Rango Movie Review

Releases: 10^th March 2011
Rating: PG – Contains some scenes may scare very young children
Duration: 107 minutes 
Genre:  Animated but also artsy

Starring: Johnny Depp, Isla Fisher, Abigail Breslin, Alfred Molina, Bill Nighy, Harry Dean Stanton, Ray Winstone, Ned Beatty and Timothy Olyphant

Director: Gore Verbinski (Pirates of the Caribbean 1, 2 and 3, The Ring, The Mexican)

The Premise>> The story follows the comical, transformative journey of Rango (Depp), a sheltered chameleon living as an ordinary family pet, while facing a major identity crisis. After all, how high can you aim when your whole purpose in life is to blend in? When Rango accidentally winds up in the gritty, gun-slinging town of Dirt — a lawless outpost populated by the desert’s most wily and whimsical creatures — the less-than-courageous lizard suddenly finds he stands out. Welcomed as the last hope the town has been waiting for, new Sheriff Rango is forced to play his new role to the hilt…until, in a blaze of action-packed situations and encounters with outrageous characters, Rango starts to become the hero he once only pretended to be. Rango is an exciting new twist on the classic Western legend of the outsider who saves a town — and himself in the process.

The Review>> Now upfront I should say that I loved it but I don’t think it will be everyone’s cup of tea. Most people will see the trailer and expect this laugh a minute light and fluffy animated kid’s film. In reality it was more of an adult animation with an artsy feel. I don’t think they have been clear enough in the marketing to say that it’s really not your typical light and fluffy kid’s animation with fart jokes etc… In fact it is quite dark at times.

It is basically like if you took the film Chinatown and replaced the actors with quirky beasts and animals. So you kind of have to expect, some laughs, some drama and a whole pile of visual stimuli.

The animation is as amazing as I have ever seen on the big screen, with immaculate detailing and wonderful action. This is amazing considering that this is the first animated feature for special effects company Industrial Light & Magic.

I think that the team has done an awesome job merging the voices with the characters, while picking a few stand outs in the western front such as Timothy Olyphant from TV’s Deadwood and Ray Winstone as a menace.

This is going to need to one that you absolutely make your own mind up about, as it will divide audiences with a love or hate mentality. Which generally only comes from not doing your research and knowing what to expect.

The Conclusion>> An awesome and challenging piece of animated art but definitely don’t expect a Pixar film such as Cars or Toy Story.