Ever check out a box office bomb expecting it to suck and then get blown away by what you see? That happened recently when I decided to check out a big-budget sci-fi western starring lead actors from the Star Wars and James Bond franchises.
The movie is Cowboys & Aliens, and this Harrison Ford/Daniel Craig blockbuster is secretly an underrated classic.
The plot of Cowboys & Aliens begins with a man waking up with no memory and a weird device attached to his arm. He runs afoul of both criminals and lawmen while trying to discover who he is, but their cowboy drama is disrupted by the arrival of angry aliens. Unless everyone can put their differences aside and band together, these space invaders may send all of humanity riding off into the sunset.
A Killer Cowboy Cast
The star-studded cast of Cowboys & Aliens includes Harrison Ford (best known for the Star Wars and Indiana Jones films) as a cattleman who isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty. Olivia Wilde (best known for Tron: Legacy) plays a mysterious young woman who is clearly more than she seems. Sam Rockwell (best known for Moon) plays a doctor and the owner of the best saloon in the city.
There are other major stars in Cowboys & Aliens, including Paul Dano, Clancy Brown, Walton Goggins, and Abigail Spencer. The real star of this rodeo is Daniel Craig, who gives his amnesiac amigo the main character both intensity and pathos.
This is a character torn between a past he can’t remember and a future he can’t create on his own. Craig is surprisingly good at portraying the nuanced emotional reactions of the very unwitting hero.
Heading Into the Sunset
Despite all of its high-wattage star power, Cowboys & Aliens was a failure at the box office. It earned only $174.8 million against a budget of $163 million. This killed any possible chances of a sequel and ensured that this unconventional Western went down as one of the bigger bombs in comic book movie history.
When Cowboys & Aliens came out, critics decided that this movie should be gunned down at high noon. On Rotten Tomatoes, it has a rating of 44 percent, with critics complaining that director Jon Favreau created a movie with a distractingly uneven tone. However, even the harshest critics praised the performances of Harrison Ford and Daniel Craig, both of whom provide this alien adventure with some out-of-this-world charisma.
The Critics Are Wrong On Cowboys & Aliens
Moment of truth time: why the heck am I recommending you watch Cowboys & Aliens, a movie that bombed at the box office and was torn apart by the critics? For one thing, this sci-fi western has a cast full of great performers who have all been compelling leads in other films. Their combined star power is nearly brighter than the sun, and even when this movie drags, it’s fun to watch all of these big personalities bounce off each other with one scenery-chewing line delivery after another.
Additionally, Cowboys & Aliens successfully combines two very different genres to create something that feels fresh and exciting. Love it or hate it, you’ve never seen a cowboy film or sci-fi film quite like this one.
A little novelty and originality go a long way, especially when Hollywood is churning out almost nothing but sequels, prequels, and reboots. Why settle for something derivative when you can tune in and watch one of the freshest sci-fi adventures ever created?
Cowboys & Aliens has everything you could want in a major blockbuster film, including big names, killer set pieces, and unforgettable action. I’m not saying that this is a deep film that will make you think. Rather, this is the kind of delightfully mindless film that will make you want to turn off your brain and heat up some popcorn. If you can do that, then watching this little movie that couldn’t is the perfect way to unwind after a long day at work.
Will you agree that Cowboys & Aliens is far better than the critics say, or is this one movie you’d rather shoot down, preferably at nigh noon? The only way to find out is to stream this movie on Netflix and experience all of its gloriously galloping charms for yourself.
Be sure to invite your friends. With a movie this full of big names, there’s a little something (or should that be someone?) for everybody.
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