Travis Simpkins

Cowboys and Aliens (2011): Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford

Though it seems like a new concept because it hasn't been done in a while, mixing Sci-Fi and Western genres in films dates back to the 1950s. In Cowboys and Aliens (2011), the idea gets a fresh revitalization with all the technological advances of modern film being put to use by director Jon Favreau. Overall, it's a solid story with great characters and a strong cast, including Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford.

Daniel Craig plays an outlaw who wakes up in the desert with amnesia and a strange contraption on his wrist...

Cowboys and Aliens. 2011: Daniel Craig

Harrison Ford plays a cattle baron who basically owns the nearby town. Tensions between the townspeople suddenly seem minuscule when they are attacked by Aliens who kidnap a bunch of their loved ones...

Cowboys and Aliens. 2011: Daniel Craig

Cowboys and Aliens. 2011: Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford

Now, despite many differences, all the surviving people must work together to locate the mother ship...

Cowboys and Aliens. 2011: Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford

They must battle the Aliens and rescue their kin...

Cowboys and Aliens. 2011: Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford

Cowboys and Aliens. 2011: Daniel Craig

Swimming Pool (2003): Ludivine Sagnier and Charlotte Rampling

Directed by Francois Ozon, Swimming Pool (2003) is a critically acclaimed and controversial erotic thriller with an artistic edge. The ambiguous story centers on a British crime novelist who seeks quiet and solitude at her publisher's summer home in France... but finds an adventurous young woman already there, claiming to be the publisher's daughter, who causes a series of complications leading up to murder on the property. Stylish and well-written, the film is brilliant throughout, with vibrant cinematography and thoughtful performances. Charlotte Rampling and Ludivine Sagnier have great chemistry in the lead roles.

Swimming Pool. 2003: Charlotte Rampling

Swimming Pool. 2003: Ludivine Sagnier

Swimming Pool. 2003: Charlotte Rampling

Swimming Pool. 2003: Ludivine Sagnier and Charlotte Rampling

Swimming Pool. 2003: Ludivine Sagnier

Swimming Pool. 2003: Charlotte Rampling

Swimming Pool. 2003: Ludivine Sagnier

Swimming Pool. 2003: Ludivine Sagnier and Charlotte Rampling

Swimming Pool. 2003: Charlotte Rampling

Swimming Pool. 2003: Ludivine Sagnier

Swimming Pool. 2003: Ludivine Sagnier and Charlotte Rampling

Swimming Pool. 2003: Ludivine Sagnier

Swimming Pool. 2003: Charlotte Rampling

Swimming Pool. 2003: Ludivine Sagnier

One Million Years B.C. (1966): Raquel Welch

Directed by Don Chaffey, One Million Years B.C. (1966) was produced by Hammer Films and Seven Arts. It is a stylized remake of an earlier 1940 film, titled One Million B.C. Set in a fictional prehistoric time of cavemen and dinosaurs, the plot centers on a caveman who is banished from his tribe and finds a gentler nature in the company of a female within a neighboring group. The special effects are primitive, pun intended, with stop motion and shots of lizards. The true draw of the film, giving it Cult status, is the magnetic and raw beauty of Raquel Welch. John Richardson co-stars.