Review of Cowboys & Aliens (2011) by Utmam — 31 Jul 2011

There are some really great elements to this film, and some really weak/boring ones. First, and most importantly, they tried far too hard to make the movie more than it needed to be. SPOILER- The alien space ships, for example, were far too small.

When we see one shot down, the alien that comes out of it is bigger than the ship. And grappling hooks to grab the humans? Really? I thought it was a great idea to have the aliens looking for something other than the big 3 alien needs: water, slaves, or land because their planet is dying.

But it was never explained why the aliens needed so much gold so badly, except to say it's as rare to them as it is to us. Also, why, exactly, were they taking humans? To find our weaknesses is, in itself weak.

They were so advanced, with superior weapons, and they had no problem killing humans. Other then that, I enjoyed the movie quite a but. Craig and Ford are outstanding in their roles. Wilde, and the supporting cast were adequate, and in some cases (the doctor, the sheriff) quite good.

I for one loved that it was a western. Seeing aliens in the badlands over 100 years ago was new, and therefore entertaining. The biggest problem I had with the movie was of my own making. The commercials for the movie made me think, for some reason, that it was more of a campy, slightly cheesy comedy.

It is not! I kept waiting for the laughs, expecting more from the movie than it delivered, and that took away from it. But as I say, that was my own fault.