Rage Against Los Angeles

Battle Of Los Angeles is a SyFy channel TV movie produced by The Asylum, starring Nia Peeples as a katana-wielding version of the Men In Black. [Review to follow.] You may notice that a movie with a similar title, Battle: Los Angeles, has recently opened in cinemas, and you may even have wondered if one was perhaps some kind of rip-off of the other. It's an understandable mistake.

In fact both movie titles are ripped from Rage Against The Machine's 1999 album "The Battle Of Los Angeles" which in turn takes inspiration from classic science fiction. Many of the songs feature quotes from George Orwell's 1984 as well as other Orwellian themes and references.

Music videos were made for three tracks. Two of these, "Testify" and "Sleep Now In The Fire" were directed by Michael Moore, better known for documentaries such as Bowling For Columbine. "Testify" combines B-movie science fiction with a Moore-style swipe at the politics of presidential candidates George W. Bush and Al Gore.

In the years following this music video, Bush "won" the election and became King of the World for a bit, while Gore now makes documentaries himself. Strange times.

"Testify" Rage Against The Machine