MOVIE REVIEW: Rango (2011)

My first reaction to seeing the poster and trailer for Rango was "Kermit the Frog's cracked-out chameleon cousin" (there's even a joke in the film about the relationship between amphibians and reptiles, go figure). The characters in Rango are so odd-looking, I'd expect the most overprotective of parents to be repulsed by their appearances in fear of how their kids might react. Nevertheless, Rango is a case of "never judge a book by it's cover", the story, spirit, and voice acting are what make this otherwise unorthodox, strikingly Tarantino-esque children's film very memorable.

A thespian chameleon with an identity crisis, Rango comes to adopt his name after his knack at improvisation lands him a new job as the sherrif of the town "Dirt". As he brings the town to believe that he's a tough, gun-slinger, he investigates a town water-shortage that's been brought on by a recent drought. Rango rounds up a posse, made up of the local town critters, and they go on an adventure that features some of the funniest action and adventure sequences I've seen in an animated film in years. Packed with homages from Apocalypse Now, to The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly, even the humor is enough to entertain adults as much as the kids.

Is there anything really that bad I can say about Rango? Well, I guess it can be a little cliche and abstract at times. It's also incredibly irreverant, so be prepared for some moments of weird humor that otherwise falls flat in comparison to most of the other wittier gags. If you're an adult seeing Rango thought, you're probably seeing it for the performances, and Johnny Depp, as usual, is fantastic. It was refreshing to see him play a socially awkward, occasionally wimpy-type since Sleepy Hollow, and the cartoon medium serves his performance wonderfully with Rango's un-humanly, wacky body language. Perhaps this may very well be my pick for Best Animated Film of The Year; not nearly as much of the emotional depth of last year's winner, Toy Story 3, but a lot of fun, for sure.

8/10

Peace,
- Jon