A western with a twist, we take a closer look at the unique genre blend of Cowboys & Aliens.
In a dusty, wild west town in the late 19th century, a mysterious gunslinger (Daniel Craig) looks set for a bloody showdown with a ruthless cattle baron (Harrison Ford). Sounds like your typical western…… except for the alien spaceship snatching townsfolk. An unorthodox alliance follows as sworn enemies - cowboys and Indians - battle their extraterrestrial foe.
As its title so concisely suggests, Cowboys & Aliens is an eclectic genre mash of hard-bitten western and alien invasion thriller. Based on the graphic novel of the same name, the audacious premise attracted a Hollywood dream-team of genre fans in Iron Man director Jon Favreau, executive producer Steven Spielberg and producers Brian Grazer and Ron Howard.
“It was everything I hoped for and beyond,” marvels Howard of the concept, “The coolest version of the West meeting some badass aliens.”
The filmmakers aimed for the realism of westerns mixed with the fantasy of sci-fi drawing on seminal films for inspiration; from The Searchers and Unforgiven to Predator, Alien and Close Encounters of the Third Kind. The result is an epic popcorn movie, so who better to don the protagonists’ stetsons than the men who embody James Bond and Indiana Jones?
Cast for his Steve McQueen-esque rough-hewn handsomeness and demeanor, Craig channeled Clint Eastwood’s iconic, laconic cowboy characters to play Jake Lonergan, the amnesiac gunslinger with a futuristic alien-blaster attached to his wrist. A western and sci-fi fan, Craig reveled in playing cowboy.
“We are in a desert, and I’m wearing chaps,” he enthuses. “I’m wearing a gun around my waist, I’ve got cowboy boots on and a hat and I’m riding a horse….I couldn’t have been happier.”
But Ford, no stranger to sci-fi epics, wasn’t so easily sold on Cowboys & Aliens’ premise. “He became interested after I showed him the concept art and explained that our approach was serious in tone,” says Favreau. “We weren’t going to play this as a joke,”
The director likens Ford to western stalwart John Wayne. “He has a roguish quality,” says Favreau. “He’s always charming but with unpredictabilit. There is a danger to him that we thought fit this role.”
For Favreau, the film provided an opportunity to infuse a well of genre passion. “My idea was to embrace both genres,” he says, “and through the juxtaposition of the classic form of both the alien-invasion movie and the western, create something new and exciting.”
DANIEL CRAIG MOVIE MARATHON
DEFIANCE (2008)
In this powerful action drama based on real events Craig impresses as one of three brothers who lead an uprising against the Nazis during World War II, saving a community of Jewish refugees.
CASINO ROYALE (2006)
Craig defied the critics as the first blonde Bond in a gritty rendition of Ian Fleming’s iconic secret agent. The muscled Brit’s skimpy swimsuit scene rivals Ursula Andress in Dr No. Well, almost.
LARA CROFT: TOMB RAIDER (2001)
Before he became 007, Craig was already honing his action skills playing alongside fellow action juggernaut Angelina Jolie, the eponymous busty adventurer.
By James Mitchell. First Published in Blockbuster interaction December, 2011.
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