The alien invasion genre has made a bit of a comeback in the past couple years. Recent entries to the genre have varied from brilliant(District 9) to terrible (Skyline, in fairness I haven't seen it, but I have heard horrible things.) Battle: Los Angeles falls smack dab in the middle when comes to alien invasion films.
In August 2011, suspicious meteors enter the earth's atmosphere. The military is confused at the presence of these meteors. They are like nothing they have seen before. Before long, the earth's major cities are being attacked by aliens. Los Angeles is the last major city standing in California and it's up to Marine Staff Sergeant Michael Nantz (Aaron Eckhart) and his platoon to stop the alien force and save the city of Los Angeles.
Battle: Los Angeles is a decent movie. It mainly works due to the action sequences. The action sequences are intense and pretty suspenseful. You feel like you are in the middle of this intergalactic war. The shaky camera works really well here. Shaky Cam really varies in effectiveness, it works wonders here due to the complete chaos of the alien invasion. The acting is decent as well. The movie is mainly focused on the action, but Aaron Eckhart especially does a pretty good as the lead.
What prevents Battle: Los Angeles from being great is the script. There is a ton of plot holes. Next to nothing is explained and everything just happens way too fast. On top of the plot holes, there is a ton of corny dialogue. I mean some of the lines are so cheesy you can't help but laugh out loud. I don't get how a professional screenwriter could think these were good lines, the dialogue is mind-numbing.
Overall Battle: Los Angeles is worth seeing. It has some flaws in the script, but it still manages to be a pretty decent movie. It's entertaining and the intensity of the action scenes make for up the lesser moments. Battle: Los Angeles is nothing special, but it should please fans of the alien invasion genre.
3/5 Stars
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