Johnny Depp Voices Rango; Photo Credit: Courtesy of Paramount Picture; All Rights Reserved

Not Even Depp’s Heroics Can Save This Movie

Gore Verbinski, director of “Rango,” has seen success with “The Pirates of the Caribbean” series. This is his first time directing an animated film. The movie is filled with a dream voiceover cast, including Johnny Depp (also of the ‘Pirates’ series) as Rango, Isla Fisher (“Confessions of a Shopaholic” 2009) as Beans, and Abigail Breslin (“Zombieland” 2009) as Priscilla, to name a few. Regrettably, these strengths aren’t enough to make up for the weak story, which lacked overall entertainment value. It is always a bad sign when I check the time about 30 minutes into the movie, and three more times before it ends.

The movie’s namesake, Rango, is a chameleon who, having spent his life as a family pet living in an aquarium, is unexpectedly displaced into the barren desert. While scrambling to survive the harsh realities of his new life, Rango stumbles upon the town of Dirt, populated with an interesting assortment of desert animals. Along with the lizard, Beans, and the mouse, Priscilla, Rango meets friend and foe alike. There is Roadkill, the wise armadillo voiced by Alfred Molina, the prairie dog, Balthazar (Harry Dean Stanton), the old tortoise, Mayor of Dirt (Ned Beatty), Rattlesnake Jake (Bill Nighy) and many others.

The town of Dirt has many problems, including town bullies, birds of prey, and the inability to keep a sheriff around (or for that matter, alive) for more than a few days at a time. These pale in comparison to the biggest problem facing the citizens of Dirt − lack of water. Each Wednesday at noon, the entire town gathers, performing a ritual in hopes of receiving a small but coveted portion of water.

Since Rango is after all a chameleon, he ‘suits up’ to fit right in to the West. He does this so well that, much to both his delight and dismay, he is soon named the new sheriff of Dirt. According to the Mayor, “People have to believe in something. Today, they believe in you.” So begins the adventure of Rango, the little chameleon fighting against all odds. Depp is adept as the lovable lizard who has a lofty imagination, striving not only to fit in, but to be someone of importance. Unfortunately, the movie felt somehow disconnected, and I feel that the potential of this character was compromised.

I wanted to love this movie, I really did. The trailer was so promising − a great voiceover cast, little critters galore, depicted with compelling animation. The film is filled with tributes to the great westerns of years gone by, the most obvious being the Spaghetti Westerns of Sergio Leone. What’s not to love, right? Call me crazy, but in this case, the elements just did not add up to a great movie. I did find the animation interesting and creative. The voiceover talent was good overall − along with Depp, I especially enjoyed Nighy as Rattlesnake Jake, although this character appears late in the movie, and is a scary one for young children. The writers attempt a good amount of adult humor, but it was lost on me. Oddly, I am usually the first one to laugh at just about anything, yet “Rango” rarely made me chuckle.

As for children, I do not recommend this movie for anyone under the age of 10. First, I doubt that it would really hold the attention of anyone much younger. Second, the content geared toward adults by far outweighs any geared toward children, of any age. There is a fair amount of ‘middle school’ humor with references to gross bodily functions, but even more disturbing for children is the violence − the guns become more prominent as the movie progresses (the rattlesnake’s tail is, in essence, a machine gun). There is a dysfunctional family depicted in which the child is being beaten with a stick; the singing owls (reminiscent of the “Cat Ballou” troubadours) are at one point hanging by nooses. Also, much of the adult humor is crude, not at all similar to the type of humor in movies such as “Up” or “Shrek.”

My suggestion for parents, if you still want to see this in theaters, make it a date night and leave the younger ones at home. Although the animation is top-notch, the overall story of “Rango” is simply uninspired and mundane, even for adults.

Written By: Tyna S. Cline© March 3, 2011