Rango (Reviewed by Ed)

2.5 out of 4 Stars

 

“So you want something to believe in?  Believe in that there sign.  For as long as it hangs there we’ve got hope.”  This line from the movie really sums up what Rango is all about.  When I first saw the poster I didn’t have high hopes for this movie but when I saw the trailer my perception of the movie went up a little bit…but not much.  I reluctantly took my 8yr old and 13yr old to see this movie.  I wish I wouldn’t have.  While Rango has a lot of great moments in this movie I had a very hard time with the amount of swearing that they put in.  Basically it was the same two swear words (Hell and Damn) but the way they were used were pretty strong.  These words were used probably a total of 10 times throughout the movie and for a PG “kids movie” it was a bit shocking.  If I were to see this with some adults I wouldn’t have been as uncomfortable, but with my own kids (one of them being under 10yrs old) it was hard to watch. 

 

Rango (Johnny Depp) is your average homebody lizard that has a knack for theatrics.  He loves using the surroundings and props around him to do his theatrical shows.  When he finds himself out in the middle of a desert, after he falls out of the car that he was in, he is put on a journey to find the town of Dirt by an armadillo that he finds run over in the middle of the road.  Rango finds the city of Dirt, an untamed western town tormented by villains and desperately short on water.

 

Rango must use his ability to role play, and after standing up to some local thugs and killing the bird that terrorizes the local townsfolk, the mayor of the town (Ned Beatty) makes him sheriff.  The story comes down to how is Rango, the new sheriff in town, going to help the local folks get water to survive.

 

The story is well written and I found myself wanting to find out more of what was going to happen next.  The characters in the movie were strange, scary, funny and all around wildly exaggerated.  The animation was top notch and the actors they brought in were some pretty big celebs (Johnny Depp, Abagail Breslin, Alfred Molina and Bill Nighy just to name a few). 

 

I just had a hard time getting past the typical sexual references (most of which would go over a child’s head…but not all of them) and all the language that was scattered throughout the movie.  Yes it is a PG movie but it’s a PG animated movie so I guess I assume that they will be kid friendly.  Well unfortunately this movie isn’t kid friendly.  I probably would’ve given this movie 3.25 or even 3.5 stars but it only gets 2.5 stars because of the un-kid friendliness of this movie.

 

Rating of whether I would see the movie again:
1 = Definitely not!
2 = Probably not.
3 = Maybe.
4 = Probably.
5 = Absolutely!

Would I see the movie again in the theaters? 1
Will I rent it on DVD and watch it at home? 3 (I think ClearPlaying this movie would make it better)
Would I buy the movie? 1

 

"Rango" is rated PG for Action, Language, Rude Humor, Smoking, Violence, Mild Sex References, Mild Violence, Scary Scenes, Not Recommended for Young Children.