Movie Review: Battleship

Battleship

Release: 18 May 2012
Starring: Alexander Skarsgård, Brooklyn Decker, Liam Neeson, Taylor Kitsch and Rihanna
Director: Peter Berg
Genre: SciFi, Thriller, Action
Length: 131min.
Rating: PG-13

Tagline:
The battle for Earth begins at sea.

Basic Premise:
The invasion has begun. Hawaii is cut off from everyone and must now fight for the survival of the entire planet.

Review:
The movie had a slow start, some funny parts and a superfluous romance BUT once the action started I was on the edge of my seat, hanging on every moment. I really enjoyed it.

Sidenote – There is stuff at the very end of the credits. You might want to stick around.

Why is this review showing up on 29 April 2012 when the movie doesn’t come out until 18 May? Simple. I’m a military wife whose husband is currently stationed at Hickam AFB which is right next door to Pearl Harbor where Battleship is set and the lovely people at Universal Studios decided to GIVE (emphasis on give since it was a free showing) the military and dependents (first 400) a sneak preview of the movie. More on that in a later post.

Yes, there were some plot holes — like a radio signal (boosted or not) reaching some far off planet and the aliens making the return trip in such a short amount of time. And there were some things left hanging. Putting that aside, it was a fun action movie. The special effects are well worth the cost of a ticket. In fact, I plan to see it again when it hits theaters.

I saw this movie surrounded by military men and women. At certain points we all cheered LOUD because that’s how invested we were in the movie. You can’t help but be drawn into the struggle, or maybe it’s because the majority of those present were navy. Who knows, but there was clapping and cheering and that just added to the experience rather than detracting like in a normal theater visit.

But the big question — did they stay true to the game? Answer — YES. If you’ve played the game Battleship, then you know you have to try to hit your opponent’s ships by guessing their position. The movie incorporated that in a very clever way that wasn’t stuffed in like an afterthought for merchandising and I appreciated that.

For those who were wondering, Rihanna did great job. It’s not her first acting role and you could tell she was comfortable in her part. Taylor Kitsch is fast becoming a comedic action hero in my mind since that seems to be how they cast him. It was interesting seeing Alexander Skarsgard outside of True Blood. And I always appreciate Liam Neeson when he shows up in a movie I want to see.

Above and beyond everything else, you can tell this movie is an homage to the fighting men and women of the military and the sacrifices they make in service to this country.