They have an epic Command and Control which like an elevated island. The film has epic scenes of sacrifice from a to-be father and a civilian. It has epic close-ups filled with as much emotional intensity as a McDonald’s meal has calories. Aaron Eckhart looks at Corporal Jason Lockett, and epically remembers his fallen brothers information that you assume he had committed identity theft. It has an epically intriguing and well-developed hypothesis (NOT) about why the aliens are attacking the globe, and firstly Los Angeles. I may be the loner in this, but I believe they were hunting for Walt Disney’s Oscars.

Before  Staff Sargent Michael Nantz can retire, he must undergo this last mission which unlike his last, is larger than a middle eastern country-it involves the entire planet. Under young Lieutenant William Martinez, their Platoon is supposed to empty the city before the bomb raid against the belligerent aliens can begin. Unfamiliar with the enemy, obviously, this turns out to be a larger than life mission which the faith of the platoon is dependent on a handful of men.

The first paragraph was fun to write, but it also rings true about the spirit of this movie. This film is meant to be seen on a largescreen-theater or huge TV. The film maybe spends about a minute and a half giving us a half hearted hypothesis concerning the point of this invasion-from the view of a CNN correspondent. This film is visual candy. It is explosions of the highest order given to you from Jonathan Liebesman who in private must admire Michael Bay, or know that he is indebted to the master’s mindless action. Like Pearl Harbor which took itself too seriously, with its clichéd dialogue that was inspirational in the fifties, I believe that Battle: Los Angeles thinks it’s a love letter to the men and woman who serve selflessly, and with so much responsibilities back home are still willing to sacrifice their existence for their country and its glory. Like many similar films, this is wishful thinking. The film knows deep down it is their to entertain, and that’s all it does, and does it well. Very few films can escape my writer’s mind with such a minimal plot, and still make me enjoy them thoroughly. This does because of two elements: the swift, engaging action scenes, and Aaron Eckhart.

The film knows that the key to its success are the actions sequences, and it does not disappoint. The action is swift, fun, engaging, and often believable. No superhuman emerges that can put this aliens in their place-this is not a battle of wits versus brute identifiable power. From Nantz to the civilians, everyone is lucky and fortunate to survive. The film does not hide the fact that the alien forces are superior in their arsenal, and were it not for an eventual revelation from Nantz, they would destroy us and inhabit our planet. To its most minute details, the film is realistic about the faith of our characters. Michael Nantz does not survive because he is superior to the rest of the Platoon, but besides being and courageous side, he was very lucky. So, were the rest of the survivors. However, even the men who are unlucky, pass on because of their bravery. Were it not for courage, Joe Rincon would have darted out of the alien’s way, and grown old watching his son become an adult. He chose the less glamorous way, but one which showcased his selflessness in front of everyone.

The other element is the indispensible Aaron Eckhart. On a review of Basic Instinct 2, Roger Ebert said (I’m paraphrasing) that only someone of Sharon Stone’s caliber could play this cardboard seductress. In the same vain, I don’t believe anyone but Eckhart could stare into the camera and deliver his lines with so much enthusiasm and seriousness. It is not often difficult to be authentic in serious drama, but when dealing with a cheesy alien invasion like this, only an absolutely phenomenal actor can pull of a good and convincing performance. Besides being emotionally suitable for the role, Eckhart disheveled look also fits a man who tired of conflict and war, is sprung into of the most barbarous military encounters. The other performances, including Michele Rodríguezes’, are also authentic, but the weight of the film is on the shoulder’s of Eckhart.

Though the film at times takes itself too seriously, deep down it knows who its out to service and entertain, and it delivers for the audience. Critics have not been harsh on this film, for there are serious gaps in the plot, to be honest. For example, the alien’s reasons for invading earth is not implausible, but it so marginally discussed that one tends to believe that it seems to be taken from the first draft. However, I don’t believe that the makers were oblivious to the problems, but they seem to have embraced the shortcomings. Often when filmmakers embrace underdeveloped aspects of the script, and emphasize other secondary elements, it can come off as lazy and boorish. Yet, here, the action is so well done, and the characters are so believably cheesy, that it appears like they hit their goal of entertaining the masses on a Saturday afternoon.