Once upon a time, there was a belief that big event movies could only be released in the summer months, or, for more family-related fare, in the few weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas. Things have changed in recent years, with the likes of “Alice in Wonderland,” “300” and “Clash of the Titans” making big bucks in the early part of the year, and this weekend should see the box office get a kick with the release of “The Green Hornet,” which seems to have overcome the early bad buzz, and the gamble of a January release, and is tracking nicely.
This year’s big March hope is “Battle: Los Angeles,” a ground-view look at an alien invasion from hotly tipped director Jonathan Liebesman. Buzz has been building for the project since footage went down well at last year’s Comic-Con, and a series of well-cut trailers from Sony have seen even explosion-weary film fans like ourselves become a little intrigued.
A new trailer has landed, and it’s the strongest yet. Like the others, it’s startlingly scored with Hans Zimmer-esque drones and an unnerving autotuned voice, and displays the film’s impressive scope: it’s easy to see why Liebesman’s become a hot name, landing on the shortlist for “Superman” and winning the director’s chair for “Wrath of the Titans.” Plus, we get a little more of things before the explosions kick off — hopefully, we won’t be shortchanged on the character front.
We’re not totally sold yet — outside of star Aaron Eckhart, the cast are a little low-rent, and Liebesman’s track record to date, with “The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning,” for example, is less than solid, while the CGI is occasionally unconvincing. Nevertheless, the signs are good that the sci-fi actioner will be closer to “District 9” than to “Skyline.” “Battle: Los Angeles” (or, if you’re outside the States, “World Invasion: Battle Los Angeles“), hits theaters in most territories on March 11th. Watch the trailer below, or head to Yahoo for the HD version.
