The Lone Ranger review

THE LONE RANGER:

UNDENIABLY GOOFY AND STUPID BUT SOMETIMES FUN!

By Nico Beland

Movie Review: ** 1/2 out of 4

DISNEY

Johnny Depp (right) and Armie Hammer (left) in The Lone Ranger

            Director Gore Verbinski (Pirates of the Caribbean), producer Jerry Bruckheimer (National Treasure, Armageddon, Pearl Harbor) and Johnny Depp (Edward Scissorhands, Dark Shadows, The Rum Diary) re-unite once again for a new take on the classic Lone Ranger story. Let me just throw this out there, it’s a dumb action flick, with goofy dialogue and edgy action scenes, but you know what else? It was also a lot of fun.

            It’s no masterpiece nor is it a movie I’d recommend to everyone, but being a guilty pleasure movie is what can be said about this film. Sure it gets ridiculous at times and Johnny Depp’s performance is somewhat similar to his portrayal of Captain Jack Sparrow from the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, but being a silly adventure movie with one-liners and outrageous action makes it more amusing to watch.

            Depp and Armie Hammer (The Social Network, J. Edgar, Mirror Mirror) star as Native American spirit warrior, Tonto and Texas Ranger, John Reid, they’re polar opposites of each other who are brought together by faith and destiny. The two of them decide to team up and hunt down a menacing group of criminal outlaws from plunging the West into a war, save John’s family, and transform John Reid from a man of the law to a legend of justice.

            The story is pretty much the usual Western movie premise, becoming a legendary hero of the law and catching all the bad guys. Nothing really that new, but the overall performances can make up for it, Depp and Hammer are fun to watch, William Fichtner (The Dark Knight, X-Men Origins: Wolverine, Elysium) and Tom Wilkinson (The Green Hornet, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, Duplicity) are very amusing as the villains, and Helena Bonham Carter (Dark Shadows, Corpse Bride, Harry Potter) as Red Harrington is phenomenal and probably has the best performance in the film, other than Johnny Depp.

            The direction was also decent, even though it has that classic Pirates of the Caribbean feel to it, but I guess that’s what happens when Gore Verbinski and Jerry Bruckheimer collaborate on a movie. The Lone Ranger overall is an okay summer blockbuster, not quite as worth your money as some of the other blockbusters that are currently out like Man of Steel, Star Trek Into Darkness, or Iron Man 3, but it’s fun and enjoyable enough, if you haven’t already I recommend seeing Man of Steel, then maybe The Lone Ranger, a decent summer hit that’s amusing to watch.