Manny The Movie Guy /

When you are presented with a movie named "Cowboys & Aliens" you know exactly what you are going to get. Instead of Indians being the bad guys, the extraterrestrials are the ones terrorizing the wild, wild West.

It's a clever concept but when you are mixing genres you are entering a very treacherous terrain. In "Cowboys & Aliens," the western genre elopes with sci-fi and the filmmakers tried their best to find the perfect balance. Predictably, the western elements overshadow the sci-fi aspects.

Combining science fiction with western in popular culture has been done before. Arguably, Gene Autry's 1935 serial, "The Phantom Empire," might have been the first one to merge both genres. Autry, in his first starring role as a singing cowboy, discovered a gleaming underground empire of Murania full of robots, ray-guns, and otherworldly creatures.

Daniel Craig does not sing in "Cowboys & Aliens" but he's a cowboy alright. He's Jake Lonergan, a stranger who wakes up in the middle of New Mexico Territory not knowing who he is and where he came from. He is wearing a metallic bracelet that looks like "Iron Man's" discarded prop.

Jon Favreau, the guy who gave us both "Iron Man" movies, directed "Cowboys & Aliens" on autopilot. It feels like the film was made in the storyboard room, but thank heavens for the actors who succeeded in breathing life to their otherwise two-dimensional characters.

Harrison Ford is no stranger to science fiction western having starred in the popular "Indiana Jones" series. The actor is also a veteran of the space western genre with "Star Wars" leading the pack in telling a frontier story set in outer space.

No wonder Ford is hired as Colonel Dolarhyde who rules the town of Absolution in fear. But when his son Percy (Paul Dano) is abducted by aliens, Dolarhyde must work with Lonergan. Indeed, cowboys and Indians, lawmen and criminals must unite together against a common enemy.

Fans of the original 2006 Platinum Studios' graphic novel written by Scott Mitchell Rosenberg, Fred Van Lente and Andrew Foley will be disheartened to know that the filmmakers took liberty in changing the storyline. The only similarity between the film and comic book versions is the main conceit of cowboys fighting aliens.

Does it really require five scriptwriters and three screen story writers to come up with "Cowboys and Aliens?" Witness the talent from this writer pool. There's Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman who gave us the fantastic "Star Trek" reboot. There's "Lost" veteran Damon Lindelof, and "Iron Man" writers Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby.

Great writers right? But sadly, too many cooks in the kitchen nearly spoil the broth. That's why I specifically admire the talented cast for rising above and beyond the mediocre script. The always-dependable Sam Rockwell joins the party as Doc, a saloon owner who bands with Lonergan and company to find his abducted wife.

My favorite among the cast is Olivia Wilde ("Tron: Legacy") as Ella Swenson. She's a mysterious frontier woman who seeks out Lonergan's help. The filmmakers gave her character an intriguing backstory that the actress was game to play.

The cinematography by Academy Award nominee Matthew Libatique ("Black Swan") is commendable. He perfectly captures the rugged Western terrain. And as expected from a big blockbuster film, the production values are respectable.

The secret to truly enjoying "Cowboys & Aliens" is learning to lower your expectations. Enter the theater knowing that you're saddling up to a movie about cowboys fighting aliens and you will have a good time.