No, seriously where are they? There are more Indians in this movie than cowboys. I see one cowboy and that's Harrison Ford. All the other non-alien characters in this movie are just wearing western clothing but act like any other American. Where's the western accent? Not that it would've improved the movie but I'm making a point that the selling point didn't work. This is not a western.
The opening was one of the greatest openings I've seen in a movie. It's right there with 'Predators' and 'The Half Blood Prince' in terms of movie openings. It begins with a lot of energy as we're quickly introduced to the main character who wakes up in the middle of nowhere. Perfect. Some bad guys appear with guns and Daniel Craig doesn't hesitate to kick some butt. Sadly this is one of the few good things about this movie.
The biggest problem are the characters. I'm fine with Daniel Craig. I'm one of the few people I know to like his performance in the 007 movies. But why is he playing James Bond in this movie? What's Olivia Wilde doing here, she didn't do anything! She's just standing around in the background. Wilde can be confused with other women in this movie various times. Where are the characters? I see one: Harrison Ford.
There are no explanations whatsoever in this movie. It's almost as bad as 'Vanishing on the 7th Street' in terms of explaining plot threads. Why are some characters able to save themselves from death? Why can't they do it the second time? And the amnesia Daniel Craig is suffering from is so plot convenient! The memories come back any time the plot needs it to. For example, the aliens attack and abduct the towns people. The survivors need to chase after the aliens, their motivation being that they need their loved ones back. But uh-oh, wait a second! Daniel Craig is suffering from amnesia, he doesn't know anybody. So..let's give him back a part of his memory of him being abducted by aliens so he can join the party. This is BAD WRITING.
This movie reminded me so much of 'Terminator Salvation'. Some action scenes in fact are very similar. These scenes are great eye candy and they present good special effects. But it's just like 'Terminator Salvation' or 'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides'; there are lots of things going on but we're not entertained.
To break it down, here are the things I liked about this movie. I liked Harrison Ford and Sam Rockwell. I liked the aliens and their technology. I liked the opening and the concept of this movie.
It seems like the movie was just made for the sake of its creative concept. Nothing is really developed here. I haven't seen the source material but I've heard it's nothing like the movie and in fact that the movie was better.
This is not a terrible movie but I didn't leave the theater satisfied. This should've been the 'Predators' of this year. I had high hopes for this movie; I liked the casting and the filmmakers, what happened?
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