The day our street turned into a snow-filled war zone

THE VIEW from our balcony: Batwing in “Dark Knight Rises” RUBEN NEPALES

LOS ANGELES – Last weekend, we came home at night from an out-of-town trip and found our street closed and covered in snow. Snow in downtown LA, in September?

The palm trees and plants beside the sidewalk have withered and turned brown. What happened? We quickly got worried that the plants inside our home might have suffered the same fate while we were away.

Did Hollywood’s version of the apocalypse – you know how Roland Emmerich and company like to topple our downtown LA skyscrapers – finally happen in real life while we were listening to George Clooney artfully evade questions about his love life in Toronto?

Okay, it was fake snow but we still raced up our unit, hoping that the post-apocalyptic scene we’ll see is just the usual mess created by our younger daughter who likes to stage parties with her friends while we’re out of town. Thankfully, no such chaos greeted us this time.

There was a letter to residents, printed on shocking pink paper, that came from Subconscious Productions, saying it was preparing to shoot scenes in our neighborhood “for a new movie entitled ‘Magnus Rex.’” A cheesy sketch of a T-Rex appeared on top of the note.

Strange how the production company’s name made us think of Chris Nolan and his little film about a band of corporate spies who enter the subconscious minds of their targets.

According to the letter, the fake snow was biodegradable paper product. They would be installing a breakaway railing on the upper street. There would be a vehicle being chased, with smoke, explosions and swirling snow in the air. Wow, we couldn’t wait to watch the filming of this possible sequel to “Jurassic Park” which was scheduled to take place the following day.

DIRECTOR Christopher Nolan AP

When we went down in the morning to go to Sunday Mass, the street was almost unrecognizable. A wall suddenly materialized on one side of our residential building’s entrance. There was more snow on the ground. Huge black backdrops covered parts of the Museum of Contemporary Art and other buildings. Portions of the steel railing in the middle of the upper street were replaced by sections of breakaway railing, as written in the letter. Security guards, crews and movie equipment were all over the street.

On our walk back to the building, we saw Chris Nolan, in his trademark blazer, dress shirt and slacks, in a huddle with some crew members. So, we were right. This was a shoot for “Magnus Rex: The Dark Knight Rises.” Okay, just joking.

Up on the balcony, we had a great view of the proceedings on the street. We saw someone who looked like Joseph Gordon-Levitt rehearsing a few moves with stunt guys. Joseph, who plays Detective John Blake, a Gotham City cop in “Dark Knight Rises,” confirmed in an interview a few days later that it was him, indeed.

A specially built vehicle called HEMTT (Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck), which is reportedly in the possession of Bane (a villain character played by Tom Hardy), made its grand entrance on the street. But the truck was easily eclipsed by the arrival of the Batwing, a spectacular vehicle that looks like a stealth fighter with wheels (on a hydraulic rig).

We could not finish unpacking all day because we would rush out to the balcony every time we heard wall-shaking explosions.

As a result, we did not miss the spectacle of the HEMTT hurtling toward the breakaway railing and crashing on the lower street. By the end of the day, the street virtually turned into a war zone.

Watching the vehicle duel made us even more excited to watch “The Dark Knight Rises” when it comes out in summer next year. Christian Bale is back, of course, as Bruce Wayne/Batman, along with Michael Caine (Alfred), Morgan Freeman (Lucius Fox), Gary Oldman (Jim Gordon) and Nestor Carbonell (Mayor Anthony Garcia).

Also in the cast are Anne Hathaway (Selina Kyle/Catwoman), Marion Cotillard (Miranda Tate) and Matthew Modine (Nixon).

Since filming on the site will continue after a gap of several days, the original railings have not been put back. Instead, barricades and portable steel fences have been put to prevent cars and pedestrians from suffering the same fate as the HEMTT did.

On top of that, guards take turns manning the area for 24 hours all week. Only in Hollywood, folks, only in Hollywood.

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