Battle: Los Angeles - Spoiler Thread

[Leisher]

SPOILER THREAD!!!!!

The single most difficult film I've ever had to review. I really, really wanted to love it. It entertained the hell out of me, but wow, I just can't get past how bad the story is from start to finish.

1. Where were all the cops? I don't think I saw a single cop, fireman, or paramedic in the entire film.
2. One helicopter getting shot down doesn't mean the aliens have air superiority. Those slow moving and slow shooting drones would have gotten their asses handed to them by the air force. This is a MAJOR problem because almost the entire film revolves around this plot point.
3. If they were after our water, and could take it fast enough that the oceans were literally dropping in level during the invasion, why'd they bother invading us? Crash a few meteors in the oceans. It'd take us a long time to get there, and by then you'll have taken a bunch of water. Repeat until the oceans are dried up. Do the same with all major bodies of water. Return a year later and we'll all be dead or enough of us to make a takeover much easier.
4. Forcing your troops into a situation where you immediately turn your enemies into guerrillas isn't smart.
5. Nobody thought anything about the meteors was odd until military brass filled them in? Really?
6. In the beginning, the marines had a hard time killing the aliens. Later, they drop them like flies. I don't buy the "now we know where to hit them bullshit". Right of the heart is still center mass. They were hitting them there earlier to no effect.
7. No way should the aliens have been able to take down all those lines of marines and the FOP. Notice no alien bodies were on the ground anywhere? The problem is that the squad we follow does a really good job of leaving an alien body trail. No other marine squad can kill them? Not even a FOP full of marines?
8. Where was the air force? This bugged me a lot. They never showed any dogfights. Plus, the only air force member was Michelle "I'm a cunt" Rodriguez? And her being a Tech Sgt. doesn't mean she's "technical". That drove me nuts. Also, she wouldn't be send on that mission. That's simply not what the Air Force does...well, not the typical grunt. A combat controller would, but she wasn't a combat controller. (Combat Controllers are one of the Air Force's special forces, Pararescue being the other. They train with the SEALs are all bad asses.)
9. No army. No navy. No national guard. WTF?
10. To say the writer(s?) had no clue about military tactics and strategies would be an understatement.
11. That much C4 and the bridge wasn't damaged? Reality?
12. What the fuck was the point of the alien autopsy scene? How did "shoot them in left center mass" magically make them able to kill aliens with a handgun rather than the everyone firing at point blank and we still need a grenade to make sure, which is what they needed earlier in the movie?
13. How the fuck did that command and control unit get into the sewers, let alone underground, without anyone seeing it? How big are the sewers in LA?
14. Military spotters wouldn't need grunts to notice that antenna array. They could spot something like that from photos taken by satellites and spy planes.
15. I'm still wondering why the air strike was called off. Again, where was the Air Force? Helicopter-ish drones don't concern fighter jets.
16. The alien invasion didn't seem to have a plan. Why were they going back through territory they already controlled?
17. Why go after population centers? Why not hit military targets? Why not use your superior technology to nuke us from orbit or strike precise spots that would trigger natural events to decimate our population, cause confusion, and spread out our forces?

I could go on with the flaws in the logic and story of this film. I still though it was entertaining though...

[GORDON]

SPOILER THREAD!!!!!

The single most difficult film I've ever had to review. I really, really wanted to love it. It entertained the hell out of me, but wow, I just can't get past how bad the story is from start to finish.

1. Where were all the cops? I don't think I saw a single cop, fireman, or paramedic in the entire film.
2. One helicopter getting shot down doesn't mean the aliens have air superiority. Those slow moving and slow shooting drones would have gotten their asses handed to them by the air force. This is a MAJOR problem because almost the entire film revolves around this plot point.
3. If they were after our water, and could take it fast enough that the oceans were literally dropping in level during the invasion, why'd they bother invading us? Crash a few meteors in the oceans. It'd take us a long time to get there, and by then you'll have taken a bunch of water. Repeat until the oceans are dried up. Do the same with all major bodies of water. Return a year later and we'll all be dead or enough of us to make a takeover much easier.
4. Forcing your troops into a situation where you immediately turn your enemies into guerrillas isn't smart.
5. Nobody thought anything about the meteors was odd until military brass filled them in? Really?
6. In the beginning, the marines had a hard time killing the aliens. Later, they drop them like flies. I don't buy the "now we know where to hit them bullshit". Right of the heart is still center mass. They were hitting them there earlier to no effect.
7. No way should the aliens have been able to take down all those lines of marines and the FOP. Notice no alien bodies were on the ground anywhere? The problem is that the squad we follow does a really good job of leaving an alien body trail. No other marine squad can kill them? Not even a FOP full of marines?
8. Where was the air force? This bugged me a lot. They never showed any dogfights. Plus, the only air force member was Michelle "I'm a cunt" Rodriguez? And her being a Tech Sgt. doesn't mean she's "technical". That drove me nuts. Also, she wouldn't be send on that mission. That's simply not what the Air Force does...well, not the typical grunt. A combat controller would, but she wasn't a combat controller. (Combat Controllers are one of the Air Force's special forces, Pararescue being the other. They train with the SEALs are all bad asses.)
9. No army. No navy. No national guard. WTF?
10. To say the writer(s?) had no clue about military tactics and strategies would be an understatement.
11. That much C4 and the bridge wasn't damaged? Reality?
12. What the fuck was the point of the alien autopsy scene? How did "shoot them in left center mass" magically make them able to kill aliens with a handgun rather than the everyone firing at point blank and we still need a grenade to make sure, which is what they needed earlier in the movie?
13. How the fuck did that command and control unit get into the sewers, let alone underground, without anyone seeing it? How big are the sewers in LA?
14. Military spotters wouldn't need grunts to notice that antenna array. They could spot something like that from photos taken by satellites and spy planes.
15. I'm still wondering why the air strike was called off. Again, where was the Air Force? Helicopter-ish drones don't concern fighter jets.
16. The alien invasion didn't seem to have a plan. Why were they going back through territory they already controlled?
17. Why go after population centers? Why not hit military targets? Why not use your superior technology to nuke us from orbit or strike precise spots that would trigger natural events to decimate our population, cause confusion, and spread out our forces?

I could go on with the flaws in the logic and story of this film. I still though it was entertaining though...

2. One helicopter getting shot down doesn't mean the aliens have air superiority. Those slow moving and slow shooting drones would have gotten their asses handed to them by the air force. This is a MAJOR problem because almost the entire film revolves around this plot point.

While I agree with your sentiment in general, there was the line, after the alien air support appeared, "Theie air support is lighting us up." Since we learn that the aliens are blowing up anything that sends out a comm signal, that pretty much means aircraft get hit pretty quick. I did think stealth aircraft didn't put out any comms, though..... yeah, plot hole.

3. If they were after our water, and could take it fast enough that the oceans were literally dropping in level during the invasion, why'd they bother invading us? Crash a few meteors in the oceans. It'd take us a long time to get there, and by then you'll have taken a bunch of water. Repeat until the oceans are dried up. Do the same with all major bodies of water. Return a year later and we'll all be dead or enough of us to make a takeover much easier.

I had this same thoughtm or, "Why didnt they just set up shop in the middle of the ocean?" I think it would have made more sense to make the aliens' motivation one of conquest... they want earth to be the next planet subjugated into their empire, so they are taking out the major population centers/military, first. Resource gathering just never makes much sense. Everything on earth is already floating free in the solar system.

4. Forcing your troops into a situation where you immediately turn your enemies into guerrillas isn't smart.

Unless you are overconfident of victory.

5. Nobody thought anything about the meteors was odd until military brass filled them in? Really?

I thought that part was believable... we were shown a small part of the big picture, a squad of Marines. Even they, as busy as they were before they were briefed, turned a worried eye at the TVs as often as they could. I was a little surprised military leadership was as on the ball as they were... Marines were being prepped before the aliens even hit the beaches. It suggested to me... someone knew about this risk ahead of time. The website I linked in the non-spoiler thread supports this.

6. In the beginning, the marines had a hard time killing the aliens. Later, they drop them like flies. I don't buy the "now we know where to hit them bullshit". Right of the heart is still center mass. They were hitting them there earlier to no effect.

Yes, I had a slight problem with this.... I am ignoring it. The first encounter we see the Marine is scared shitless and even though he is hitting, I'm going to just say it was not center mass. And then the alien drops into the pool, and it appears that water is the magic ingredient for their biomechanical technology. So ok. I did really love the grenade in the pool as they walked away, though.

7. No way should the aliens have been able to take down all those lines of marines and the FOP. Notice no alien bodies were on the ground anywhere? The problem is that the squad we follow does a really good job of leaving an alien body trail. No other marine squad can kill them? Not even a FOP full of marines?

I didn't see what happened, so I don't know what happened. Maybe they just all got nerve gassed, or something.

8. Where was the air force? This bugged me a lot. They never showed any dogfights. Plus, the only air force member was Michelle "I'm a cunt" Rodriguez? And her being a Tech Sgt. doesn't mean she's "technical". That drove me nuts. Also, she wouldn't be send on that mission. That's simply not what the Air Force does...well, not the typical grunt. A combat controller would, but she wasn't a combat controller. (Combat Controllers are one of the Air Force's special forces, Pararescue being the other. They train with the SEALs are all bad asses.)

Don't know. Maybe the entire air force was out golfing that day? I admit I was hoping to see some A-10's chewing up some bad guys, but that's something I think about every day of my life, anyway. I had the impression that the chick was in a plane that got shot down, and she was the only survivor, but my ignorance of the AF may have been filling in blanks in my brain.

9. No army. No navy. No national guard. WTF?

Army... who cares. Ineffective. Navy... those big boats don't move that fast, and I think the entire movie lasts about 36 hours.

10. To say the writer(s?) had no clue about military tactics and strategies would be an understatement.

I think they did Marines very well.

11. That much C4 and the bridge wasn't damaged? Reality?

No comment. Don't know the blast force of C-4 versus the engineering strength of a bridge. I do know that no combat engineer would drop a bridge by setting off C4 on the deck, though.

12. What the fuck was the point of the alien autopsy scene? How did "shoot them in left center mass" magically make them able to kill aliens with a handgun rather than the everyone firing at point blank and we still need a grenade to make sure, which is what they needed earlier in the movie?

I liked the vivsection thing. My first thought was, "Aha, we're taking prisoners." But nope. Marines are figuring out how to kill better, ooh rah.

As far as now being able to kill them faster, the site I linked explained 4 classes of aliens, some more armored than others.

13. How the fuck did that command and control unit get into the sewers, let alone underground, without anyone seeing it? How big are the sewers in LA?

Good point, as the area directly above the big ship seemed to be unbroken pavement. Maybe they know to camouflage? Maybe it penetrates and unfolds? Don't know.

14. Military spotters wouldn't need grunts to notice that antenna array. They could spot something like that from photos taken by satellites and spy planes.

Lots of targetting systems still need a target to be lazed... I don't really know why.

15. I'm still wondering why the air strike was called off. Again, where was the Air Force? Helicopter-ish drones don't concern fighter jets.

Don't know. Just more of the big picture we didn't see.

16. The alien invasion didn't seem to have a plan. Why were they going back through territory they already controlled?

Don't know. Maybe we were seeing an alien platoon heading to/from the front lines when our Marines made contact.

17. Why go after population centers? Why not hit military targets? Why not use your superior technology to nuke us from orbit or strike precise spots that would trigger natural events to decimate our population, cause confusion, and spread out our forces?

Don't know. I'd like that answered.

[Leisher]

While I agree with your sentiment in general, there was the line, after the alien air support appeared, "Theie air support is lighting us up." Since we learn that the aliens are blowing up anything that sends out a comm signal, that pretty much means aircraft get hit pretty quick. I did think stealth aircraft didn't put out any comms, though..... yeah, plot hole.

The problem with that is their ships were slow and fired even slower. Locking onto our comms were fine, but they did it so slowly. No way they could track down a jet coming at them at high speed and would fire before they figured it out. Also, we have air to air missiles that can be fired from a hundred miles away and more. So if they were shooting down our air it was with something we weren't shown.

Unless you are overconfident of victory.

Like I said, not smart.

5. Nobody thought anything about the meteors was odd until military brass filled them in? Really?

I thought that part was believable... we were shown a small part of the big picture, a squad of Marines. Even they, as busy as they were before they were briefed, turned a worried eye at the TVs as often as they could. I was a little surprised military leadership was as on the ball as they were... Marines were being prepped before the aliens even hit the beaches. It suggested to me... someone knew about this risk ahead of time. The website I linked in the non-spoiler thread supports this.

A couple of problems here. First, I meant EVERYONE, not just the military. If I saw meteors hitting in specific locations outside of cities like that, it's time to gun up. Second, if the military knew about the enemy, then the minute those asteroids were spotted, they should've notified civilian police and fire what was coming, and they should have had a waiting party. Oh, and shared the info with the rest of the world.

Yes, I had a slight problem with this.... I am ignoring it. The first encounter we see the Marine is scared shitless and even though he is hitting, I'm going to just say it was not center mass. And then the alien drops into the pool, and it appears that water is the magic ingredient for their biomechanical technology. So ok. I did really love the grenade in the pool as they walked away, though.

I knew that grenade was coming too, and loved it. Ok, I'll buy your explanation, BUT you reminded me of another issue. Why were the aliens super fast in the beginning, and then slowed down as the film went on? On the rooftops they were damn near impossible to spot. Later they stood in the open like the AI in a bad video game.

I didn't see what happened, so I don't know what happened. Maybe they just all got nerve gassed, or something.

You know that opens up all sorts of other questions, like why not use that gas everywhere? Why suffer casualties at all. just gas from space or long distance? But, the buildings were destroyed, and there were signs of gun play everywhere. So it wasn't gas. Gas also wouldn't explain what happened to all the other marines that were killed or beaten back to the FOP.

Don't know. Maybe the entire air force was out golfing that day? I admit I was hoping to see some A-10's chewing up some bad guys, but that's something I think about every day of my life, anyway. I had the impression that the chick was in a plane that got shot down, and she was the only survivor, but my ignorance of the AF may have been filling in blanks in my brain.

Ok, IF they had tee times, they might have been golfing. You don't abandon a tee time without a really good reason. And those marines are always shooting their mouths off about how "they can handle it"...

As for the rest of it, maybe she was in a plane, but I didn't get that impression. She said she had a squad. If she had been a combat controller I would have bought them being there, but she wasn't.

Army... who cares. Ineffective. Navy... those big boats don't move that fast, and I think the entire movie lasts about 36 hours.

Well, at least we know the malls were safe, right Cake? I'm kidding!!! As for the navy, the Coast Guard made it, and there are some naval bases on the west coast. They should have had time to bombard the shore or bring in air support.

10. To say the writer(s?) had no clue about military tactics and strategies would be an understatement.

I think they did Marines very well.

That was part of my problem. The did marines VERY well. That tells me they had a marine advising them, but he was most likely a grunt. I love that, but they had no concept of fighting a war. The fact that the other forces were so poorly implemented or not at all backs up my suspicions here. P.S. The coast guard wouldn't park right on top of the landing zone for incoming meteors...

Don't know the blast force of C-4 versus the engineering strength of a bridge.

It would've damaged the deck. Remember, they walked to and stood on the spot where the largest concentration of C4 exploded (a fucking duffel bag full).

I liked the vivsection thing. My first thought was, "Aha, we're taking prisoners." But nope. Marines are figuring out how to kill better, ooh rah.

Spoken like a marine, and I like that, but they could have done this in a much cooler way and spent less time on it. For example, the one in the pool...they all come up and shoot it, but it doesn't go down. However, it is wobbly and unable to fight back. The main guy pulls out his handgun and starts hitting spots until it drops. "Hit them left of center." Then we can move on and maybe fit in another action scene instead of an alien autopsy.

P.S. It really bugged me that they spent so much time on that scene, and immediately blew up and burned other aliens to death. No word on if the flames and concussive force hit them left of center...

Good point, as the area directly above the big ship seemed to be unbroken pavement. Maybe they know to camouflage? Maybe it penetrates and unfolds? Don't know.

Again, I'm not visiting a website (I never saw that website during the advertisements) for the fucking story. If you can't tell me a story in 90 minutes properly, rewrite the damn script or extend the movie. I would've loved more time with this film. Dune really turned people off with their handouts to catch you up on the story when you walked into the theater. We don't need websites doing the same thing. Hell, here's another example of where the alien autopsy could have been cut and they could have shown us HQ folks discussing the aliens.

Lots of targeting systems still need a target to be lazed... I don't really know why.

I think it helps them get accurate down to inches rather than feet. If we're looking at the extinction of the human race, I think a nuke would've hit the target or a tactical nuke or a stealth bomber dropping a MOAB.

Again, I liked the film a LOT when I was watching it. It entertained me enough that I shrugged all this stuff off during the movie, but once those trailers hit they came flooding in...

I'd still recommend it to any action fan, but I'm just pointing out where it was weak and could have been better. Hopefully, they can correct these things in Battle: New York. (No idea if they're making that, but if this does well enough, they might.)

[GORDON]

I think it helps them get accurate down to inches rather than feet. If we're looking at the extinction of the human race, I think a nuke would've hit the target or a tactical nuke or a stealth bomber dropping a MOAB.

When they got the the FOB and it was empty, and they saw that all troops had pulled back, I whispered to the wife, "They are going to drop a nuke on Santa Monica."

[TPRJones]

Good point, as the area directly above the big ship seemed to be unbroken pavement. Maybe they know to camouflage? Maybe it penetrates and unfolds? Don't know.

Again, I'm not visiting a website (I never saw that website during the advertisements) for the fucking story. If you can't tell me a story in 90 minutes properly, rewrite the damn script or extend the movie. I would've loved more time with this film. Dune really turned people off with their handouts to catch you up on the story when you walked into the theater. We don't need websites doing the same thing. Hell, here's another example of where the alien autopsy could have been cut and they could have shown us HQ folks discussing the aliens.

I haven't seen the film, but I remember the first trailers I saw showed a shot of something big rising up out of the pavement somewhere. I immediately thought "well, whoever they are they've had something parked here on Earth for a long time already."

Could this be how that worked, tied in with whatever it is about the military brass already knowing about them?

[Leisher]

That's an interesting thought, but I don't think so. The sewer would have been built around it, and unless the aliens are also masters of disguise somebody would have seen it. Plus, its antenna array had to stick out of the ground.

On top of that, I thought we saw images of it flying earlier in the movie...?

[Paul]

...a shot of something big rising up out of the pavement somewhere. I immediately thought "well, whoever they are they've had something parked here on Earth for a long time already.

Nah.
Michelle Rodriguez's character was from a special squad (Navy) who went to investigate the signals, and she said there was one signal ship at each invasion location (because they have a limited signal range) that controlled the attack drones.

The invasion ships (with the signal ship) landed in the ocean, but as they advanced on shore the signal ship had to go on-shore.

Using the smoke and the frontal assault as cover, I assume the signal ship buried itself with only a large/weird antenna sticking out. It remained buried until it was under attack, then it tried to flee, which is the clip you saw.

But those signal ships definitely arrived with the other ships in the invasion.

[TPRJones]

I seem to remember that clip showing it rising up with buildings falling off the top of it. Hard to imagine how it got under those buildings in the first place without being noticed. Or wrecking them.

But then I still haven't seen it and don't remember the trailers very well anymore, so my opinion is admittedly very nearly pointless.

[Paul]

The buildings were already wrecked.

...unless you're thinking of War of the Worlds with Ton Cruise. In that one yeah, the alien ships were underground before the city was built.

[TPRJones]

Yeah, i probably am, now that you mention that. Oops.

I guess I should watch these movies before commenting further.

[Leisher]

Michelle Rodriguez's character was from a special squad (Navy) who went to investigate the signals,

She was Air Force.

The invasion ships (with the signal ship) landed in the ocean, but as they advanced on shore the signal ship had to go on-shore.

Using the smoke and the frontal assault as cover, I assume the signal ship buried itself with only a large/weird antenna sticking out. It remained buried until it was under attack, then it tried to flee, which is the clip you saw.

No, that explanation doesn't work for me. It's not like it was simply buried with dirt over the top of it. It fit perfectly into the sewer system and even had a door leading directly to it. Plus, there was structures (damaged or not) on top of it. The fucking thing was buried under concrete. How did it get there? Maybe it has the ability to shrink...

and she said there was one signal ship at each invasion location (because they have a limited signal range) that controlled the attack drones.

Again, they can travel through space, but they can't send a wireless signal more than a few miles?