"The Lone Ranger" (2013)

Starring Armie Hammer, Johnny Depp and Tom Wilkinson
Written by Justin Haythe, Ted Elliott and Terry Russo
Directed by Gore Verbinski
Rated PG-13 - Language, violence, sexual references
Running Time: 149 Minutes
Trailer

John Reid (Armie Hammer) is a lawyer returning home to Texas to take a job as a county prosecutor. On the train there, he notices a gang of outlaws boarding the train and goes to investigate. It seems that vicious murderer Butch Cavendish (William Fichtner) is aboard the train, being transported for hanging, and his gang has come to bust him out. A Comanche warrior, Tonto (Johnny Depp), is also aboard the train, planning to kill Cavendish, but Reid interferes in the name of the law. Cavendish gets away, but his men have killed the train conductor, leaving the locomotive out of control.

John's brother Dan (James Badge Dale), a Texas ranger, catches up with the the train and helps John and Tonto unhook the cars to save the other passengers as the locomotive crashes off the end of the rail line. Soon, the chase is on to find Cavendish. John is deputized as a ranger, and heads into the desert with Dan and his posse to find Cavendish, leaving Dan's wife (and John's former love) Rebecca (Ruth Wilson) and her young son behind.

But the mission ends in tragedy when one of Dan's men betrays the rangers, leaving them for an ambush that kills them all. Tonto discovers that a spirit horse has revived John, whom Tonto calls "a spirit walker" to help him on his quest for vengeance against Cavendish. As the two track the outlaws, they find themselves in a vast conspiracy aimed at igniting a war between the remains of the Comanche nation and the United States as the railroad expands westward.

"The Last Stand" (2013)

Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Forest Whitaker and Johnny Knoxville
Written by Andrew Knauer
Directed By Kim Ji-Woon
Rated R - Violence, language
Running Time: 107 Minutes
Trailer (Red band)

FBI Agent John Bannister (Forest Whitaker) is overseeing the transfer of a dangerous Federal prisoner to death row. Gabriel Cortez (Eduardo Noriega) is one of the most vile and vicious drug lords in history, and he's due to be executed. Bannister thinks he's got it all covered, but Cortez's men manage to break him free during the transfer, and Cortez is now rocketing toward the Mexican border in a specially-modified Corvette ZR-1.

The only thing standing in his way? Small-town sheriff Ray Owens (Arnold Schwarzenegger). Ray, a former Los Angeles narcotics detective, is called to investigate the murder of a local farmer in the middle of the night. Soon enough, his deputies, Jerry (Zach Gilford), Sarah (Jaime Alexander) and "Figgy" (Luis Guzman) are involved in a firefight on the farmer's property with Cortez's mercenaries, led by the vicious Burrell (Peter Stormare), who are building a bridge across the ravine into Mexico.  Ray warns Bannister that Cortez's men are in town, but Bannister won't be able to get his forces there in time.

So Ray and his small, inexperienced band of deputies will arm up and make their last stand in the middle of Main Street to prevent Cortez from escaping to freedom. Aided by a drunken former Marine (Rodrigo Santoro) and the local gun nut (Johnny Knoxville), this small band of weirdos will take on vicious mercenaries hell bent on getting their boss through town at whatever the cost.

"True Grit" (2010)

Starring Haylee Steinfeld, Jeff Bridges and Matt Damon
Written and directed by Joel and Ethan Cohen
Rated R - Language, violence
Running Time: 111 Minutes
Trailer

As I mentioned in my review of "Cowboys & Aliens," I'm pretty particular about the Westerns that I enjoy.  Occasionally, one comes along that acquires a good amount of accolades, and that makes it an attractive prospect.  2010's "True Grit," based on the 1968 novel, earned some impressive Oscar nominations, from popular and highly lauded filmmakers Joel and Ethan Cohen.

Mattie Ross (Haylee Steinfeld) is a 14-year-old girl who travels to a small town on the edge of the frontier to collect the body of her father, who was murdered by a man named Tom Cheney (Josh Brolin).  While there, she acquires some money and attempts to hire a Federal Marshall to track down Cheney, who has ridden off into Indian territory. 

The man she sets her sights on is Reuben "Rooster" Cogburn (Jeff Bridges), a drunk with a mean streak, described to Mattie as being without pity.  At the same time, she's contacted by Texas Ranger LaBeouf (Matt Damon) who has been on Cheney's trail since Cheney apparently murdered a Texas state senator.  At first, the three of them attempt to track down Cheney together, but their personality clashes lead to a rift between Cogburn and LaBeouf and the group goes its separate ways. 

Mattie wants to find Cheney first so that she can watch him hanged for her father's murder.  She knows that if LaBeouf finds him, he'll be taken back to Texas, and Mattie is determined to be the one who brings Cheney to justice for his crimes.

"Cowboys & Aliens" (2011)

Starring Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford and Olivia Wilde
Written by Damon Lindelof, Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci, Mark Fergus, and Hawk Ostby
Directed by Jon Favreau
Rated PG-13 - Sci-fi violence, language
Running Time: 118 Minutes
Trailer

I have to admit that much of my taste in movies and TV is based upon the interests of my father, who was very keen about introducing me to the things that he enjoyed when I was younger.  One of the things that I've never really managed to get, however, was his love of westerns.  While I've been able to enjoy the rare western ("The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" FTW), mostly it's a genre that I'm simply not fond of.

Of course, I am quite fond of things involving aliens from outer space.

Mixing these two genres is, in my opinion, a truly inspired premise.  It's too bad, then, that the film adaptation of "Cowboys & Aliens" doesn't seem to reach the full potential of that premise.

The story concerns Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig) who wakes up one day in the middle of the desert with no memory of who he is, how he got there, or what the strange metal bracelet on his wrist is.  He makes his way to the small town of Absolution, where he runs afoul of local bully Percy Dolarhyde (Paul Dano).  Afterward, he's recognized by Sheriff Taggert (Keith Carridine) who places him under arrest.  Percy's father, former military colonel Woodrow Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford) arrives, accusing Lonergan of robbing one of his stage coaches.

Just then, something truly strange occurs: Flying machines buzz the town, kidnapping a number of the residents.  Lonergan manages to shoot down one of the machines with his bracelet.  Afterward, Lonergan and Dolarhyde, along with a mysterious woman named Ella (Olivia Wilde) who seems to know more than she's saying, Meacham (Clancy Brown) the town preacher, Doc (Sam Rockwell) owner of the saloon, Colorado (Adam Beach) Dolarhyde's right-hand man and an Indian, and other members of Dolarhyde's gang set off into the desert in search of their missing people - including Percy, the sheriff, and Doc's wife.