When you name a film “Cowboys & Aliens”, it better have the action and originality to make an audience bite…otherwise, more people are going to nibble on “The Smurfs” (which is most assuredly worse). Director, Jon Favreau, pulled out an unlikely hit with “Iron Man”, but his sequel and latest comic book adaptation are proving more a downhill spiral for the once promising filmmaker.

Daniel Craig is a stranger with no memory of his past in “Cowboys & Aliens”, which crosses the classic western with an alien-invasion movie. (photo courtesy of Universal Pictures)

Jake Lonergan (Daniel Craig) is a wanted man, but he’s unaware of his past after waking in an open field with nothing but his clothes and a device on his wrist of unknown origin. He quickly finds that those around him either want him dead or know where he’s been. The former topic takes a backseat when some UFOs fly through town, kidnapping whoever they can get their hands on. Luckily, Jake’s “Live Strong” bracelet activates and saves the day, for the time being.

Joined by local cattle herder, Col. Woodrow Dolarhyde (Harrison Ford), a posse takes to the open range, ready to track down their stolen friends and kin. But there’s no U.S. Marshals or cavalry to back up these common folk, just a reverend, Meacham (Clancy Brown); a bartender, Doc (Sam Rockwell); a mysterious woman, Ella Swenson (Olivia Wilde); and anyone else they come in contact with, robbers, Native Americans, etc. — willing to engage a superior foe.

All the pieces are there to make this Humpty Dumpty stay on that wall through appropriate levels of action, humor and special effects intrigue. Unfortunately, performances feel rushed (Rockwell is so much better than this), and the dialogue tries too hard to capture the familiarity of Spaghetti Westerns, often paraphrasing one-liners and using fight choreography. End result: cliché dialogue that isn’t even nostalgically enjoyable and action scenes that are just as familiar without tapping into anything remotely fun or awe-inspiring.

Over the past 10 years, comic books have proven to be a substantial source for film concepts, from superheroes and neo noir to zombies and the just plain obscure. “Cowboys & Aliens” could’ve been a clever hybrid of two genres. Instead, it harnesses the mediocrity of both worlds and becomes just as blah and corny as its name implies. If you want to truly see the future of the western, check out the real space cowboy, Malcolm Reynolds (Nathan Fillion of “Castle), in the television series, “Firefly”, and the film, “Serenity”.

If Stephen Spielberg wants to remain relevant, his DreamWorks Pictures better start throwing some money into screenwriting. With the exception of a handful of the animation branch’s contributions, the latest plate of live-action entrée feels more like fast food than sit-down. What happened to the “Star Wars” formula, or even the “300” one for that matter?

With the exception of some unfortunate outbursts of over-acting on Rockwell’s part, everyone does what they can with the thin script they have. Olivia Wilde, once again, proves she can keep up in the man’s world of action films, but of course they have to find a way to get her clothes off. Craig is always enjoyable to watch, but his cryptic silence is best reserved for the next “Bond” flick. And it’s nice to see Ford taking on a familiar role, especially since his days as that oh-so-famous cowboy archeologist, but he’s just as trapped in bad writing as the rest of the cast.

It’s surprising to see how many big names are behind this project: Favreau; producers, Spielberg and Ron Howard; writers, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman (writers of “Star Trek” and creators of “Fringe”); and actors, Craig, Ford, Rockwell and Wilde. Much like “Green Lantern”, there doesn’t seem to be any discussion about product quality, just reaching the summer deadline.

It’s sad to see the climax of the summer season go flat with such a highly anticipated film.

“Cowboys & Aliens” has all the right stuff for a fun adventure, but the follow through is style and no substance. Of course it has rare moments of fun, but never enough to keep the yawns at bay. It’s too bad really.