Cowboys & Aliens

Starring: Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde, Sam Rockwell, Paul Dano, Adam Beach, Keith Carradine, Clancy Brown, Noah Ringer
Directed by: Jon Favreau
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action, Science Fiction, Thriller
2011

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: A cowboy (Daniel Craig) wakes up with no memory of who he is. When an alien ship arrives and starts to kidnap people, he teams with a group of cowboys and Indians to fight off the alien menace.

Review:

Tim: At the start of 2011, Cowboys & Aliens was on my list of most anticipated films of the year. It featured an incredibly unique concept, played on the old "cowboys and aliens" game, featured Jon Favreau as Director and starred Daniel Craig (James Bond) and Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones). I thought this could be one of the best movies of the year. Unfortunately, it falls completely flat. The movie is lackluster in almost every area. It was a disappointing, boring mess.

The film feels completely redundant and yawn-inducing. I love the idea of pitting cowboys and aliens against each other, but Favreau and company managed to take that exciting, unique idea and made it feel rote. It's not that there were huge flaws, as much as there was just a slow, meandering story that never really gave us a reason to sit up in our chairs.

I liked seeing Daniel Craig in the lead role, but I wasn't impressed with him or his character. I simply felt like he was an average, run-of-the-mill protagonist. I didn't care about him in the least. Harrison Ford seems to have completely forgotten how to act (or simply just doesn't care anymore). I cringed at a number of his scenes. He did nothing to make me think he was taking the role seriously. It was a joyless performance. There were a few good moments between Craig and Ford, but these were pretty spread out.

Olivia Wilde was fine. I felt like she actually cared and was trying. Sam Rockwell was a nice addition, but I didn't love him in the role. He never felt comfortable in the part to me. Paul Dano was fine, but not great. I really loved Adam Beach in this film. I thought he gave the most heartfelt performance.

The movie just felt disappointing throughout. The aliens weren't anything special or anything we haven't seen before. I felt like the whole "gold mining" aspect of the film was pretty stupid. I also wasn't convinced that the reason they are capturing humans was to study them for some reason? I think the movie tried to explain why, but it never really made any sense. The story was weak. There was a never a moment where I thought, "Wow!" or "That was cool!" The movie created no positive emotions in me.

I really had high hopes for this film. I would have been forgiving if the movie had at least put up a good effort. Unfortunately, Cowboys & Aliens is just an average movie lacking anything resembling greatness. This movie had a fantastic concept but completely failed on the execution. I was disappointed in it and in everyone involved. This is one of the biggest letdowns of 2011, and I lament what could have been.



Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: 6



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: Iron Man, Casino Royale, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull