Review: 'Cowboys & Aliens' turns mash-up to mush

Review: 'Cowboys & Aliens' turns mash-up to mush
The genre mash-up of "Cowboys & Aliens" is more of a mash-up, an action yarn which aims to be science fiction and Old West adventure, but neither so well.
The filmmakers - and there are a lot of them, including director Jon Favreau, 11 producers or executive producers include Steven Spielberg, Ron Howard and Brian Grazer, credited plus half a dozen writers - with a title to start, which lays out a simple, but cool premise: invaders from the sky, they shoot with guys on horseback.
For all the talent involved, wound them the story to keep simple, almost naive, so that an excellent cast of Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford resulted in a sketchy, sometimes ridiculous story stuck where you get to fight cowboys sometimes against aliens and not much more.
Based on a graphic novel by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, also a producer on the film, "Cowboys & Aliens" on Craig makes the stone face lone rider, which is adjacent to it to such extremes stoical mildness. Ford is similarly constricted into a stereotypical role as a tyrannical overlord of a Wild West town, although not fulfill his unfailing charisma some spirit in his underdeveloped character.
Really, the only trick is "Cowboys & Aliens" is the basic idea. The Western trappings are mostly dull, are the aliens and science fiction elements unimaginative and cramming them together, is not enough to make them interesting.
As the story begins in 1875, Craig, Jake Lonergan amnesiac wanders into a dusty New Mexico town of absolution without regard to its identity and is wearing a strange metal bracelet on his wrist. Within minutes, he starts running into conflict with the leaders of the city, the cowardly son (Paul Dano), the local cattle baron Woodrow Dolarhyde (Ford), then tussling with the sheriff (Keith Carradine) and his deputy.
The way it looks as though we need in a showdown with a gang of greedy criminals and decent city dwellers a hero, space ships are in shock and start tearing people right off the street. Six-shooters are like blanks on the fast boats, but Jake's bracelet to life, and he gradually learns how to use it as a weapon to defend themselves against what the villagers go out first of them, demons.
Dolarhyde Jake and leads a posse in pursuit of the creatures that accompanied the mysterious armed Ella (Olivia Wilde) who knows more about these creatures, as they can on.
Director Favreau slipped from fresh and extravagant on "Iron Man" too lame and listless on the sequel, and there are more of this on "Cowboys & Aliens." The posse crawls through close encounters with bandits and Apaches and kidnapping has more run-ins with the aliens.
But other than see the two mixed together, there is nothing that has not been done far better in many westerns and science fiction flicks. The aliens are anonymous monsters, and the human people are mostly made of cardboard types, such as those you can find in any old western.
The action takes place against big, beautiful landscapes captured by cinematographer Matthew Libatique, while the visual effects are standard stuff for a very impressive explosion to save.
As a nervous saloon owner, Sam Rockwell gets to throw a few funny lines, and Adam Beach manages a few moments of pathos as the main hand is Dolarhyde. When the sheriff to the young grandson, Noah wrestler is to broaden the film's kid appeal, but does not really add to the story.
Although Ford is driving 70, it is strange to see him relegated to second billing in an action movie. His role is great, and it does give you a chance to play a little nastier than usual.
But Craig could be the role the way Ford is to do when "Cowboys & Aliens" came before 20 years. Craig is probably the better actor of the two, but Ford is a true movie star, and it is present simply a living film, when Jake had more of this Indiana Jones rogue charm and less of the tightly coiled menace Craig one of his too has made , to James Bond.
"Cowboys & Aliens", is a Universal Pictures release PG-13 for intense sequences of western and sci-fi action and violence, some partial nudity and brief crude reference. Running time: 118 minutes. Two stars out of four.
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Motion Picture Association of America rating definitions:
G - General audiences. All ages admitted.
PG - Parental guidance suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children.
PG-13 - Special parental guidance strongly recommended for children under 13. Some material may be unsuitable for small children.
R - Restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
NC-17 - No one under 17 years.