The Good, The Bad, and Johnny Depp: A Rango Review

The Good, The Bad, and Johnny Depp: A Rango Review

Directed by Gore Verbinski and written by John Logan, “Rango” tells the story of a house pet chameleon thrust out of his comfy home life and into the Wild West. The movie finds chameleon Rango (Johnny Depp) suddenly lost from his owners and stranded in the Mojave Desert. Through a series of lies and false bravado, Rango soon finds himself the sheriff of a small town called Dirt, whose recent troubles have included a water shortage and gangs of outlaws. He also meets the town’s more interesting characters, including Priscilla the mouse (Abigail Breslin), Roadkill the armadillo (Alfred Molina), and the token love interest, Beans the iguana (Isla Fisher). The film then focuses on Rango attempting to solve the town’s problems, all the while trying to live up to his false reputation as a hardened cowboy.

The film’s story is unique and yet familiar at the same time. While it has nearly everything you’d come to expect from a Western, including outlaws, backstabbing, showdowns, and themes of redemption, it’s all wrapped in a family-friendly package of unique and often quirky characters. Depp’s performance of Rango is especially wonderful, once again calling upon the awkward charm that made his roles as Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood, and Jack Sparrow memorable. While the story does drag at some points in the middle of the film, Rango’s off-the-wall and often nervous dialogue still keep it interesting.

Even without the famous cast or excellent storyline, “Rango” is worth seeing simply for the visuals. Headed by Industrial Light & Magic, the CGI animation is a gorgeous combination of realistic textures and identifiably cartoony character design. From the Mojave Desert to the city of Las Vegas, the environments in the film are so good that even Pixar would be impressed. And since the character animations were all based on the actions of actors portraying them, each character is imbued with an extra touch of personality.

While it isn’t in 3D like the theatrical release, the Rango DVD will be released on July 15th as both a standard DVD and as a Blu-ray combo pack. Both the DVD and Blu-Ray will feature deleted scenes, behind-the-scenes content, and an alternate ending. With an endearing story and impressive visuals, it’s definitely worth checking out.