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SOUND OFF

Sound Off: Peter Berg's 'Battleship' Movie - So What Did You Think?

by Alex Billington
May 18, 2012

Now that you've seen it, what did you think? C-4. Hit? Or miss? You played the game as a kid, now it's time to see the movie (or maybe not). Arriving in theaters is Universal's attempt at adapting a board game, specifically Battleship, into an explosive summer blockbuster directed by Peter Berg, starring an eclectic cast. Taylor Kitsch leads the way, with Alexander Skarsgård, Rihanna, Brooklyn Decker and Liam Neeson, too. But is it even remotely entertaining or just terrible? Does this fleet of battleships sink quickly? How was Rihanna? If you've seen it, leave a comment below with your thoughts on Peter Berg's Battleship.

Note: I haven't seen and don't care to see Battleship, it just doesn't look like anything I want to watch. So instead, here's a quote from our own Ben Pearson's review on Filmonic: "Battleship, which is not only one of the worst blockbusters in recent memory, but also one of the most idiotic movies I’ve ever seen. It makes John Carter look like The Godfather. It’s not that the plot is stupid – we’ve seen alien invasion movies before, and some of them are actually good – but the filmmakers seem to be the only ones who don’t realize they’re making a movie out of a damned board game. [This] was dead in the water before it even left port."

What did you think of Peter Berg's Battleship? An entertaining action movie or total disaster? We will remove any comments that indicate you have not seen the movie, as this area is meant to discuss the film only once you have seen it and can talk about your thoughts. Please keep the comments civilized!

Filed under Discuss, Hype, Sound Off

From around the web:

Nathan

Good Graphics, that's the only good thing I could say about this movie. I already knew from the start this is going to suck, when a movie that's based on a board game and has absolutely nothing related to it, besides having battle ships in the movie... that's when you know this is just a money grabber. Battle ships vs Aliens???? WTF!!! I don't remember seeing aliens on my board game.
- One Man
  
  I just came from this movie. Maybe i expected 2 much of it but the acting was just horrible to me. I don't expect great work, but i do expect that the scenes flow and to never be confused and feeling like the scenes are disjointed. I just thought the director had no flow. The whole boardgame portion where the aliens were jumping around was the last straw for me. its just 2 obviously bs 2! Ok, these ships come from outside the solar system and get to us within a few days to a week but then they can't see at night inside their own force field?? MAN a two year old has to work to ignore that. I had to leave. It was just 2 bad a movie for me. And i'm no movie snob. I LOVED transformers. I thought the last one awesome and saw it 2 times. Loved avengers and the iron man movies. this sucked.
  - bozo connors
    
    Alexander Skarsgard can act & act well imo. I've seen proof in various iterations. Me thinks direction/production here is the culprit.
Evenizer

I wasn't expecting a great movie, i walked in expecting to hate it, but if you are capable of turning your brain off to enjoy the ride this movie is fun, dialogue and plot are pretty dumb (Again, turn your brain off, otherwise you'll feel insulted) This is more like another Transformers movie, no real plot, just special effects and cool action scenes.
- Chuck
  
  This is the very reason movies are so terrible these days because the studios WANT the viewers to "just turn their brains off". If you keep paying to see this dreck, they will be happy to serve you. Demand better movies and they will make better movies. We have no one else to blame, but movie goers with this this attitude.
  - Aero027
    
    While I agree with your point I also agree with Evenizer. It's not like the studio just put out a cheap little movie for us to watch so they could rake in cash. This movie was expensive to make and will most likely lose money. It's a cool concept that was poorly executed. Some people watch movies for the simple pleasure of escapism, and whether a movie is mindless or not is subjective. Personally I didn't think this movie had any more plot depth than Avatar, and most people hold that movie in high regard. Avatar is obviously a better movie, but it's escapism all the same and a person who doesn't like sci fi or Alien films will find them equally as dumb. If movies like this played all year round I'd probably stop going to the movies, but like Egg Nog at Christmas time it's exciting to get this type of film fodder one season a year.
    - http://pulse.yahoo.com/_W75F53H5RFRKVXMFHOCO7JSK7I Wiseone
      
      The movie has taken in over 200 million worldwide and has broken even.
Dabe

Better than what I expected and with some interesting board-game features
Al

Can we talk about how randomly america it got with the old servicemen on the Missouri? That was incredible. And by far the best line of the movie, as expected: "E 11"
Andrewrlinks

Worth the time and money...funny thing is it was way better than this biased article you wrote to bad mouth a movie you are not going to see. Maybe you need a job where you work for a living with the rest of us as you seem to have an agenda against the studio or the director...before you talk about a subject..try to learn it first...bet you gave Star ears a pass also
- Ss Pincode
  
  Im agree with you 100%
- http://www.firstshowing.net Alex Billington
  
  "Star ears" I have no idea what you're referring to or what that even is? I did not bad mouth the movie, I pulled a quote from a review. I have not seen the movie, but I am opening up a discussion on it. If you like it and think it's good, then just explain why.
  - John
    
    I think he meant Star Wars. And I definitely won't be seeing this until Netflix gets it. Linking it to a board game for marketing purposes, ripping off Transformers in terms of design, casting Rihanna... it just looks like a money grab all around.
    - JL
      
      Exactly, so even if he was badmouthing the studio or the movie, he'd be completely justified.
    - WeThePeopleUSA
      
      Alex, Why write a story about a movie BEFORE you've seen it? Why not go see and add your 2-cents rather than pulling a quote from another reviewer? I have always wondered if "professional" movie critics are being honest with themselves...about whether they truly like a movie or if it is merely meeting some set of stuffy standards established by self-important inhabitants of the "arts" world. Movies are escapism. No one has the only formula to what makes a good movie. If you see a trailer and it piques your interest, go see it. If it's a terrible movie...so you're out 9 bucks.
Voice of Reason

I remember when Berg had promise.
- WeThePeopleUSA
  
  was that before he had lettuce or ice...
- http://pulse.yahoo.com/_MJAX2FIWIQHMRYCZOB5QNZGOSM Steve
  
  Yeah, he should have made Dune instead. he'd have gotten away with it being crap, as the Lynch one was.
Blue Silver

This was a very abrasive and rude article! Alex, did Universal not give you an invite to see this film? I bet you'll be gushing your praises when, "Dark Knight..." is released. I'll go as far as mentioning that you'll even post your review days before you will actually see it! FYI: This is NOT an attack. Just stating the truth!
- http://www.firstshowing.net Alex Billington
  
  What are you trying to say? Yes, I'll probably gush over The Dark Knight Rises because I think Nolan is a brilliant filmmaker who makes phenomenal movies, and I expect TDKR to be amazing. Nothing wrong with that. Universal, on the other hand, makes terrible movies that are bad because decisions they make are based on money and not integrity. I have no interest in seeing this and don't care, especially because I am aware of the quality of movies from Universal - they're crap, recently, almost all of them. Simple as that. Just stating the truth as well!
  - Ticketmaster
    
    You rock! Love your honesty! I agree with you too.
- grimjob
  
  I think Alex recognizes the fact that this movie should never have been made to begin with, and not only is an insult to those of us who grew up with Battleship, but a huge waste of money and time. I mean seriously, aliens?! Its fucking Battleship!
DarthVerous

Battleship... sunk.
bob=dole-onemore+time

what do i think.... i think i will save my money
- JL
  
  I won't even watch this on Netflix for a price that basically amounts to pennies if you consider everything else I watch on my subscription. I don't even care that it has Liam Neeson in it. I can wait for The Grey, and Taken 2.
Sdestrippy

Great movie great movie man I hated avengers that shit was boring as hell
- Alleycat4444
  
  You are joking right, The Avengers was a bloody brilliant film, Battleship is Battlefield Earth compare to The Avengers, get your head screwed on properly mate
- Tyler Weese
  
  troll
Robinbrands

I have seen this movie 2 weeks ago and i loved it it was great.what i dont understand are THE critics.but Thats my opinion.
http://www.facebook.com/mcrorey Michael McRorey

Went to the midnight movie and was not expecting it to be as good as it was. It is exactly what it was supposed to be...a popcorn flick.
Gvk

good flick and very entertaining. interesting concept with the booyees
- rc
  
  except if they cant contact the outside to communicate... how the hell can they contact noaa one of the worst movies ever
Hattori Hanzo

I saw it this afternoon and got what I expcted from it: nothing more than a fun afternoon popcorn flick. The FX and sound were amazing and while some of the dialogue and acting were 'cringe worthy' I am a fam f Leam Neeson, so he made up for it. Look, Battleship is what it is and doesn't pretendto be anything more. Alex, as for your comments, since you never saw it or have any interest in seeing the movie, I found it ironic and and disappointing that at the end of your article you point out that you will remove any comments from those who never saw the movie. That being the case, maybe you should have simply handed this week's 'Now that you seen it, waht do you think?" segment on to Ben Pearson since he actually saw it. At the very least, you should have removed your own comments.
- http://www.firstshowing.net Alex Billington
  
  I did not make any comments except to say I haven't seen it and don't care to see it. The rest of the quote is from Ben Pearson.
- http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1454815633 Michael Baldwin
  
  Where has he given his opinion in the comments?
Hyper129

It was like a broke version of Independence Day and why did Berg have to give himself a bit cameo, oh and why did they cast Rhianna...they could have gotten the best waiter/waitress on Melrose who's busting their butts to be an actor and they would've been 100% better......ughhh why are musicians/pop singers being offered acting gigs....LAME!!
- http://pulse.yahoo.com/_MJAX2FIWIQHMRYCZOB5QNZGOSM Steve
  
  Ah, but ID4 did not have AC/DC music. In any case, Michael Bay should have done this. It would have been expected, from him.
LV 426

Death couldn't have put it better... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HkZeUa53Jyg
germss

Having ZERO expectations for this movie helped a lot. I actually had a good time, even though I thought the plot was stupid. It was full of cheese, but in some weird way it worked. It felt a little bit like Battle Los Angeles, but that film tried to be serious. Battleship was just as corny, but it never pretended to be anything more than that. If you're strapped for cash, just wait for this to appear on FX or TNT in a few years. But if you're looking for some stupid summer blockbuster popcorn eye candy, give it a chance.
mooreworthy

My 8 yr old nephew wants to see it. ill take him and if he likes it, it will be worthy the admission hanging out with a future fanboy. Ill works on his discernment later.
grimjob

I still don't understand how a movie based on a boardgame of naval warfare completely abandons the source material by going the alien route. Its only Battleship because it has a battleship? Clue, now THAT was an excellent game-based movie.
- guest
  
  It does have battleships in it, all these critiques from people who havent seen the movie are BS. If you havent seen it your opinion matters very little, since you have no clue how it is actually executed. All this isn't to say the movie was amazing, but it was passably good. Not a top ten or even top 100 film, but certainly enjoyable. The acting wasn't even that bad, other than in a few instances, and I thought it was excellent they included real servicemen in the movie.
  - grimjob
    
    I don't need to see this to recognize its only trying to capitilize on the name. Fine, you've seen it. Good for you. So tell me, was there any reason to claim that its based on the game? Does Neeson shout out coordinates B4 or J11? Do they go up against other ships? They could have easily made this a seperate entity from the game, but chose to whore it out as Battleship, based on the popular boardgame. Fuck it, why not remake Goodfellas and call it Monopoly? There's money in it, people buy stuff.
    - WeThePeopleUSA
      
      Yes, there is a key part of winning the battle that relates to coordinates. They plot not where the alien ships are...but where they aren't. Their computers show a grid with "Battleship Game"-like properties and they use strategy to sink the bad guys.
      - grimjob
        
        At least they somewhat tried then. I'm not knocking the movie itself, just the whole "Battleship" thing. Angers me. I probably would have seen it otherwise.
Spencer Hughes

It's a silly movie that never really takes itself too seriously. Yes, it's moronic, but it is also a lot better that i could have ever imagined.
Manofmystery1

It was a pile of crap. Took itself way too seriously. Honestly, the only way that this movie could have worked would have been for Taylor Kitsch to use an ACTUAL COPY OF THE GAME BATTLESHIP to target the alien vessels after the communications on the Naval fleet went down. If they had literally made the board game of Battleship save the day, then this movie would have been totally awesome, because it would have given us a good indication that the filmmakers were never trying to deliver anything but a joke of a movie. "A movie based on Battleship" sounds like a Simpsons gag. I really hope that we never see the promise "Monopoly" and "Candyland" movies come into being.
- JL
  
  Yeah, a game board that's sort of alive. Like Jumanji. Now THAT movie was the shit.
  - grimjob
    
    And Clue.
- http://pulse.yahoo.com/_MJAX2FIWIQHMRYCZOB5QNZGOSM Steve
  
  Or Kerplunk!
Sean

Watching this Battleship movie, is like watching the Trannsforemrs movies with out the Transformers and a different story/plot and and different actors and actresses and surprisingly it turned out great! I'd love to see a sequel to this Battleship movie and i'd even like to see the director "Peter Berg" direct a Transformers movie!
- WeThePeopleUSA
  
  If you stay until the end of the credits, there is a little extra video teaser that points to a possible sequel.
Ccooper3

My wife and I saw this movie last night. I wanted to see it, in part, because of my naval service in the early 90's. We both loved it so much, we are going again tonight with our son and daughter-in-law. Was it an Oscar contender? Hell no. But it was fun, energetic, and explosive. It was, in essence, just a fun summer movie.
- Valvg
  
  Rhianna dies? please say yes..
Scared S#!tless

I cried.
rage

Seriously?
Timnimbus

Dude! Everyone needs to back off Alex Billington! Jesus! Alex is just stating his own opinion just like everyone else is doing on his website. Do I actuallly need to say that? His site! Show some respect for the man. Since when is he not aloud to have his own opinions? Alex, Battleship was retarded. Don't ever waste your time on it.
- Buzzfunk
  
  Agreed. But dont forget, opinions are like assholes and the internet is full of them.
- The Truth
  
  Don't worry, Alex is reaping the benefits from all the traffic to FS.net. If he can't handle a little berating this might not be the job for him.
Ehsan Davodi

1 year waiting and then what ...... another insult to art cinema humanity.... why you dont make hancock 2 ? we must pray to you to accept? what is this fucking junk? why waist such money ? go and die with honor or recover yourself really hard ! i exept very higher than you
- bozo connors
  
  I don't even...
http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1454815633 Michael Baldwin

People need to back off Alex. He has most likely saved a bunch of us a lot of money with his reviews the least we can do is understand why he doesnt want to watch this movie.
Tra la la la la di da

Hasn't this been out for awhile? Saw it back in April and man o man, good laugh with my buddies from the ship. Not a total waste of money since we enjoyed it, not how it was meant to be, but yeah. Dubai theaters were also a lot cheaper.
Rain Spider

They make movies like this to encourage young people to join the Navy. Just Like Battlefield: LA encouraged people to Join the marines. If you've ever been to a recruiting office like the Navy, you'll see posters of this movie there, I'm sure it's the same with the marines offices as well.
http://www.facebook.com/danielvutran Daniel Vu Tran

Take it for what it is, and you'll enjoy it. I know I did. These people here seem to always never know what to set their expectations in terms of atmosphere and directing. Don't go in expecting The Avengers, or even fully Transformers, go in thinking "Lol Battleships + Transformers" and you'll highly enjoy the movie. Just really annoying when people complain about things you're obviously not supposed to be looking for in a movie like this.
Baileyaaron2

Battleship is a disappointment. The storyline (plot) is fragmented and sometimes unclear. What is sad is a better plot would have made this film sail. Instead it sinks before leaving port. Save your money, buy the board game.
Bebn58

I find it odd that people can get in such an uproar over a movie....it was a couple of hours in a movie theater with good ac and great sound. Yes its mindless and yess its ripping off the board game without actually stealing anything! But who cares its a MOVIE!! Its not a broadway play just turn off your mind relax and have fun. If you dont like to do that stay at home and watch
Neverush11

it's a bout entertainment- Berg isn't trying to change the world folks, just allow some people to escape for a couple hours. The arm chair-Roger Ebert-wannabe-movie-industry-indsiders out there is laughable. Berg took a novel idea and under studio pressure and huge budget actually delivered an entertaining flick. Paying homage to WW@ vets in a creative way with the USS MO. is something few directors today would've risked. Relax and enjoy an entertaining movie!
Ashley Sargiotto

There's so much negativity against this movie! I was waiting for it to come out for a while and had some high expectations for it, and still loved it. With that said, some of the lines were way to corny. I have to say that I loved that there were actual Navy men in it, real ships and even retired military, that was a great touch. Even though they could not act. The graphics were great, music was ok but Rihanna I could have done without.
http://www.facebook.com/people/Molly-Delaney/100002890380883 Molly Delaney

Alright, so if I played War at Sea as a kid, not Battleship, does it suck even worse? Were all 4 Iowa class ships in it? Despite none being in commission... I'm still steamed the naval scene was cut from War of the Worlds. Best part of the book.
Odball75

I walked out of this movie, thinking that was the longest recruitment advertising I have ever seen for the US Navy. And I dont even live in bloody USA.
tiffany

I've watched the movie around a month ago. It was good, just as good as avengers, which I have watched too. I think critics are just being too mean with this movie and to Taylor Kitsch, just because he played in John Carter, which flopped because of some marketing problems, doesn't mean they need to connect John Carter again and again with this movie, as if to say, "Don't watch Battleship! It has Taylor Kitsch, who made John Carter failed!" Man, this is Battleship, not John Carter, so stop writing craps. Gosh, I hate critics. And people who actually trust critics without even watching the movie with their own eyes are worse. anyway, the movie is good. Maybe some lines and jokes weren't that ok, but overall still a nice movie. Great characters, great visual effects, great music, People will regret if they dont watch it on the cinema. It's even better than Dark of The Moon, no offence.
Reple2eme

Last 20 minutes was good. First 20 minutes wasted with non relevant scenes. No logic to much of the actions in the film. Lack of a thrilling science fiction plot. Great graphics but horrible. As an army officer; i could have directed a much more believable and successful film.
John

I personally sure did enjoy it. Not perfect - such as the "Big Mo" in mothballs having propellant bags aboard and live shells - but it is a fantasy and entertaining. Took some Navy vets to see it and they were thrilled by the action, especially by the "Big Mo". Also thought that the analogy of the game to the ocean buoys was a master stroke. John
rickvanr

Ever since I was a kid I've always been interested in navy toys, movies and shows. One of my greatest memories is when a surfaced sub sailed past my house on the st Lawrence. I thought this movie was a blast. I thought Avengers was great too. Battleship built a story where avengers blasted into one. Both fun. I'm going to battleship again on cheap night. Very excited. Absolutely disgusted by Alex's negativity and complete bias towards a movie he hasn't seen and refuses to watch. With that attitude. Stay out of the discussion. I'm actually shocked there was an article at all, even with how slanted he wrote it
bozo connors

Pearson hit the nail on the head. Alex, don't even clutter up your Netflix queue with this one. Pretty terribad.
- guest
  
  because the battleship was never sunk? They did target via a guessing dot system though. It was also clever the way they made the ammo look like pegs
  - WeThePeopleUSA
    
    Good point...those "pegs" did sink the battleship.
Js423

I saw this pile of sh** last night and believe me I wanted my money back! I get the "turn your brain off" type of movie, but this movie was beyond stupid and insulting to anyone with or without a brain!. I knew I was in trouble when the blond walked into a bar and ordered a "chicken burrito and a beer" and the 711 was across the street. Bad acting, bad story, and bad effects. My 13yr old daughter kept saying "daddy this is stupid" . Save your money!
Maro

I love Transformers and seriously, I don't know why people say it's a Transformers rip off. There was maybe one scene similar, the glass building coming down but apart from that nothing much... I enjoyed Battleship, it was fun and the board game was cleverly hidden... I went to see Avengers and I hated it,... to me that was a Transformers rip off, but hey we all enjoy different movies and just because you don't like it, it doesn't mean it's crap!! Sometimes it's good to see a movie which is just fun and no need to think about it.. I would watch it again and I will.
JoT

Board Game? Not a board game. A very, very poor movie. God only knows how much it cost to make. For me (an opinion), one of the worst films I have seen in recent memory. "But I just saved the world!" he cries. Did you really? Or just a small piece of the ocean in which you dont belong? Look! It's Rhianna! Did I spell it correctly? Who cares?! To be fair, she had just enough dialogue to come out of this reasonably unscathed. One more opinion: it's not a fun movie that requires no thought; it will appeal to those who dont want to think. You know who you are.
WeThePeopleUSA

I thoroughly enjoyed Battleship. I cannot understand all the criticism. I took my 16 year old son to two movies this weekend...one has been maligned by the so-called movie experts and the other highly praised as the best of it's 3-movie franchise. Battleship was so much better than I expected. The special effects were fantastic! It had humor, a love story and an overload of action with things blowing up. It's what a Summer movie is meant to be. Not every movie has to be Inception or Shutter Island in depth to make it worthwhile. People are getting far too full of themselves thinking movies have to be so highbrow or deep. The critics sunk Battleship before it got out of port. Everyone I talked to coming out of the movie thought it was great. Just go see it. On the other hand, the movie given praise, MIB III, was dreadfully boring and predictable...other than the ending revealing what happened to Will Smith's character in his childhood. I actually fell asleep for much of this movie due to the long stretches of boring dialogue. I give it a C- and would wait to rent it for a buck from Redbox. For me, movie critics and the main stream media are two sources with an agenda and not to be believed.
http://twitter.com/scottyoung6 scott young

Rihanna was horrible.
Eric Hartley

Don't wait to see this when it comes out on video . . . this is a movie that needs to be seen on the big screen. Besides, with attendance tapering down with this movie in theaters, you can have the threatre to yourself with no annoying distractions. There are loads of preposterous aspects about this movie, but after the first half-hour of the movie, the action is well worth the price of a ticket.
Dennis McDonald

It succeeds eminently as a summer popcorn movie. Sometimes that's what I like to see. I actually enjoyed it more than THE AVENGERS but that's not exactly a popular sentiment.
safina

battleship is one of the best movies ever made in 2012 great job........
impeachobama

This is a great movie, much better than I expected! I loved the story, and it had a lot of humorous parts. I never trust the critics.
http://profile.yahoo.com/F3WE62BYMGRJI5SCVBTECPSBTM Anthony

I loved it! It was a very entertaining movie, and I would like to slap the director and anyone else who thought the movie was "too big to succeed". You were utterly stupid to release the movie two weeks into the Avengers. What kind of moron made that decision? This movie would have done very well had it been released at the proper time. People had been waiting YEARS to see the Avengers. This movie was something new, and there was no way I would have chosen to see it instead of the Avengers. Yes, it costs me 42 dollars to take my family to the movies, so I am very picky about which ones I see.
Zzarzax

Peter Berg missed out on one thing, when they were reactivating the USS Missouri he should have used Cher's If I Could Turn Back Time, the song would have been perfect for the scene, especially as the video for the song was actually filmed on the USS Missouri.