COWBOYS & ALIENS
Ambitious, poignant, spiritually muddled sci-fi western.
Should You Watch It?
COWBOYS & ALIENS has the pieces of a great movie. It offers poignant scenes, terrific acting, a strong story of repentance and absolution, and overt Christian ideas about recognizing God’s presence and acting on it.
But those elements compete with romance, science fiction, western conventions, pagan religion, New Age philosophy, and humanist comments. The result is a movie that loses its way by the end—or, as the review puts it, by its four endings.
The content also matters. The film includes a lot of foul language, very intense action violence, nudity, an Indian drug ceremony, and pagan or spiritually confusing material. Adults who choose to watch should do so with discernment and should not expect a cleanly Christian worldview. For family viewing, wait for something else.
The Story
NO SPOILERS — WE KEEP THE SURPRISESA wounded cowboy wakes in the desert with no memory and a strange bracelet device attached to his arm. He makes his way toward the town of Absolution, where violent conflicts on the ground soon collide with attacks from the sky.
As the cowboy, known as Jake, tracks a wounded alien, he joins forces with Ella, a beautiful armed woman, a powerful cattle baron, former outlaws, and local Indians. Together, they face invading aliens who are capturing people and seeking gold.
Is It Any Good?
Three stars means this is a mixed but worthwhile film rather than a fully successful one. The review finds terrific acting and some very poignant scenes, along with a basic story about an outlaw repenting and being absolved of his sins.
The film’s central ideas sometimes land with force. Its Christian scenes can be brilliant, and its emotional moments have real weight. But the movie suffers from too much: too many competing genres, plots, philosophies, and endings. Somewhere inside it is a great movie, yet the finished film never quite finds it.
The Worldview
The film presents a strong overt Christian story of absolution and repentance. Jake is an outlaw who must confront his past, recognize his wrongdoing, and change through good deeds. The preacher offers both a misguided statement about God’s plan and several compelling remarks about recognizing God’s presence, repenting, and acting on that realization.
Ella functions as a Christ figure: she comes to Earth in human form, gives herself to save humanity, and is resurrected after being burned. These images give the story Christian echoes, but the film does not remain within a biblical framework.
Its Christian ideas are muddied by New Age pagan philosophy, pagan religion, false Arminian comments about salvation, and humanist musings. The Indian drug ceremony used to revive Jake’s memories adds further spiritual confusion. The film’s many genres and competing beliefs make its message mixed rather than clear.
At its best, the film points toward repentance and transformed living. Scripture says, “Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out” (Acts 3:19).
The Content Guide
The specifics — spoilers included by nature — so you can judge for your own family.
Content Summary
Very strong overt Christian story of absolution and repentance, with strong moral elements, slightly muddied by some New Age pagan philosophy, and pagan religion and false Arminian comments on salvation, plus some humanist comments; 37 obscenities, four profanities and several moments of relieving oneself; very intense action violence with people getting shot, stabbed, aliens dissecting people, alien/human battles, explosions, human/human battles, punching, alien eats man, etc.; suggested sex and one passionate kiss between human and alien disguised as human; upper male nudity, full rear female nudity; alcohol use; smoking and Indian drug-induced ceremony to revive hero’s memories; and, alien in human form resurrects herself after being burned on a fire, man atones for his sins by doing good deeds.
Talk About It
Questions for the drive home, the dinner table, or the youth group.
Jake must face his past and atone for his sins through changed actions. What is the difference between feeling sorry and truly repenting?
Acts 3:19 · 2 Corinthians 7:10The preacher speaks about recognizing God’s presence and acting on it. Where do you see God’s presence in ordinary life, and what should you do in response?
Psalm 139:7–10 · James 1:22The film combines Christian ideas with pagan and New Age beliefs. Why does Scripture tell believers to test what they hear and see?
1 John 4:1 · Acts 17:11Ella gives herself to protect humanity. How is sacrificial love shown in the film, and how is Christ’s saving work different?
John 15:13 · Romans 5:8The Final Word
COWBOYS & ALIENS has real acting, poignant moments, and a meaningful story of repentance. But its intense content and confused mixture of Christian, pagan, New Age, and humanist ideas make it a poor family choice. Watch at home only if you are a discerning adult prepared for those concerns. WAIT FOR HOME — ADULTS ONLY. For family movie night, choose from.
