Popcorn Panel: Cowboys & Aliens

Was pretty ridiculous. It’s a surprisingly atmospheric (if insubstantial) Western where the shoot ‘em ups happen to be with slimy alien prospectors instead of mustache-twirling human prospectors. But I couldn’t let go of a few idiotic plot points — the aliens are attacking the cowboys because they want gold, but the aliens already seem to have a very efficient gold-mining system in place, so … what?

Peter I’m worried about director Jon Favreau enrolling in the graphic novel school of directing. I don’t want to see him follow the path of hacks like 300 and Watchmen’s Zack Snyder, who simply films graphic novel panels shot for shot. However, this movie scores big on the sound and visual atmospheric charts, which places it in the same category as Tron: Legacy. But this film has too many inconsistencies that ultimately frustrate smarter viewers. These aliens should have been much more capable of wiping these humans out. Favreau does a poor job of pulling a Yojimbo (where samurai swords can defeat guns and bullets) on its audience. Is Cowboys & Aliens gets a fair amount of leeway when it comes to logic. Though it wasn’t entirely without logic, nor without reference to the real American west. Hard people living hard and ugly lives, check. Dirt, dust, and a low level of comfort, check. Vicious and unthinking racism, check. I skimmed the graphic novel afterwards (didn’t want to know beforehand), and can definitely see that the film was inspired by the graphic novel, rather than a faithful recreation of it. In fact, the two are quite different. So those amazing shots of Daniel Craig, perfectly framed by old wood (and looking like the Platonic Ideal of the cowboy, may I add), are all original to the film.

Peter I’m glad the graphic novel and this film are distinctly different, however Favreau’s extensive writing team have done their cross-genre film research.

Monsters Vs Aliens Trailer - News


Popcorn Panel: Cowboys & Aliens

Peter I'm still holding out for Pirates vs Aliens starring Johnny Depp. Unpopped Kernels: Mo' cowboys, mo' aliens – the panel discusses the film's cast, and nitpicks one particularly silly plot point. Chris Clancy Brown! How cool is he?



Never mind the Killer Elite, here's the Scorpions!

It is also frequently used in television commercials and other promos, including for Blades of Glory, The Iron Giant, Human Weapon, and Monsters vs. Aliens. It has been featured on Applebee's commercial for the sizzling steak and chicken fajitas,



10 Things That Go Bump in the Night

When most horror movies end up “in space” it's a sign that things are going downhill, but when the Critters finally wound up there in Critters 4 it made sense since these little monsters are aliens anyway. Essentially just lumps of fur and teeth,



Five Things for Tuesday, August 2

When aliens attack. That's the premise of Attack the Block, the new movie from the producers of Shaun of the Dead and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World. A teen gang must defend their home from invading monsters. Check out the trailer here.



Cowboys & Aliens

Von Jesko Jockenhövel An der Kinokasse muß man sich demnächst echt konzentrieren. Nicht Monsters vs. Aliens, nicht Alien vs. Predador, sondern Cowboys & Aliens steht auf dem Programm. Immerhin gibt es hier echte Schauspieler in den Hauptrollen im




Monsters Vs Aliens Trailer - Bookshelf

Monsters, evil beings, mythical beasts, and all manner of imaginary terrors

Monsters, evil beings, mythical beasts, and all manner of imaginary terrors

Gilmore considers the role of monsters in the human psyche and in society, looking at art, folktales, fantasy, literature, and other sources.

Monsters, an investigator's guide to magical beings

Monsters, an investigator's guide to magical beings

A fascinating explanation of the magical reality of non-physical beings -- including ghosts, vampires, & shapeshifters written in a field guide format.

Monsters!, Draw Your Own Mutants, Freaks & Creeps

Monsters!, Draw Your Own Mutants, Freaks & Creeps

Helps budding cartoonists develop and draw fantastic monsters, with information on creating weird eyes, strange skin textures, bizarre legs and arms, and a host ...

Aliens, the anthropology of science fiction

Aliens, the anthropology of science fiction

This book is divided into three parts: “Searchings: The Quest for the Alien” includes “The Aliens in Our Mind,” by Larry Niven; “Effing the Ineffable ...

Aliens

Aliens

Investigates several well-known accounts of alien abduction as well as theories aimed at explaining why such reports cannot be true.