Cowboys and Aliens
Cowboys and Aliens went on general release in the UK and Ireland this week. I went to see it yesterday evening and to be honest I was quite disappointed.
The storyline could be quite interesting, but it just failed to deliver for me.
Daniel Craig plays Jake Lonergan, who wakes up in the middle of the desert with a strange device attached to his arm. Within the first few minutes of the film he establishes himself as being a “hard ass” and manages to better a group of heavily armed cowboys.
He’s been wounded, though he can’t remember how, so he makes his way into the nearest town where he’s patched up by the local preacher before being arrested as there’s a warrant (and sizeable reward) out for his arrest.
Before that happens we get to see Olivia Wilde, as Ella Swenson, who is wandering around the place with a sixgun in her belt (women carrying guns in 19th century Arizona??)
Olivia Wilde and Daniel Craig in Cowboys and Aliens
Harrison Ford plays Woodrow Dolarhyde, a local rancher who seems to have to be inherently evil and thinks he can do whatever he likes, as his cattle is keeping the town alive.
Enter the aliens who snatch Dolarhyde’s son as well as a number of the townspeople.
The rest of the film involves Dolaryhyde working with Lonergan and Ella Swenson as well as the local Indian tribe to find the aliens, free their captives and save the day.
Harrison Ford and Daniel Craig in Cowboys and Aliens
If you ignore the rather weak storyline and unexceptional script you can probably enjoy the action sequences and the visual effects.
But even the visual effects really don’t save the film. It’s simply not that good. Sure, Craig’s portrayal of Londergan is endearing and Ford’s Dolarhyde is interesting, but their performances are, unfortunately, outweighed by the film’s flaws.
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- Cowboys & Aliens, review (telegraph.co.uk)
- Review: ‘Cowboys & Aliens’ Turns Mash-up to Mush (abcnews.go.com)
- Cowboys & Aliens – review (guardian.co.uk)
- Cowboys and Aliens (12A) (independent.co.uk)
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