Cowboys and Aliens is a cross-genre, experimental film from director Jon Favreau that combines elements of the tried-and-true western with those of a science fiction alien invasion story. The plot follows Daniel Craig as Jake Lonergan, a mysterious man who wakes in the middle of nowhere, unable to recall any details of his life. He is, however, aware of two things. One, he has a fancy gadget attached to his wrist that he cannot seem to remove. Two, he is very adept at the art of kicking ass. After easily dispatching a group of would-be bounty hunters, Lonergan proceeds to the nearest town, where he discovers that he is wanted for a crime he does not remember committing. The revelations of bits of Lonergan's past are (mostly) handled well and spaced out evenly to give the movie a sense of forward momentum. This strength becomes a weakness when the mystery comes to a close, however (more on that later). All of this is secondary to the threat of vicious aliens that descend upon the town and abduct numerous citizens while the few that are left scramble to survive the onslaught. Jake's wrist gadget turns out to be a laser cannon, the only weapon that appears to be effective against the extraterrestrials. In order to learn more about himself and rescue the captives from the aliens, Lonergan must interact with the various denizens of the town, who run the typical gamut from the grizzled old codger (Harrison Ford), to the beautiful woman who steals the hero's heart (Olivia Wilde).
The predictability of the characters leads to the first of the movie's many problems: a lack of depth. All of the characters are two-dimensional, even Lonergan. The audience never really learns much about any one of them, leading to an absence of any emotional connection to their plight. Craig plays his role like James bond in a cowboy hat, Harrison Ford is his usual growling self as the rich cattle man Dolarhyde, and Olivia Wilde is wasted in her useless role as the might-as-well-be-an-extra Ella Swenson. The characters themselves experience the same disconnect with each other that the audience feels watching them, as there is little to no chemistry between any of the actors. The film would have you believe that Swenson and Lonergan are a match made in heaven, but Wilde and Craig have not one iota of a romantic spark, making their relationship unbelievable and uninteresting. Dolarhyde turns a rapid 180 from a completely unlikable jerk to a sweet, tenderhearted old man, simply because the script requires the viewer to like every character.
Speaking of the script, the writing could have been much more original than it is. One would think that crossing cowboys with aliens is a no-lose premise, but the movie never takes enough risks, never goes far enough with the genre bending. Instead, it's a paint-by-the-numbers western with the occasional dash of spaceships and creepy creatures. After the first hour, the energy and excitement rapidly evaporates, leaving little else to go on. The action is well choreographed and managed deftly by Favreau, but because of the aforementioned shallow characters, one is not really invested in the outcome. There's hardly a moment in the film that comes as a surprise, and even the twists that do exist are ridiculous and contrived. Three twists in particular are extremely grating. They involve the truth behind Lonergan's past, Swenson's secret motivations, and the aliens' reason for invading the planet. Each one of these elements does not have the satisfying payoff that its dramatic buildup demands.
In the end, Cowboys and Aliens turns out to be nothing more than a disappointment, not worthy of the tremendous hype surrounding it. What may have started out as a great idea on paper becomes a not-so-great finished product. Favreau is probably wishing that he'd stuck with robotic superheroes right about now.
Cannon's rating: 6/10
The predictability of the characters leads to the first of the movie's many problems: a lack of depth. All of the characters are two-dimensional, even Lonergan. The audience never really learns much about any one of them, leading to an absence of any emotional connection to their plight. Craig plays his role like James bond in a cowboy hat, Harrison Ford is his usual growling self as the rich cattle man Dolarhyde, and Olivia Wilde is wasted in her useless role as the might-as-well-be-an-extra Ella Swenson. The characters themselves experience the same disconnect with each other that the audience feels watching them, as there is little to no chemistry between any of the actors. The film would have you believe that Swenson and Lonergan are a match made in heaven, but Wilde and Craig have not one iota of a romantic spark, making their relationship unbelievable and uninteresting. Dolarhyde turns a rapid 180 from a completely unlikable jerk to a sweet, tenderhearted old man, simply because the script requires the viewer to like every character.
Speaking of the script, the writing could have been much more original than it is. One would think that crossing cowboys with aliens is a no-lose premise, but the movie never takes enough risks, never goes far enough with the genre bending. Instead, it's a paint-by-the-numbers western with the occasional dash of spaceships and creepy creatures. After the first hour, the energy and excitement rapidly evaporates, leaving little else to go on. The action is well choreographed and managed deftly by Favreau, but because of the aforementioned shallow characters, one is not really invested in the outcome. There's hardly a moment in the film that comes as a surprise, and even the twists that do exist are ridiculous and contrived. Three twists in particular are extremely grating. They involve the truth behind Lonergan's past, Swenson's secret motivations, and the aliens' reason for invading the planet. Each one of these elements does not have the satisfying payoff that its dramatic buildup demands.
In the end, Cowboys and Aliens turns out to be nothing more than a disappointment, not worthy of the tremendous hype surrounding it. What may have started out as a great idea on paper becomes a not-so-great finished product. Favreau is probably wishing that he'd stuck with robotic superheroes right about now.
Cannon's rating: 6/10