Cowboys & Aliens - A Review

Cowboys & Aliens (2011) has been a movie that has been on my to-watch list for a while. Everything about it is right up my street - a coupling so bizarre but so brilliant that there was no doubt about it being awesome. I'm very sad to say that I was wrong.

It is 1873 and out of the blue a bunch of gold-grubbing aliens have landed... and are attacking and kidnapping civilians. Cowboys and Natives come together to fight against the aliens - and get their people back. 

The premise is quite simply awesome, the effects weren't too bad, and Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford were great together. The main problem was that the plot line was just so weak! It was so disappointing. They could have done something AMAZING with this movie and it just lost its way.

The length was also a problem, as sometimes, the pace was desperately slow and was more about character development, whilst at other times, it was fast and engaging. 

Cowboys and Aliens also committed one of the cardinal sins of movies, at least in my eyes, by showing us the aliens... in depth. I'm quite OCD about not wanting to see movie monsters/ghosts/aliens etc etc. I'm quite Hitchcock-ish that way; I find things a lot scarier when they're obscured by the film makers. And so, the strange, amphibious aliens were a complete let down and the CGI wasn't mind-blowing enough to really enjoy the aliens.

It also starred the very annoying Olivia Wilde. I'm sorry to say it, but really, the film would have been fine if she hadn't been there. Her acting and the character she played was just so 'blah' and unnecessary. Her back story was so predictable and obvious that it was frustrating. Like I said, she really did not need to be there. 

So overall, this was a disappointment. The very title was enough to have me excited and I was totally let down. 
I recommend it to those who like cowboys... and those who like aliens! But, don't watch it hoping to be blown away. I love quirky movies but this was a waste!