It is said that imitation is the highest form of flattery.

If I were the producers of the movie, “Battle: Los Angeles,” I don't know if I would take it that way. On Saturday night, the evening after the premiere of that film, Syfy premiered their own vision of an alien invasion in Los Angeles, which was called “Battle of Los Angeles.”

Before I go any further, I want to make clear that I have not had the chance to see the film in the theater. Therefore, my reactions to the Syfy film is strictly based on it and no other project.

Now, you all know how I usually react to Syfy Saturday night movies, and quite frankly, I went into this with very low expectations. However, this film was actually entertaining. At the start, a giant spaceship appears above Los Angeles, and is met with attacks from US aircraft and missiles, in a scene that could have been an outtake from “Independence Day.”

During the attack, a vintage plane from World War II lands at an Air National Guard post, with a pilot on board which has, apparently, traveled from 1942 to the present day. The guardsmen get orders to escort this pilot to a secure location. As the unit is taking the gentleman there, they encounter a strange woman, in a tight blue outfit, carrying a katana sword which she uses exceptionally well.

From there, the viewer embarks on a journey into the battle with plot lines that could have come from multiple science-fiction films of the past. One scene that was absolutely straight out of a classic film was a scene where an imprisoned alien first appears by raising his arms above a window. Those arms looked just like the alien arms from the 1953 version of “War Of The Worlds.”

The movie was, shockingly, not half bad. It was entertaining, and did manage to get the viewer to ignore the laws of physics and science as we know them and actually get caught up in the plot. While the special effects were a lot better than has been the custom in films aired by Syfy, and produced by The Asylum, they do still have room for improvement.

Kel Mitchell was great as Lt. Laughlin, and Nia Peebles was wonderful as Karla, the katana-packing dynamo. She fought like Black Widow, but after her character suffered an eye injury, took on a Nick Fury look that just made her look even tougher. She made her character totally believable.

Now, I am disturbed by that apparent attempt to capitalize on the film in the theaters by showing this similarly titled piece. However, it turns out to be two hours of entertainment of a quality that you just don't expect on Saturday night from Syfy.

Could this be a sign of better things to come on that night from the network? We'll all have to wait and see as the situation fully develops. I will say that this film was a slight gleam of hope.