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Known for playing tough chick roles in the Fast & Furious franchise, Resident Evil, Avatar, and Machete, in her latest film, Michelle Rodriguez has a new enemy to beat – aliens - in this Friday’s sci-fi action extravaganza Battle: Los Angeles. Playing an Air Force Tech Sergeant who surveys the atmosphere for irregularities, Michelle’s character is one of the first to hint at otherworldly activity she said over a conference call interview, “But then the aliens come in and all hell breaks loose and the guns come out.” In the interview, Rodriguez talks about the uniqueness of the film’s perspective, her love for the sci-fi genre, Blade Runner, and why you are “stupid” if you do not go see Battle: Los Angeles.


What was unique to you about Battle: Los Angeles compared to the other alien invasion movies out there?

MR: The biggest thing for me is the perspective. It is like you are being one of the characters by being an audience member the way the cinematography is shot. The way the whole film is shot is very in your face. Very first man-shooter, and I find that unique for a sci-fi flick. The only other time when I saw anything similar to such a thing would be District 9, but it wasn’t as in your face and constantly moving...I think that is really cool, it adds to the suspense and to the whole vibe of making it real.

How difficult was it to make this movie compared to other films you acted in?

MR: The training was pretty agonizing. I hate running and the training everyday was two miles for three weeks. We’d get up five in the morning and do sit-ups, push-ups, all that stuff I hate doing (laughs). The most fun part was training with the guns, which I love. But the training was pretty darn hardcore. Not as hardcore as like Girlfight where I am literally gaining 25 pounds of muscle, but it was pretty gnarly.

In a lot of your films, you play these really tough female characters. So are the characters written as being that powerful or do you bring that element yourself to the character?

MR: I think it’s really just men thinking that in order to have a strong woman she has to have masculine qualities and they write her that way. It’s not really my fault. What is my fault is that I’ve pigeonholed myself to these types of roles, because I don’t find anything else attractive (laughs). The kind of falling in love chick, or the one who chases after a boy; it is those stories that I find redundant. They are sometimes incredibly interesting to watch, like a drama by a well-feted actress, but for the most part, I don’t find it appealing to embody those characters so I stick to what I find fun. I like girls to do stuff, I don’t want them sitting around whining about things all the time. I find it incredibly annoying.

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