FTG-Nerd Review: Battleship (Movie)

Battleship is loosely based on the Hasbro board game of the same title, but with a twist of adding aliens into the mix. Was it a winner, or will you want to sink this Battleship?

STORY

A project was launched by NASA to send an amplified signal far into space to see if there’s any extra-terrestrial sentient life out there, and if they would respond. Fast forward a few years, and most of the worlds naval forces have come together off the coast of Hawaii to collaborate in naval exercises, when all of a sudden they receive a little visit from a few alien ships. Soon enough, shots are being fired, and war between the aliens and humans begins. When this happens, all countries must put aside their differences and work together to fight off the alien attack and find out what they’re trying to achieve before it’s too late.

Who knows, maybe they're just stopping by to say hi...

The movie is mainly focused around Lieutenant Alex Hopper, played by Taylor Kitsch (John Carter), from his early days as an unemployed bum and skips forward to his noble transformation into a lieutenant in the navy like his older brother. Eventually, he has to take responsibility and command a ship to strategically take down the alien adversaries and save his fellow naval comrades. I haven’t gone into too much detail because I don’t want to give plot points away, but overall, the story seemed decent for a sci-fi film but felt like the Battleship name was tacked on unnecessarily.

...or maybe not.

OVERVIEW

Battleship is quite an entertaining movie, even with an homage to the Battleship game and a fun little nod to a certain viral video, but it is let down by quite a crucial aspect: acting. With the exception of Taylor Kitsch, Brooklyn Decker as his girlfriend, Liam Neeson (Wrath of the Titans, The Grey) as her father, Alexander Skarsgård as his brother, and a few others, the acting was sub-par. It wasn’t awfully overacted; it just seemed like some performances weren’t up to the standard of a big budget film.

Rihanna wasn't terrible, but let's just say her acting shouldn't be the reason you see this film.

All that being said, the action was actually good. The battle scenes were vivid and well choreographed, while the CG animations were smooth and believable. There wasn’t an overabundance of battles, but there was just enough action-filled scenes to keep you wanting to know what happened next. Battleship isn’t the most unpredictable movie ever, but it’s interesting enough to keep your eyes on the screen. Apart from a semi-slow start when Alex Hopper’s character is introduced, Peter Berg did a good job at spacing out the action and story development without making the audience bored.

I went into the cinema assuming it would be a bad and poorly put together movie using the name just so Hasbro could shift a few more toys, but I was pleasantly surprised. Some parts may be cheesy and the acting below usual movie standards, but the action sequences were good enough to not leave me thinking I’d wasted my time. Rather, I was disappointed to know that if it were cast right, it could’ve been even more enjoyable.

You probably want to know if this film is worth your time and money. If you love action and don’t mind some mediocre acting, this film caters to you perfectly. If you’re like me and need solid acting to knit the action together, some line deliveries may ruin the mood a little. Ultimately, I think it depends on if you have anything better to see or not.

PS: Unfortunately nobody says, “You sunk my battleship.”