Rango

Full of action and wit, Rango delights with western-movie nostalgia with a modern day twist. A chameleon that aspires to be a swashbuckling hero finds himself in a Western town plagued by bandits and is forced to literally play the role in order to protect it.

Written by John Logan
Directed by Gore Verbinski

The film opens with a mariachi band of owls as the narrators, which immediately made me nervous that this could be similar to the awful Legend of the Guardian’s film. Fortunately, there is only one comparison- the gritty animation.

Rango is a fascinating tale of a small chameleon unexpectedly tossed from his small theatrical glass box into the dessert. This is no ordinary lizard- for he is an aspiring thespian. Once thrust upon a small town in the desert “Dirt,” Rango is now free to become the character of his choosing. He decides to dazzle his new found desert friends with tales of danger and adventure, and reinvents himself to be the rough riding cowboy from the far west.

There’s a hilarious scene where Rango accidentally sets fire to the town’s bully by the name of Bad Bill, and somehow manages to pull off the tough guy image. He lies his way into becoming the Town’s new hero and Sheriff. Things go well for a short time- but when someone steals the town’s water supply, his true heroism is put to the test. Rango tangles with a hawk, a terrifying rattler, and a battalion of bat riding mole-rats. The story is surprising, and the writing is incredibly creative, with inventive dialogue and witty humor. Johnny Depp’s personality shines through the little lizard in a way that parallels the eccentric Jack Sparrow. The movie posters tout “Johnny Depp IS Rango.” And they’re right.  This colorful character was playful and childlike- and he accomplishes this purely through his voice.

Isla Fisher voices the strong-willed lizard named Beans, who is determined to keep her father’s ranch, currently sought after by the Town’s mayor for his own financial gain. Beans suffers from an overactive spastic lizard “freeze”, which is a defense mechanism all lizards have, however Bean’s seems to occur randomly and in mid-sentence. This lovable lizard speaks with a southern drawl and piques Rango’s interest as they work together to solve the town’s water supply mystery.

I couldn’t honestly tell you that the characters were charming in this animated tale – in fact the astonishing realness of some of the creatures was at times very distracting. The close up shots of the hair on the mole, and the character’s rotting teeth sets this animated film far apart from Pixar or Disney animations with sparkling canines. The town is full of dusty dessert creatures; reptiles, rodents, and birds giving the animation a gritty sheen. The voices of Ned Beatty, Alfred Molina, Bill Nighy, Stephen Root, and Ray Winstone among others add depth to the solid animation and development of the characters.

While this film is fun for adults, I would strongly advise getting a babysitter for any kids younger than 10. The action and grit could be a bit much for younger children, and the scenes with the menacing rattlesnake are intense and could be scary to even an 8 year old.

Go see Rango- you’ll be wildly entertained!