Cowboys and Aliens and Indians...........Oh My

Cowboys and Aliens

Directed by  Jon Favreau.  Written by what seems like a committee eight people

Starring Sam Rockwell, Olivia Wilde, Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Noah Ringer, Clancy Brown, Paul Dano, Keith Carradine

CBR News spoke to Platinum Studios head Scott Rosenberg about "Cowboys and Aliens."The idea for "Cowboys and Aliens" came to Rosenberg when he was reflecting on the classic childhood game "Cowboys and Indians." "I was thinking how it wasn't cool and fun anymore," Rosenberg told CBR News. "Some of the things that propelled it was that anyone could play it without having to run to the store and buy stuff. It's really something where you let the imagination go and it just dawned on me, hmm . . . 'Cowboys and Aliens' that would be pretty fun."

The stars of Moon, James Bond, Indiana Jones and Tron Legacy's new heroine, all in one movie.What can happen nothing but magic……… 

no magic, no fun, and no story.

Where to start maybe liking it to a cow patty , or horse manure it’s there, you’ve stepped in it, you can’t miss it, you have to look. Why? Curiosity and anticipation, the most awaited movie of the summer and it falls out of the sky like an alien ship shot at with a six shooter.

  Jon Favreau’s adaptation of the comic Cowboys and Aliens which centers on “Aliens who land in Arizona circa the mid-19th century intent on enslaving the local population and mining gold — until a group of cowboys and Apache Indians fight back.” Never reaches the place where no man has gone before.

The opening shot invites us into this western like a commercial for some rugged American made truck. 

We are introduced to the “quintessential” cowboy, Zeke Jackson (Daniel Craig) the man with no name, lean tough, he may not know who he is but he can handle a fight like nobody’s business. I liked how he looked like a charactercher of the comic book cowboy. The Hat titled just right so the only thing we see is the key light shining in his eyes, so tough he doesn’t’ even need a gun to handle bullies or sheriffs. Kudos for the American accent. You want to see a very good Daniel Craig movie screen “Layer Cake”

Daniel Craig

In town we meet the "wicked" son, the bar owner, the sheriff, and the preacher man played by Clancy Brown. One of the unsung supporting/character actor of our day, reminded me of Chill Wills a little bit.     

The bar owner, Doc is embodied by Sam Rockwell, always a pleasure to watch;(Moon 2009, was a brilliant movie.) Mr. Rockwell always creates truthful characters even if they are a bit off center; his performance with Christopher Walken in a Behanding in Spokane on Broadway was nothing short of exceptional. It always takes a few moments to realize that I am watching him; it happened here, Mr. Rockwell is the stock, central casting, bespectacled bar owner. He fills the character out with a deep emotional life. We care about Doc, really he is the only one in the movie that cared, even with a gun pointed at him, about what he was doing. Mr. Rockwell is one of the best actors working in Hollywood right now.

Ana de la Reguera as Marie Sam Rockwell as Doc

  The bad son, Percy Dolarhyde (Paul Dano), who plays the part as “see I am bad, I do bad things and don’t treat people very nice” Can’t care about him or his whereabouts, so when he get lassoed by the Aliens and taken away.     

Don’t care. Writers fault    

It is funny that the aliens can travel across the interstellar void, suck gold from the ground as if it’s liquid.  (The way they do it is very cool. Very Sci-Fi.) Still have to lasso people maybe they like cowboys, as we all do. Is that why their attack is like a round up. Aliens acting like cowboys? We never find out why ? Are the people who are stolen: fueling the mining, the ship, are they food, no, let’s just stick wires in them that look cool and we can use that as a focal, plot point, a rescue. Writers fault    

Harrison Ford and Sam Rockwell

Dad, Woodrow Dolarhyde, the ageing Harrison Ford who I thought was old for Indiana Jones’ last installment. Just doesn’t cut the cow pie here, he is a storybook cutout, a sorry cartoon of a person, embitter, old war vet who has seen death and can boss it around like he does with everyone else. I have no sympathy for a man who can torture someone who works for him. Oh I get it he’s mean. Why should I care that his son gone missing? His big moment of “I care” by giving a Knife and a story to the boy, Emmett Taggart (Noah Ringer) just telegraphs this knife will be important. Used later in a cheap horror move gag, that also is telegraphed and plops down. 

 

Anachronistic technology abounds. Only one person says “what is that thing” that’s all. It does not seem strange to these people that there are flying things in the sky, which uses lights in a world lit only by fire. Lights that can kill you, not phased at all. People pulled up into the sky. The bracelet on Zeke Jackson’s arm, no one wants to take a look at it, even the Preacher/doctor the schooled man. Everyone takes this high technology in stride. Never questioning it. When they shoot down a craft we get the big “what is it” nobody pokes or prods. Then it’s off to chase the thing that came out of it. I know these are supposed to be tough, rugged, shoot first, and ask question later type of guys. No one say “hay that thing is bleeding a different color”, “its footprints ain’t normal”, WTF are we chasing and why.

Oh yea “because you own me” whatever that means. Very Bad writing.    

  That unspoken macho bond, of cowboy to cowboy, Mano a Mano is not here. I’m talking about the reason Doc Holiday walks down the street with Wyatt Earp, in both movies. The reason the cowboys from Silverado help each other……. not here. I just don’t care about these cowboys or the Indians, even with Nat Colorado (Adam beach) translating for us. The token Indian, with a heart of gold, side kick, hired hand, I dress like a white man but I am still an Indian      

Olivia Wilde

   Now the women, Ana de la Reguera as Maria, Doc’s wife, nice work. Ella Swenson (Olivia Wilde) from the first moment we see her there is something going on behind those beautiful eyes. I liked the idea of a dress with a gun belt; I don’t remember ever seeing a frontiers woman dressed like this. Ms. Wilde does a good job here with what she is given, which is very little. She is different, then we find how different. Again the plot falls face first into a steaming pile of good idea, bad execution, and no pay off. 

  

Why is she here? Why are the aliens mining gold? Why do the aliens look like rejects from the Lord of the Rings? The aliens on “Falling sky” are much more interesting. Homage, no, stealing a shot for shot idea from “Alien”. Why Indians, why bad guys. Why do the aliens use teeth and fists, when they have Blasters? I did think of Blazing Saddles when an alien punched a horse, this was serious, no camp.    

I did appreciate the alien ship was cigar shaped. The cowboys are not impressed with a mountain size thing sticking out in the earth. The sightings of UFO's in the period were that shape. I saw it on the history channel; even they have better cowboys and alien’s stories.    

Cowboys and Aliens.

Just a few, I thought would satiate and revive. 

                               Cowboys

1.    Oxbow incident (1943)

Cowboy Noir, first cowboy movie to take place at night

Two drifters are passing through a Western town, join a posse to catch cattle thief’s and must deal with the outcome.

2.    Magnificent Seven (1960)

An oppressed Mexican peasant village assembles seven gunfighters to help defend their homes.

3.    One-Eyed Jacks (1961)

First cowboys’ movie to use the ocean, directed by Marlon Brando

Running from the law after a bank robbery in Mexico, one thief betrays another and revenge takes years.

4.    True Grit (1969)

A drunken, hard-nosed U.S. Marshal and a Texas Ranger help a stubborn young woman track down her father's murderer in Indian territories.

5.    Silverado (1985)

A misfit bunch of friends come together to right the injustices which exist in a small town. 

6.    Unforgiven (1992)

Retired Old West gunslinger reluctantly takes on one last job, with the help of his old partner and a young man.

                              Aliens

1.   Farscape (1999-2003) Thrown into a distance part of the universe, an Earth astronaut finds himself part of a fugitive alien starship crew. The Very Best aliens ever, from Jim Henson production. 

2.   The Thing (1982) Great remake of The Thing From Another World (1951) Scientists in the Antarctic are confronted by a shape-shifting Alien

3.    Alien (1979)

A mining ship, investigating a suspected SOS, lands on a distant planet. The crew discovers a strange alien ship and investigates.

4.    Starman (1984)

An alien takes the form of a young widow's husband and asks her to drive him from Wisconsin to Arizona.

5.    Man facing south west (1986-Argentinan)

A patient in a mental hospital claims to be an extraterrestrial.

6.    Morons from Outer Space (1985-English)

The story begins when three aliens get a bit hacked off at their 'friend' Bernard, who keeps making a prat of himself playing space ball.

7.    The Last Star Fighter (1984)

A video gamer, seemingly doomed to stay at his trailer park home all his life, finds himself recruited as a gunner for an alien defense force.  

                              Sci-fi Westerns  

Firefly (2002-2003) Five hundred years in the future, a renegade crew aboard a small, spacecraft “Serenity”, tries to survive as they travel the unknown parts of the galaxy and evade warring factions as well as authority agents out to get them. Creator Joss Whedon made what Roddenberry wanted “Wagon train” in the stars. Very good acting by all and full, filled out stories. Followed by a film Serenity (2005) the crew of the ship Serenity tries to evade an assassin sent to recapture one of their number.   

Cowboy Bebop (1998) Japanese anime series, 26 episodes directed by Shinichiro Watanabe , Written by Keiko Nobumoto -The futuristic adventures of an easy going bounty hunter and his partners. A jazz-funk-bebop soundtrack from the “Seatbelts” adds to the futuristic feel also used in the film.

     

Cowboy Bebop:Tengoku no Tobira (2001) A terrorist explosion releases a deadly virus on the masses, and it’s up to  the bounty-hunting Bebop crew to catch the coldblooded culprit. There has been talk of a live action film version with Keanu Reeves as reported by Mark Cassidy @ Comicbookmovie.com.When asked what progress has been made since the last official update almost a year ago the actor said..                "Nowhere, It hasn't been working. Every time [the script] comes back, it's still a gazillion dollars. Every time they try to pare it down, it's like, 'Well, that's not the film, what about the other kajillion?'" Even if the script and budget issues were to sort themselves out soon, at 46 Reeves admits he might be a bit old for the role at this point. "I'm getting too old to play Spike, maybe his older brother. Thorn! Maybe father of Spike! I'm sure some fans will be happy that Reeves most likely won't end up playing Spike as his involvement was met with mixed reactions at the time. Although he wouldn't be my first pick, I think he might have pulled it off. Anyway, its a shame that the film is tied up in such red tape as it would no doubt make an epic sci-fi flick under the right director.

West World (1973) Michel Crichton

A robot, malfunction creates havoc and terror fir unsuspecting vacationers at a futuristic, adult-themed amusement park. Can’t forget Yul Brynner’s gunslingers’ eyes

My First, The Valley of the Gwangi (1969) 

Early 20^th century cowboys corralling a T-rex for a circus. One thing I will never forget, the table top miniature horses. The stop-action special effects talents, of Ray Harryhausen are featured in the film.

Light fare Back to the Future III (1990)

The Very First, Sci-Fi western was a 12 chapter, A 1935 Mascot serial called The Phantom Empire. Mascot combined for the first time the western, musical, and science fiction genres. The series starred, non-other than Gene Autry, the singing Cowboy. This was his first starring role playing, you guessed a singing cowboy.  

Future Sci-fi westerns, The Dark Tower Series (1982-2004) by Stephen King. Directed by Ron Howard, (3 hour movie - 22 episodes of TV- 3 hour movie) still up in the air at last report. Talk of Javier Bardem as Roland.

A Surprisingly Smart Movie

 

Captain America: The First Avenger  

Directed by Joe Johnston
 
For the “GeekOnerds” (who know each panel of the Captain America Comic #1 March 1941) and the “GeekOnerd” in all of us. All will be satiated a good story that is entertaining and engaging, with enough action to be a summer blockbuster. 

“Every army begins with one man. He will be the first in a new breed of super-soldier. We are going to win this war

because we have the best men. And they, personally, will escort Adolf Hitler to the gates of hell” so states Colonel Chester Phillips (Tommy Lee Jones) informing us where we are headed as only Tommy Lee Jones can.

The idea of how Steve Rogers (Chris Evens) becomes Captain America  physically is straight out of the 1940’s movies. Remember when the murder happen in a shadow cast against a wall. Imagination is better than any CGI, yet combined with CGI’s imagination we are carried to another time with sepia tone imagery, unforgettable realism and real places from the thought up past. Perfect art direction and dead on cinematography fill this story out. As does Mr Evens Captain America point on in every respect.

How does Steve Rogers become Captain America, in the retro high tech super secret lab of Dr Abraham Erskine (Stanley Tucci) and Howard Stark (Dominic Cooper)  Yes that is Iron Man’s dad. We see a dial that is labeled “Vita-rays” that is all the explanation, no tech-no babble. Philosophy instead. 

"Why someone weak? Because a weak man knows the value of strenght, the value of power" Dr Erskine says.

Then lights and sounds and my imagination Bingo.....

Super solider! Mr.Tucci and Mr Cooper both deliver the goods with accented aplomb.

Yes, afterward the new soldier gets to save the day. I loved the action collage of our man becoming a hero and collecting “his” team.  Not forgetting the dame, the doll, Peggy Carter (Hayley Atwell) who Captain America is falling for misstatements and misunderstanding included. Their interplay works she loves him you can see it, career scientist thou she is, even with a few bullets at one point.

Oh zounds, could not forget the bad guys, perfectly praiseworthy. Hay you can’t get better than Nazi for bad guys. Then on top of that, a special super select Nazi who, out Nazi, the Nazi, yes it can be done. RED SKULL! (Hugo Weaving) who is seeping world domination with every engagement we have with him. Mr Weaving's Red Skull is just creepy and frighting enough to want more. When with his evil side kick Dr. Zola (Toby Jones) who is smarmy and ingratiating, the pair is easy to hiss at, I wanted to throw my popcorn at them. I kept thinking “where does he get those toys".

Sidebar for the ungeekable Red Skull is known for causing the death of the parents of Peter Parker, making an orphan of the boy who became Spider-Man. The Marvel comic world intertwines like the head of the Hydra emblem on Red skulls car.    

The minion Nazi of Red Skull, the Hydra Soldiers were reminiscent of the Nazi from “IronSky”. Yes, I could see them building a base on the moon.

In stopping Red Skull’s Hydra Organization bit by bit Captain America inescapably comes face to face with Red Skull in the show down.

The teaser from the opening is concluded bringing Captain America into the hands of Nick Fury (Samuel L.Jackson) And into next summer’s The Avenger.  

This movie delivers the whole nine yards. 

Go enjoy, be proud, to be an American!

Bloody mayhem-It’s 1215 and we’re all barbarian.

Ironclad  Writer/Director: Jonathan English 

It is the year 1215 and the rebel barons of England have forced their despised King John to put his royal seal to the Magna Carta in a meadow at Runnymede in Surry. A noble, seminal document that upheld the rights of free-men. Yet within months of pledging himself to the great charter, the King reneged on his word and assembled a mercenary army on the south coast of England with the intention of bringing the barons and the country back under his tyrannical rule. Barring his way stood the mighty Rochester castle, a place that would become the symbol of the rebel's momentous struggle for justice and freedom.

If you want hide from the heat for a couple of hour and not tax your brain then this is the movie for you. This is not the King John that Claude Rains depicted in Robin Hood, clad in silks and bright colors with hair coifed perfect. This is a King John played by Paul Giamatti in war worn robes and muddy feet with a taste for cruel bloodshed. A man fighting for his birthright, the” God given right to be king”. To bring civil war again in his kingdom he lures mercenary to his shores. Their leader carries a man size doubleheaded war ax; I knew we were in for a bit of mayhem when I saw that.

This gore-fest starts off slow with a hanging and tongue cut out. We meet Archbishop Langton (Charles Dance who seems to be taking the place of David Warner as institutional bad guy in a lot of places lately) commanding Lord Albany (Brian Cox) to gather his forces with the help of the “newly back from the crusades, knight Templar warrior monk” Marshell (James Purefoy) who carries a broad sword . Keeping count one big ax and a man size broad sword to wet our appetite of things to come.

The quest for our rebel heroes is not unlike the recruiting in “magnificent seven”. We round up bad guys with good hearts who will fight and die for Lord Albany. Upon arriving at Rochester Castle we find Cornhill (Derek Jacobi) constable of Rochester with his wife Lady Isabel (Kate Mare).  Now we are set up for the bloodshed by the bucket full. A little love story between assaults on the castle, once Lady Isabel touches Marshell’s big sword there is no stopping the two of them.

A rational idea for the slaughterous story, history. A group of accomplished actors, fine period sets and dressings, a working trebuchet, always cool. Writer/Director Jonathan English has made a movie that is preferable to a TV movie thanks to the actors who make up what the script lacks with voluminous amounts of hacking, stabbing, slaughter and chopping carnage. It is controlled chaos, as war is expect nothing more.

So “Cry havoc* and let slip the dogs of war” for a few hours at least.

    

*The military order Havoc! Was a signal given to the English military forces in the middle ages to direct soldiery to pillage and chaos.

Summer Blockbuster Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part I & II

Part 1: Harry races against time and evil to destroy the Horcruxes, he uncovers the existence of three most powerful objects in the wizarding world: the Deathly Hallows.

We have watched Harry; Hermione & Ron grow as characters into young men and woman. Along with the young audiences that started the journey with them.  Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint have grown up as actor before our eye and fine actor they have become handling all the emotions needed to be friends that trust each other. Their interaction on screen is as comfortable as family, which they have become over the past years.

 From the opening of Part 1 with the crumbling gray Warner Brother logo you know this is not the harry potter world that we have been brought into so far, it is an elemental darker world now, thanks to Volemort and the death of Dumbledore. Alan Rickman embodying Severus Snape is by and large one of the best evil minions portrayed on film I love the way he pauses as he speaks informing the Dark Lord on circumstances.

 We are reminded of their simple beginning as Harry walks around the empty house on Privet Drive which belonged to the loathsome in-laws, the Duresley’s a bit of comic relief in the other films. Harry looks one last time into the cubby under the stairs where we all met in happier Days.

Blood and consequences happen from Voldemort’s 1st attempt at Harry when the Order of the Phoenix moves him for his safety. Harry defends himself as an adult wizard. The chase on Hagrid’s flying motorcycle has more invested than the night bus. The effects are now so seamless in films. It amazes me that film has now become what a 100 years ago it was first touted as, a medium where anything can happen.

Safe at “the Burrows” the ancestral home of the Weasly’s, the Minister of Magic arrives, Bill Nighy always welcome to any movie, his lips at the beginning reminded me of Rocky Horror picture show. He distributes the items from Dumbledore's last will and testament the gifts left to our 3 Young Wizards’ tie the first movie to the last with a little nod to a snitch, a sword and a book.

The magical wedding reminded me of the some other important wedding (the Deer hunter, the Godfather) with just as much exuberance, caring and violence. I loved the way that magic happens all around us in the everyday world even in Dinners. We muggules are just too busy to notice wizards dueling.

The cinematography of our friends on the run across the country is spectacular. We are invited with an intimacy toward the three friends as they wander, worry and work things out.  Our protagonists are off on the quest from Grimmauld Place to the Ministry of Magic. Dissention and evil separates them even a close call in Godric’s hollow on Christmas eve does not stop them. The art direction and set Decoration is just a wonderment scene after scene. I could smell some of them.

The Deathly Hallows are introduced to us in an animation that is just as fantastical as the ideas of the Deathly Hallows.

The end of the movie brings us face to face with the Malfoy’s and Bellatrix’s evil. Helena Bonham Carter servers us a Bellatrix Lestrange who is over the top and it works out commendably. The Sword comes into question and a death occurs as Voldemort opens Dumbledore’s tomb. Ralph Fiennes’ Voldemort is dead on target. The no nose makes him creepy and unworldly just to look at as he commands each scene he is in.  We are left hanging…………     

Part 2 : Harry, Ron and Hermione search for Voldemort's remaining Horcruxes in their effort to destroy the Dark Lord.

The opening back into this world shows us students marching back into school very reminiscent of the Nazi marching into Paris.

Dark doings are a head. Director David Yates is at the helm again superbly. The start is right where we left off and the roller coast begins.

Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint as our guides are as always up to the task to carry us. On this action adventure fantasy thriller detective horror war epic. Yes it’s has everything even a dragon, since we didn’t get one in the Game of Thrones first season.

The harry potter epic started as a children series, I remember adult denying that they were reading the books. The box office showed us that we were hooked. This final installment delivers’ the goods every actor who has appeared in the epic says their farewell. Each has brought their unique work to add to the whole to make this a wonderful goodbye. John Hurt, David Thewlis, Jim Broadbent, Gary Oldman, George Harris, Helena Bonham Carter, Michael Gambon, Emma Thompson to name a few.

Maggie Smith who’s “I’ve always wanted to use that spell” delights us in the midst of darkness.

The battle for Hogwarts is just the thing summer blockbusters are made of. The Cinematography, Production design and Art direction are a seamless triumvirate. Through their work a world as real as our own is brought to vivid life.

All of the stings that have been laid across our path in the past movies are brought to fruition. Each answers a fundamental question of the story, putting that question at rest.  I enjoyed the quest for answers and am more than a bit sad to leave these characters knowing that “God’s in his Heaven/All’s right with the world” even if Heaven might be Kingscross station.