Westerns and Science Fiction. Two film genre’s that I’ve loved since I was a kid. One thing I remember thinking when I first watched Independence Day “What if they had come before we had jets and computers?” In Cowboys & Aliens, director Jon Favreau (director of Iron Man) and a team of seven writers tries to give you a taste of what it might have been like. You read that right, seven writers. The original comic book author, and six other people to turn it into a script suitable for an executive producer the likes of none other than Steven Spielberg.
Add in a cast to include Harrison Ford (Star Wars, Indiana Jones), Daniel Craig (Casino Royale) and Buck Taylor (Gunsmoke) and you have yourself a recipe for a sci-fi, western action move. Seriously, can you get any more Western than the cast of Gunsmoke; or any more Sci-Fi than Han Solo; or any more Action than James Bond? Not likely. So how does it work out? Poorly…
The acting was only mediocre. The horses gave better performances that some of the actors. Notably Walton Goggins, which is a shame since I really like his portrayal of Boyd Crowder on the TV show Justified. The CG is actually done well. They successfully blend the CG with daytime outdoor lighting in a way that puts to shame The Green Lantern (a recent movie that failed miserably at the integration). The action sequences are pretty entertaining despite being totally unbelievable. Then there was the actual story itself, which was less than stellar despite over a half dozen writers.
To enjoy the movie you of course have to suspend all logic. Aliens seem to have developed the ability to travel between stars and wipe out entire worlds, yet they still use lassos on their fighter aircraft? Lets not forget that their planes move extremely fast, yet at a very opportune moment can be overtaken by a man on horseback. Then you have the aliens who have never heard of an alarm, motion detectors, security cameras or even a damn guard dog for that matter. Oh, and the aliens are covered in a sort of armored carapace, yet open the carapace, exposing what is presumably their heart, when they go to feed.
Before seeing the movie, I thought it had a lot of potential to fuse two classic genres. However, the film never struck pay dirt. It might be worth watching when it comes out on video, but don’t waste your money at the theater. I have it a 6.5 / 10 (D).
