Movie Review: Cowboys & Aliens

With an interesting premise, incredible cast and a director that made IronMan work, I had every right to expect something really good with this film. But while not exactly a terrible film, Cowboys & Aliens was quite a letdown.

True, the contrast of the two genres (western and science fiction) was quite unique, but there's something bleak about how everything was executed. From the concept alone, this should have been a fun ride with cowboys on horses shooting aliens with guns, spears and arrow. But somehow, the film decided to take the serious route and that really bothered me.

I mean, the movie was humorless with very little joy behind it. The premise in itself was silly - in a good way - so I expected the tone of the film to be in some way tongue-in-cheek, but it wasn't and that killed the potential of Cowboys & Aliens to be something really great. Such a shame.

But that's not my only gripe about the film. I found the plot a little weak and inconsistent, and the alien part of the film was a little problematic with tons of plot holes. The pacing was a little uneven too. I thought the first part was dragging and when the climatic battle started, everything felt rushed. Oh, and don't get me started with Olivia Wilde who NEVER got dirty!!

Which brings me to the cast. Well, both Harrison Ford and Daniel Craig delivered fine performances, but there's no character depth to their characters and even to the other supporting cast. So, yes, I didn't care much about any of them.

For what it's worth though, the film was technically well made and that alone made this a lot more tolerable. The cinematography was STUNNING, the art direction was great, the colors were incredibly vivid and visual effects were actually really good. Plus, the set pieces were impressive. The film needed better aliens though as they looked a little generic.

As a single movie for a bit of Hollywood entertainment, Cowboys & Aliens is ok. I didn't hate it, but I felt a little empty after watching the film. It was a mind-numbingly raw experience from a movie that has James Bond, Indiana Jones and Miss Tron. Sad.