Rango

I heard from a number of people that this was excellent so I went to see it myself being a fan of animated movies and of film in general. And I absolutely loved it, other than being a little too long, which is such a minor complaint, it was a wonderful film with some surprisingly mature themes and does very well at trying something different.

The animation for starters is outstanding. Not only do the characters move convincingly, but the colours look gorgeous and the backgrounds are imaginative and stunning. The soundtrack is another plus, the score is wonderful with a sense of fun, great use of instruments and nods to Ennio Morricone, without being too generic or over-the-top with some inspired musical flavour to it.

The script is funny, smart and quirky as well- loved the Chinatown(Ned Beatty based his performance on that of John Huston's), Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas and Star Wars references- the characters are genuine and likable with heart and don't fall into the trap of being too cliché(there are some but it works in the film's favour and I loved the title character), the film goes at a great pace while remaining wholly satisfying at its end with an almost elegiac quality that is there with almost all the best westerns, the slapstick action bounces along nicely and the story is far from formulaic instead it is original and inventive. The voice acting is wonderful, both Johnny Depp and Bill Nighy- Rattlesnake Jake is awesome!- give knockout performances, while Isla Fisher, Ned Beatty, Alfred Molina, Harry Dean Stanton and Abigail Breslin are equally terrific.

In conclusion, a wonderful film that I wasn't expecting to be this good this early on in the year. On a side note, for those complaining about suitability for children, I actually wouldn't say this was a film for kids but more adult-oriented. 9/10 Bethany Cox

Rango (Johnny Depp) is a hyper imaginative pet chameleon. When his family loses him out the back of their car, he is left to fend for himself in the middle of a desert. He escapes from a deadly hawk to find a western town called Dirt. The drought has made water incredibly valuable. Through luck and circumstances, Rango become the sheriff, but he is hopelessly clueless.

This is a very well made Nickelodeon animated movie. I wonder if this is going to be a new competitor to the animated field. The animation looks crisp and lively. The only missing element is cuter characters. Lizards are very odd for animation especially if you do it relatively realistic. But it fits very well to the setting of an old decaying western.

Rango is a very original character which actually is reminiscent of Johnny Depp's other big character Jack Sparrow. Does the fact that this is a reunion between Pirates director Gore Verbinski and Johnny Depp has anything to do with it? The comedy comes from a similar place, and it works well here as well.

Rango is a great kids' movie that plays on many levels, like all great kids' movies. About a hundred churchies here don't like it; that tells you it's realistic and morally complex. (One person complained about its metaphors for good and evil, because "many people take God and Satan seriously". Yeah, but we don't all think we hold a copyright on them.) And some folks helicoptered in to complain that it's violent and would scare some kids. Fifty years ago my parents took me to see Bambi and it scared me. So did Dumbo. It's vital that kids learn about fear, danger, and violence, and a cartoon is the softest place to do it. Thank God my folks understood that. For the record, Rango's violence is funny and completely unrealistic. Would it kill you to talk to your own kids about the difference between slapstick and the real world?

There are "swear words" here, if you still think "hell" and "damn" are swear words, because it's a gritty Western. (That happens to star a chameleon.) There are a lot of Hispanic references and characters, because Hispanics invented cowboys and the "American" West; Nickelodeon simply decided to unwhite-ify the Hollywood version, for a change. (The guy I read who complained about that wasn't even Hispanic. Meanwhile, I have Hispanic friends who love this movie, in part because they're in it, for once)

There are several stereotypes, ethnic and otherwise, because it's a satire. If you can't grasp irony, avoid this movie. In fact, never go outside. And several minor characters smoke. I hate smoking. But: stereotypes, remember? Westerns? Cultural memes? How about just teaching kids the difference between allegory and real life?

As for the moral content, the "lessons" of Rango, which, I think I can state without incurring a spoiler slap, are: 1. the world is a crazy place, 2. scary problems have to be solved by ordinary people, and 3. a quick wit and a lot of luck sometimes beats a quick draw and a lot of money.

If you agree with that, and aren't scared of your own shadow, see the movie. I loved it, and I'm hard to please. It's a great romp, a witty farce, and a lot of fun, precisely because Nickelodeon didn't sugar it down to pious drek.

The Oscar for Best Animated Feature Film of the Year went to Rango and to be honest in this category it clearly deserves that. After The Ring and Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl Gore Verbinski brings us another highly entertaining movie, this time with something slightly different as it is an animated movie. The images and characters are just perfect, it's all very creative and visually stunning. As for the actors, or better the voice-overs, they were perfect in their roles. I can't see anybody narrating Rango better than Johnny Depp. The story is simple but effective, with alot of humor, maybe not for the younger kids but more for adults with a healthy imagination and that don't mind watching animation movies every now and then. Rango, a movie I will watch again in the future.

A good animated film, I had never seen an animated western with animals before this. Johnny Depp is fantastic as always and the rest of the cast does a good job.

Music is solid and whilst not up the standards of some older Western films like Good the bad and the ugly it's still quite good. I liked the actual cinematography of the film as well, how Rango and Beans stood out in almost every seen, compared to the drabness of the drabness of the town Rango is rather colourful.

The plot is really interesting as well, with water being used as currency and the usual corrupt rich hoarding lots of it and not distributing it fairly. I've seen better plots but it's easy for children to follow and compelling enough for adults

Action wise I thought it was average personally but a certain serpentine character was very well designed and thoroughly intimidating.

7/10: Definitely deserves a watch, especially if you're interested in classic westerns, and I think the genuinely interesting characters and animation are worth a viewing for people who like that stuff too