After Pearl HarborThe United States entered a state of war and panic. Within days of the surprise attack, the Americans thought more attacks were coming from all directions. New Yorkers thought they were next, as two inaccurate airstrike warnings indicated enemy aircraft were on the way. But New Yorkers were downright stoic compared to what would happen two months later in Los Angeles.

The West Coast was understandably anxious as rumors of further Japanese attacks spread like wildfire. In late February 1942, a Japanese submarine bombarded an oil field in Santa Barbara. Although the attack only lasted around 20 minutes and did not harm anyone, the psychic damage it inflicted on the nation was severe.

The collective panic was expressed a few days later when reports of an unidentified object in the skies over Los Angeles brought a massive response of anti-aircraft fire and search lights. Only after the shooting stopped did people realize that they were shooting at nothing. In 1983, the Air Force History Office identified weather balloons as the source of all the commotion.

But this historic footnote took a strange turn when footage from the so-called Battle of Los Angeles eventually became UFO “evidence.” Panic was faked on Steven Speilberg 1941while the idea of ​​an alien invasion was taken very seriously in the work of Jonathan Liebesman. battle los angeles.

Battle it takes in only the lightest of story reference points, focusing instead on the life of Marine Corps Staff Sergeant Michael Nantz (Aaron Eckhart). Nantz is a Marine through and through, but after 20 years of service, he knows his time has passed. There is also the matter of his last foreign tour, from which many of his men did not return.

As scientists worry about a group of meteorites that suddenly appeared and are projected to fall across the globe, Nantz is assigned to command William Martínez (Ramón Rodríguez), a young lieutenant just out of school. While Martinez is smart, he doesn’t have Nantz’s experience. Considering how many people believe Nantz had his men killed, that might be an advantage.

Rounding out the group are several Marines who get quick character sketches: There’s the virgin, Shaun “Casper” Lenihan (Noel Fisher), the player, Lee “Cowboy” Imlay (Will Rothhaar), the immigrant, the Hospital Corpsman Navy Jibril A. “Doc” Adukwu (Adetokumboh M’Cormack), and so on. Although these characters don’t get much background, the actors have strong chemistry and their unit seems to have a genuine camaraderie.

Then comes the invasion. The whole world is shocked when the aliens emerge from the meteorites and shoot into a crowd of people. Local airports become forward operating bases, and Martinez’s men are instructed to find a police station near the alien landing zone and remove the civilians before the military begins bombing the site into the ground. forgot.

The fight quickly turns into a bloodbath. Much of Battle it shows the Marines getting kicked in the butt, especially early on. Cloaked in an almost impenetrable fog, the soldiers become easy prey for the unnamed aliens, who don’t say a word throughout the film. Scientists on television speculate that they want to colonize the Earth for our water.

But this movie doesn’t care about what the aliens want; cares about what they are doing. Battle he stays very close to Nantz and Martinez, only dropping hints about what’s going on outside. While it’s not exactly a shock that Earth’s armies are losing, the narrow focus keeps the movie’s momentum intact.

the marines of battle los angeles they care mostly about being Marines. Slogans like “Retired? Hell!” are repeated throughout, along with a plethora of oorahs. Civilians Joe (Michael Peña) and Michele (Bridget Moynahan) finally show up and help the group learn about the aliens. Specifically, how to kill them.

battle los angeles manages to show a tense urban warfare. He tells a story of fighting colonizers, but is reluctant to comment on that colonization. The fight sequences are fun, Eckhart takes the movie seriously, and the soldiers have unexpected chemistry. This isn’t a movie with grand ambitions, but its narrow focus and strong cast serve it well. If you want two hours of action to justify a bowl of popcorn, you could do a lot worse.

battle los angeles is streaming on Netflix.