Rango Review

They call him Rango...

From the "Gecko" I was intrigued by the film. Recent animation films (with the exception of "How to train your dragon", of course) have been either sequels or something we've already seen more than once. "Rango", however, had a new style to it that I found to be brilliant. Normally, children wouldn't be interested in something in the Western genre, but, the film creates a space that might just catch a child's eye. That's in the trailers though. In reality, "Rango" is actually something I'd say anyone but the kiddies will enjoy. It's more serious than it is comical and it doesn't contain the light adventure kids normally find heavy adventure out of. While this is one wild adventure for our main hero, I feel as if the moral of the film is something only adults will get something out of. Getting away from the main point, the film is very enjoyable, and though I only found very few flaws, in the end this is a very successful animation in my eyes.

Eight years ago, Gore Verbinski and Johnny Depp took a dead genre (Pirates) and made it something that is now a instant-classic, "Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl", of course its sequels. Creating such a fantastic piece filled with action, humor, and incredible adventure that audiences never really saw coming, its no surprise with what they create here in "Rango". This time taking the Western-genre, which isn't completely dead (but something we hardly ever see anymore) and reinvent it with a new twist: creature animation. Instead of having cowboys and Indians, the movie replaces the usual with creatures in the mix, making it very satisfying for the kids, and even fans of the Western genre. Gore Verbineski does a fantastic job visually setting up "Rango". The animation on the film is astonishing and some of the best I've seen in recent years. But, while I found the animation and look on the film to be fascinating, I felt as if some of the creatures may have been a bit much for the kids to look at. The film is produced by Nickelodeon, and that obviously attracts a child's mind and even a parent's but I feel as if this film is supposed to be aimed at a older audience. Some of the creatures in the film (especially Rattlesnake Jake) might be a bit too scary for the kids, especially seeing the film in a dark theatre. Not just the look of the character, but, the gritty outlaw-ish character development behind Rattlesnake Jake, as well.

In every film there's a hero. In every Western, there's a cowboy. In "Rango", we have Rango. While in the beginning it's not even his name, he's just a pet lizard in a bad situation that leads him straight to the desert, all alone. With a heart of gold and the imagination of a child, Rango's enthusiasm brings out the light in this film and makes our main-hero very likeable. Being very lonely his whole life, he finds his chance at the best of life in Dirt, a small town deep in the desert. Creating a fabric of being an old westerner and a killer of six outlaw brothers, Rango quickly escalates into becoming the Sheriff of the town after killing a deadly eagle keeping prey on it by the chance of luck. Being the new Sheriff isn't easy, however, as Rango learns of Rattlesnake Jake and how no Sheriff lasts long in Dirt. But, with each challenge Rango faces he becomes more and more of what lie he created. The biggest problem to Dirt, however, is its struggling to find it's water supply. I thought the whole plot on water was brilliant, but again, it probably isn't something kids would find amusement out of. Adults, however, well, that's a different story. Rango finds friends in Beans, a lady-rancher who is a great role-model for women viewers on the film fighting her every view and doing whatever she can to find water for the town. He also makes enemies in the Mayor and the film's big villian Rattlesnake Jake. The film manages to confuse me in two different areas though. 1) The movie clearly takes place in present time. There is existence of humans, as seen in the beginning, and there are major cities (as seen in one scene). If there are humans, how are the animals living in a town their size (?) and how do they have guns their size as well? If humans exist then guns wouldn't be made for the little creatures and a small town their size (built by whom?) wouldn't make much sense either? I think the film would've flowed much easier if humans didn't exist because it really boggled those questions in my head after seeing the movie. 2) (Tiny Spoiler) Where Rango and Rattlesnake Jake actually brothers? When Rango mentioned that he was his brother in one scene I thought it was just another lie to tense the townspeople, and then when Rattlesnake Jake came to town to scare off Rango he called him his brother. The film never actually clears it up to whether the two are brothers or not, they didn't seem to have the brother feel so I don't think they were, but, it was something that confused me just a tad. Anyways, overall, the storyline for "Rango" is very fresh and creative. I've never seen an animated feature-film quite like it so it's definitely worth the dollar just for that. It's not something that has been repeated over the course of time over and over, so, no worry there.

The script for the film, written by John Logan, is very mature for it's kind. Thinking it'll be aimed for the kides, the script's maturity is actually something teens and adults will get something out of. The strong moral on what a hero is similar to the one from "How to train your dragon", but, "Rango" presents it with a whole new approach. I thought the dialog in the film was pretty heavy and interesting through-out, and overall, I thought Logan's work was fantastic. I would've liked a few things to be cleared up a little better, but, his script flows very nicely indeed.

Johnny Depp hides behind the face of Rango, doing a great job bringing the life and enthusiasm to the character it deserves. Johnny Depp's face is no stranger to audiences, and neither is his face. It's very recognizable and without seeing advertisements or posters for the film and just watching the film, it's instant that you know who's voicing the character. I thought Depp was great as Rango and I couldn't of imagined another actor of adventure to bring it to the screen like he did. Isla Fisher, who I didn't know was even voice-acting in the film until after I saw it, voices Beans. Fisher does a great job hiding her voice adding in on a western accent. I thought the voice was done well, and if she was able to hide herself away like that, clearly, it was good then. Abigail Breslin, who has a few lines here and there, voices Priscilla, a little girl-creature in the town who has pretty good chemistry with Rango in their couple of scenes. Bill Nighy brings terror to his character voicing Rattlesnake Jake, giving the character a very deep, scary vocal that creates a little bit of tense. Other hidden stars like Timothy Olyphant and Alfred Molina give away their voices for little roles. As for the work on the voice-acting in the film, it was used to the extent: energy and life.

All and all, beautifully made, "Rango" takes an old dish and serves it with new creativity that might just be more fun for the adults than the kids. A little confusing at times, I feel like the adventure of the film is high and it never slows down from the beginning. It's much more original than other animated films in the past, and it will make fans of the Western genre happy. I'm glad to say that it was worth my dollar, and I loved the Clint Eastwood figure cowboy from one scene. Lets just say that being a huge fan of the Western genre, I'm glad that "Rango" can be a film happily added into it, having the same thrills any other would. It's moral on what a hero is fantastic and might just give it's audience huge inspiration. Overall, it's a real delight to look at it and witness.

-Thanks for the read!

-Screeny

Overall Quality: B- Great.