Cowboys and Aliens (2011)

DIRECTOR: John Faverau; CAST: Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford…

SUMMARY (from IMDB): A spaceship arrives in Arizona, 1873, to take over the Earth, starting with the Wild West region. A posse of cowboys and natives are all that stand in their way.

MY OPINION:

When I first heard of this film I knew it was bound to be good. And it is. It brings the western and science-fiction together very well.

The key ingredients for success are typical: a rich arrogant rancher, his haughty son who can do just about anything due to the dad’s position in town, a suspicious outsider with a search warrant on him, one feisty lady, a gang of robbers, and of course an ever-present threat of a fight with Native Americans. Now add alien invasion. And we have a winner.

Initially, the premise of the 19^th century settlers of the West being able to put up a fight with their old-fashioned weapons against an advanced alien technology seems silly. However, the scenario is presented in such a way it makes the story believable. Naturally, the beginning is far from promising for the cowboys’ side, but the strategy they gradually develop makes it a fair fight which they – no surprise there – win in the end. The crucial factor is the expected joining of several opposing parties against the common enemy, making “united we stand, divided we fall” the moral of the film.

Despite the predictable ending, the film is thrilling, and it kept me on my toes. It is the kind of a thriller I like – just enough scary to startle me a few times but not give me any nightmares.

RECOMMENDATION: This blend of western and science-fiction is a suspenseful and believable approach on a premise of the 19^th century alien invasion.