The old west... where a lone, wanted cowboy, Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig) ends up leading an uprising against a terror from beyond our world. 1873. Arizona territory. A stranger (Craig) with no memory of his past stumbles into the hard town of Absolution. The only hint of his history is a mysterious shackle that won't come off and encircles one wrist. What he discovers is that the people of Absolution don't welcome strangers, and nobody makes a move on its streets unless ordered to do so by the iron-fisted Col. Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford). It's a town that lives in fear. But Absolution is about to experience fear it can scarcely comprehend as the desolate town is attacked by aliens from the sky.
Screaming down with breathtaking velocity and blinding lights to abduct the helpless one at a time, these monsters challenge everything the residents have ever known. Now, the stranger(Craig) they rejected is their only hope for salvation. As this gunslinger slowly starts to remember who he is and where he's been, he realizes he holds a secret that could give the town a fighting chance against the alien force. With the help of the elusive traveler, Ella (Olivia Wilde) and Dolarhyde (Ford), he pulls together a posse comprised of former opponents--townsfolk, Dolarhyde's boys, outlaws, and apache warriors--all in danger of annihilation. United against a common enemy, will they succeed in an epic showdown for survival?
Others to round out the cast are Sam Rockwell as Doc, Paul Dano as Percy Dolarhyde, Col. Dolarhyde's whiny son, Abigail Spencer as Alice, Adam Beach as Nat Colorado, Keith Carradine as Sheriff John Taggart, Noah Ringer as Emmett Taggart, the sheriff's son, Clancy Brown as Meachum, the town's preacher, Ana de la Reguera as Maria, Doc's wife, and Chris Browning as Jed Parker.
This was directed with great intensity and incredible pacing by Jon Favreau ("Made" '01, "Elf" '03, "Zathura: A Space Adventure" '05, "Iron Man" '08, "Iron Man 2" '10), and it was based on Platinum Studios comic book by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg. The visual effects were masterfully created predominantly by ILM (Industrial, Light & Magic), and they were stunning.
The chemistry between Craig and Ford was incredible, and how they slowly transformed from total enemies to working together for a common need was slickly done. Interesting, there were five screenwriters involved to come up with the script, and shockingly, it was well written. My usual benchmark for screenwriters is one, two tops, because the story just gets so bogged down with more writers. But this was obviously the exception to that rule.
This is one story that will keep you on the edge of your seat all the while making you a cheerleader for the down-trodden. A good old-fashioned western with a quirky kick is just what one needs to fulfill a Saturday at the cineplex. Yee-Ha!
Out of 4 stars: 4 Rated: PG-13 118min.
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