Ok, so the first and biggest thing that came to my mind when I saw the trailer for this movie "is this going to be like Independence Day?" Actually that's not true, the first thing that came to mind was "hey, there's Aaron Eckhart in an action movie, that should be pretty cool." I am admittedly something of a fan of Mr. Eckhart ever since he starred in a movie you may or may not have heard of called Thank you for smoking. I had the feeling from that point on that he had the chops to be a leading man in a bigger production, the opportunity just hadn't presented itself. So then Battle: Los Angeles came along and he got his chance to be the leading man in a summer blockbuster that came out..........before the beginning of spring I guess.
So here's the rundown: no Battle LA is not ID4 (Independence Day). From the very beginning Battle LA is intense and dramatic, there is very little time for pause or taking spare breaths. The film doesn't rush, but the pacing does feel a bit on the fast side, like it can't wait to get from one scene to the next. However, that's a very good thing when you're making a movie that has desperation, fear, anxiety, and the rigors of war as its major themes. There are a few moments when the movie has a brush with being cheesy in some of the dialogue, but even then it still shines because the dialogue is still well written and well delivered by Aaron Eckhart (damn that man and his handsome jaw line).
Independence day fell flat a bit in my opinion because it was supposed to be this big epic battle, but you had all this side distraction crap and shmaltzy acting in the middle of everything, or rather on top of everything. In Battle LA, there are still personal elements, but they're played out so much more smoothly as the movie progresses. The film never lets you forget that it's set in the middle of a major war zone. Even though it s a war against aliens, that's not really the big draw. The big draw is that an embattled force of brave souls is up against a superior foe and the odds are not in their favor. As Americans, we love underdogs coming up from seemingly impossible odds, it's a part of our culture. So this movie isn't about humans vs. aliens in some big "what if" scenario, it's about courage and valor in the face of incredible adversity. The fact that aliens are involved really seems to be a sort of secondary element in my opinion.
So final word: get your summer blockbuster fix early and see Battle: Los Angeles
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