Movie: Battle: Los Angeles
Cast: Aaron Eckhart, Michelle Rodriguez, Michael Peria
Yet another story of aliens visiting our earth. They are armed with powerful and sophisticated firearms to destroy anything and everything. Introduction of a man and his son in the midst of a bunch of Marines promptly reminds one of Alistair MacLean's novel made into a movie years ago and we know for sure the father would soon become a target of the aliens.
Saving the world
These and other clichéd situations are really dull and drab, taking away the viewers' interest. How the Hollywood men get their act together to successfully counter the aliens and eliminate them (it has to happen, how can the Americans ever lose?) forms the story.
Director Jonathan Liebesman's effort of capturing scenes with hand-held cameras, actors huffing and puffing with their grime covered faces and special effects just fail to provide the desired momentum. It's just serious stuff right from the word ‘go' and with no interval. The abrupt break — intermission — that was there appeared to be a deliberate one bowing to traditional movie world compulsions.
Even the actors feel sick of being in such contrived situations and one of their dialogues aptly sums up the feeling of the viewers too when he quips he would rather do duty in Afghanistan than be there. It's all sound and fury entertaining none, is how I would sum up the two hour ordeal I underwent seeing the movie.
Bottomline: “Move on, move on” are mouthed very often in the movie and I wait for the credits to come on before moving out of the theatre.
M.S.VAIDYANATHAN, Working Professional.
