"Battle: Los Angeles" (2011) dir. Jonathan Liebesman

You know your movie isn't very interesting when this poster just probably just makes most 20-somethings wonder what the band 311 is up to these days.

Well, I liked this movie better when it starred Will Smith and was called "Independence Day," but this was a decent lil' thrill ride. Bullet points!

• First off, what a stupid fucking title! My brain just puts an "Of" in there every time, which makes me think of the Rage Against The Machine record of the same name, which makes me think of 10th grade, which makes me realize that was like 11 god damn years ago which is insane. Almost as insane as aliens blitzkriegin' the shit out of Los Angeles. 
• Aaron Eckhart plays the lead role as the middle-aged marine about to put in his papers to retire when a bunch of nameless, nondescript aliens drop into the Pacific and start hangin' ten off the coast of Santa Monica. What a rude stunt to pull on a American hero on his last day of work. Sheesh!
• Will Smith will always be much more fun to watch than Aaron Eckhart. But, the one leg up this flick may have over "Independence Day" is that there was no computer virus involved in bringing down the alien spaceships. But, then again, it didn't have Jeff Goldblum either.
• Michelle Rodriguez stops by to play Tough Soldier Chick (Trademark), spits some sarcastic one-liners and impresses the stereotypically chauvinistic male soldiers. Check, check and check.
• The shaky-cam action flick has been around for quite a while now and isn't going anywhere it seems, and I'm still torn on it. Some flicks pull it off better than others, especially when it's used sparingly. But, "B:LA" just feels like I'm watching my friend John play a wild-ass, but terribly predictable first person shooter video game.
• Why, god, why would aliens that flew through space from another planet/universe have guns that shoot bullets? I'd be pretty bummed if Earth got taken over by a bunch of under-achieving lazy punk aliens who can't even develop cool shit like lasers to shoot humans with. COME ON.

Go see this if you need an alien invasion movie fix to tide you over until "Super 8" this June. Otherwise, peep it on cable some day when you've run out of "Man Vs. Food" repeats to watch.