Cowboys and Aliens: Blu Ray Review
Cowboys and Aliens
Rating:M
Released by Universal Home Ent
In a dusty western desert setting, a man (Daniel Craig) wakes up
with a jolt; bloodied and wearing an odd looking bracelet on his
arm, he's got no idea who he is, where he is or what he's
done.
Unfortunately, this man, Jake Lonergan, is a wanted outlaw and
doesn't really have time to work it all out - he ends up in the
small town of Absolution and is on a collision course with Harrison
Ford's Colonel Woodrow Dolarhyde, a cattleman and who seems to own
most of the town in some form or another.
But the pair have to put aside their potential differences and work
together when an other worldly presence attacks and abducts most of
the townsfolk
Cowboys and Aliens is the latest adaptation of a graphic novel and
a mash up of sci fi and western (though the emphasis is more on
Western than anything else.)
Daniel Craig brings his usual purse lipped steeliness to the role
of the mysterious loner - though I think based on this, he'd do
very well as a lead in a Western; Harrison Ford is his grumpy self
as the rich cattleman who, surprise, surprise has a heart of gold
underneath that very gruff exterior and Olivia Wilde continues to
impress by underplaying the only real female on the screen Ella.
Sam Rockwell is criminally underused in the role of bartender Doc
(and is a real disappointment).
As for the aliens themselves, they're nothing spectacular - early
scenes bring a sense of menace to their presence but once these
bipedal lizards start running around like apes, they lose a bit of
their panache and simply become moving blobs.
It's half of the problem of Cowboys and Aliens - while I'm not
exactly raving about the film, I wasn't underwhelmed either; I was
simply left feeling a little lukewarm.
The meshing together of the story, genres and scowling grumpy
characters simply didn't gel; this straight laced film just never
kicks fully into gear - there's never really a wow moment which it
needs to pull you out of a 2 hour lull.
Extras: Commentary, Director interview, making of
Rating: 5/10
