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The untold origin of the Lone Ranger. It shows who he was and how and why he became the Ranger.

Legendary bomb. The idea was not a bad one--reinvent and introduce the Lone Ranger for 1980s audiences. Right off the bat though there were problems. The studio ordered Clayton Moore (the original Ranger) to stop appearing anywhere as the Lone Ranger. It led to a nasty little battle that made headlines. I know of people who refused to see the film because of how Moore was treated. Also they hired the awesomely untalented Klinton Spilsbury to play the Ranger. Spilsbury was very handsome and muscular but had absolutely no charisma and just couldn't act. In fact his whole vocal performance was redubbed by another actor! Also his off screen antics (public drunkenness and beating people up) didn't help matters. Acting aside, the script is dull and slow. Also the Ranger himself doesn't show up until an HOUR in! There were some complaints at the time that the movie was too violent for a PG. However I don't think it was that bad.

There are a few (very few) things done right here--the photography was truly beautiful; Michael Horse was excellent as Tonto; Christopher Lloyd is lots of fun as the villain and when the Lone Ranger finally shows up (with the William Tell Overture booming from the soundtrack) it's really rousing. But, all in all, this is a boring and terrible attempt to bring back the Lone Ranger. It's easy to see why this bombed. A 4--mostly for the photography.

I saw this when I was five. I liked it at the time and was too young to have heard about the politics and controversy with Clayton Moore or notice the dubbing of the title character's voice. Even watching it again the other day for the first time in almost thirty years, those things were not issues to the movie itself.

It was entertaining. There are things I'd change here or there, but overall it was good. The handling of Tonto still holds up today in our hyper-PC world.

It's not without its warts, but they can easily be seen beyond and the movie enjoyed. Definitely check it out.

What is most interesting about this film, other than it's parallels to Zorro (which was written in the early 1900's): is the fact that Klinton Spilsbury never spoke a single word of dialogue throughout the entire piece, his lines being completely dubbed by James Keach, Stacey Keach's brother; Harrison Ford's stunt double from the later release of Raiders being run over during the stagecoach stunt homage to Yakima Canutt; and that John Hart, temporary replacement for Clayton Moore on the TV version of the Lone Ranger, being cast as Mr. Striker, newspaper editor and creator of the Lone Ranger mythos.

I personally like this film despite it's flaws. It's good, but could have been so much better.

The Legend of the Lone Ranger is an earnest adaptation of the origin and earliest adventures of John Reid's masked alter ego. Not particularly well made or well acted, Legend does have its moments, especially after lead Klinton Spilsbury dons the familiar black mask and white hat. To hear the upbeat tempo of the William Tell Overture truly does bring shivers to old fans' spines once more. Spilsbury, despite a nationwide search, was not a good choice for the Lone Ranger. He is not especially tall, broad shouldered, or very heroic in his movments. And obviously his voice was not good enough for the role either, as James Keach was brought in to dub over Spilsbury's lines. However, Spilsbury does prove to be physically capable, and his fight scenes and shoot outs are very much like the legendary Clayton Moore's. Michael Horse has departed from Jay Silverheel's monosyllabic and subservant version of Tonto. He is an activistic sidekick, prepared to defend his people to a fault, even if he has to step over his partner, the Ranger. Look for fairly good acting from the various co-stars, including Christopher Lloyd as the fiendish Butch Cavendish, Richard Farnsworth as Buffalo Bill, and especially Jason Robards as a frequently inebriated President U.S. Grant. All in all, not a great film, but one that tries incredibly hard to keep the Legend of the Lone Ranger alive.

I know that I am in the minority here, but I've always really liked this movie. I fondly recall viewing it in the theater with my parents when i was 6 years old. Maybe I am blind when it comes to the film, but i don't see any major problems with it. It's not a perfect film, but it is quite enjoyable. Let me put it this way, there are many films out there which are much worse!

I think what i liked the most was the music score, that theme song was haunting to my ears and one of the few that stayed fresh in my mind for so many years. John Barry truly did a marvelous job on this one, and many other movie scores over the years as well. I wish i could find the original theme song on CD, or at least on MP3.