Battle: Los Angeles (B+)

I would not describe Battle: Los Angeles as particularly original, but it definitely avoids the unoriginality of your average alien action flick. This makes for a pleasant movie-going experience.

A senior Marine officer disliked and depressed from an unsuccessful mission that resulted in many deaths, Michael Nantz (Aaron Eckhart) is getting ready to retire when the world is attacked by hordes of aliens and he must reenter battle to rescue civilians from a soon to be bombed Los Angeles. Adding to the trouble is the fact that a lower ranking soldier (Cory Hardrict) is the brother of one of the men KIA on Nantz’s last mission.

It is quite rare that a modern action movie—especially one involving soldiers—refrains from blaming the government for every problem that is facing the soldiers. It has gotten to the point where audiences just expect their action flick to remind us that any disaster encountered onscreen (and, in implication, in the real world too) is directly related to the authorities, be it alien invasion, Mayan apocalypse, or unfortunate break-up.

The CIA created Alzhiemer’s in order to steal oil from the Na’vi.

Writer Christopher Bertolini (The General’s Daughter) and Director Jonathan Liebesman (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning; The Killing Room) manage to make a movie that portrays the military as neither pirates nor misguided drones, but brave warriors fighting for what they believe in. Without having to take time to explain why the CIA wants to have Los Angeles get an alien infestation, the movie is able to put in some nice themes on taking action and being heroic. It leaves you with a good feeling afterwards, and hints that maybe it isn’t all about violence.

That, of course, is not to say there isn’t fighting. Liebesman at first uses smoke and shakicam to build suspense, showing the confusing setting of entering a battle zone. Then, when the real action begins, it does not stop for the movie’s two hour run time. It lacks variety (just a constant back-and-forth of gunfire), but it is still great fun if you enjoy that sort of thing. Being a teenage guy, I had great fun.

There is one negative aspect to the story, and one that should not be undermined. In a brief scene, a seventeen year old guzzles down alcohol as his slightly older companions cheer him on. The action is not portrayed as particularly wise (he vomits afterwards), but not as a bad choice nor an illegal one. Hopefully no one gets the wrong idea from a scene like this; it is less of a problem than other movies with drinking for the reasons that it is portrayed as something immature, that it is shown for only a moment, and he is a soldier knowing that he will shortly be departing for Afghanistan.

Battle: Los Angeles manages to avoid the most obnoxious clichés and thus is able to be an enjoyable action flick.