The Lone Ranger Reviews

When one walks into a film directed by Gore Verbinski and starring Johnny Depp, one has to be prepared to suspend their disbelief once in a while during outrageous action scenes. The Lone Ranger is no exception, but this movie pushes the boundaries of ignorance even farther than the Pirates of the Caribbean films. The number of ridiculous coincidences, miraculous death escapes, and dumb luck in this picture is too large to count. It falls past the mark of forgiveness and into the vast unknown of sheer absurdity. For that reason (among others), The Lone Ranger can be easily enjoyed as an embarrassment to the names of everyone involved. But there's just enough legitimately good stuff in this movie to make one yearn for the fun film it could have been.

So, I'm not quite sure what the film was all about; the whole affair just seemed like a blur of dull conversations, sporadic weird-ness, and the occasional (and preposterous) action scene. As far as I can tell, this movie is about John Reid, a lawyer who is out to find the men that killed his brother. And also, there's Johnny Depp talking to a horse now and then. That's more or less, the gist of this film.

The Pirates of the Caribbean films, while mindless and often remarkably stupid, still manage to be decent fun most of the time, providing colorful characters are impressive action sequences. Some of this is still true of The Lone Ranger, but in considerably smaller increments- with the exception being the stupidity, which has been massively inflated, resulting in a treasure trove of unintentional comedy.

The extent of the stupidity knows no bound. The script- which contains more than its fare share of bad dialogue- is all over the place. It never keeps the tone consistent, and the same goes for the character personalities (the exception being Tonto, though his personality is no more elaborate than Jack Sparrow with a dead bird on his head). There are various needlessly convoluted conversations (which are therefore, needlessly dull), and the attempts at comedy are often embarrassingly juvenile. In other words, there are poop jokes.

What's more, the script is terribly lazy. Many, many incidents are left unexplained. Example: During one scene, John Reid wakes up, and finds himself on a small platform that is several hundred feet high (you've likely seen this bit in the trailer). The next scene, he is no longer on the platform, but speaking with Tonto. It is never explained how he got off of the platform, and for that matter, it's never explained why he was there to begin with. This is only a single example, but there are numerous.

Furthermore, the script has the bizarre idea to have the entire story narrated by Tonto over 60 years in the future to a young boy. The film will randomly cut back to Tonto and the young boy, and these cuts back never feel natural, and they always take one completely out of the story (or at least what passes for a story in this film).

As I briefly touched upon before, this film is everywhere tonally. While it's often a fun, light-hearted adventure, it randomly cavorts into the dark and oddly depressing. One extensive massacre of seemingly hundreds of Native Americans is an unfortunate example of this.

And did I mention that the love interest of the title character is actually his sister-in-law, whom his brother married? What?!

There are action sequences in this film, but they're not as large in number as one might hope. Most of the film is devoted to tedious conversations and hit-or-miss comedy. What action scenes are there tend to be fairly forgettable. The highlight of these sequences (and the of the film) is one extensive train/horse chase/fight near the end. It's still preposterous, but it is undeniably fun.

If more of the film had focused on this care-free, high-energy mood, this could have been as fun as the best of the Pirates films. Unfortunately, too much of this film is focused on convoluted plot details, and weird Depp antics.

The acting in this film is often embarrassing. Armie Hammer as John Reid never hits the right note. He always feels out of place in this film, and never gets into the role. Of course, considering the script he had to work with, it's unlikely even the best of actors could have made this look good. Johnny Depp as Tonto is sporadically entertaining, but occasionally terrible. Some of his comedic bits work, and others are cringe-worthy. Scenes that involve him talking to horses are especially bad. The other performances are generally lifeless.

The score, composed by Hans Zimmer, is fun at times. But it's constantly quoting his score from Inception (and more infrequently, Sherlock Holmes and Rango). It's frustrating, and distracting. However, the extensive use of the William Tell Overture during the action sequence at the end is clever, and very entertaining.

As much as I'm tearing The Lone Ranger apart, I didn't hate it. Because of its preposterous nature and numerous unintentional laughs, The Lone Ranger is reasonably entertaining. Unfortunately, the comic nature of some scenes and sequences aren't fully embraced consistently. The film often gets too caught up in uninteresting plot threads and tedious dialogue to focus on just having a good time. The key to getting the most out of The Lone Ranger, is to see it with friends. You'll all laugh aloud at the film's absurdity, and hopefully get a kick out of the end. If you're watching on your own, expect to doze off, zone out, or wonder aloud why Johnny Depp would allow himself to be humiliated in this way.

Even though I've watched it almost 2 months (if not longer) ago, I feel like I have to write a review, mostly because of the bad ones about this movie. Personally, I don't give a damn about westerns. Never did, even though I did watch a few, but 99% of the time it's just not my thing. The only reason I ever watched this one was because of Johnny Depp, plus a few scenes seemed funny. I had.. no expectations, but didn't really except much after so much harsh reviews.

Anyhow... it was awesome! And I mean it. Johnny Depp was great in it, and as for the movie as a whole, I thought it was great. Sure, the story wasn't perfect, but there is a lot of comedy, and if you've liked Johnny in The Pirates of the Caribbean, you'll quite probably like him here as well.

Personally, most of the times, I watch the movies to be entertained, as I believe it should be, and although this movie had some smaller faults and maybe lack of stronger story, it made it all up with a lot of good comedy. I know it's based on the some show from.. well, a long while ago, but it shouldn't be compared to it - the same way most remakes shouldn't be compared to originals, it is what it is. Sure, maybe Tonto in the original was better for some, more serious, whatever, if you're expecting to see that, then don't bother watching - just watch the original, and stick with it. But if you want a good, fun movie, that will make you laugh and not make you feel like your time is wasted, then give this movie a shot.

Due to critical and box office failure, my expectations of 'The Lone Ranger' were rather low, despite that, I was still disappointed by it

Yes, Johnny Depp is (probably) the most famous actor in the movie and that's why they made Tonto the central character

Satisfaction goes to a few action scenes, decent costumes and sets

Bad goes to the boring story and the over-the-top performance of Johnny Depp

Hiring Johnny Depp was a waste of money in my opinion, if there was no poster or credits, you wouldn't be able to recognize him

The rest of the cast weren't so bad (Armie Hammer, William Fichtner, Tom Wilkinson, Ruth Wilson, Helena Bonham Carter) but not so good either, Gore Verbinski's directing wasn't so bad but you can't deny the screenplay was pretty ridiculous

'The Lone Ranger' features train chases just like the train chase in 'Toy Story 3' (I am aware that both Woody and the Lone Ranger are cowboys but still very similar), a tedious cross between 'Toy Story 3' and 'Pirates of the Caribbean'

'The Lone Ranger' would've been better if Johnny Depp had given a better performance and if Justin Haythe and Ted Elliott had produced a better screenplay (which didn't rip off 'Toy Story 3' at all, even if they're both Disney movies, 'Toy Story 3' is a Pixar movie too and was biologically made by Pixar)

To conclude, 'The Lone Ranger' is a weak, tedious action, very average and not really worth a look even if you're a huge Johnny Depp fan (besides - like I said - he gives an over-the-top performance)

Another movie where Johnny Depp appeared in a weird costume. The weirder he goes the wildest his role becomes, I love it. No question, he is one of a rare actor who try a variety of characters in different movies. His appearance as an American Indian with a stuffed crow over his head was the highlight of this movie.

The story is set in 1930 where a tale was told to a young boy about the famous Ranger, John Reid, of the past era. Slowly the screen turns the mid 1800 where John Reid loses his brother. He teams up with a native American to bring the justice to his brother's death. But the law was powerless against his enemy. He's forced to take the alternate path and how he accomplishes his quest are the rest.

The characters were not developed up to the standards. Tonto was okay but the Ranger was not, in fact the title represents that Ranger character only. This, Indian and Ranger combo was looked similar kinda combo to Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson's 'Shanghai Noon'. Worked perfectly into the movie but I don't know how comprehensive to the 38 and 56 versions.

Overall movie was not great but definitely above average and one can thoroughly enjoy it. The movie had all the elements that a western should have like horse riding, gold rush, desert train, Indians, cowboys and what else. In my opinion Johnny Depp saved the movie, any others in his place could have been a great mess.

Personally, I never had some high expectations concerning this flick and when it turned out to be a huge flop with some pretty negative reviews, I pretty much lost all hope. To my surprise, I actually enjoyed most of it and when I was just starting to think that Johnny Depp was slowly becoming the most overrated actor in the world, he reminded me why once I used to love his work so much. Indeed, even though you could argue that he used pretty much the same gimmick as he did with 'Pirates of the Carribean', I thought that Johnny Depp was quite hilarious and with Armie Hammer, they made a great couple composed of a crazy Indian and an incompetent lawyer who doesn't want to shoot anyone. Unfortunately, all the rest of the movie, especially the plot was quite underwhelming, expect for a few decent action scenes. Indeed, it was all rather pedestrian with the evil railroad tycoon, the outlaws disguised as Indians, the two brothers loving the same wife,... Furthermore, they really messed up the tone. Indeed, even though it was marketed as a Disney family feature, it was actually quite violent (there was even a guy eating someone else's heart for God sake!) but it was also too goofy and shallow to be taken really seriously. To conclude, of course, it was nothing amazing, but I think it was actually quite entertaining and it is worth a look. Hopefully, since it is yet another flop for Johnny Depp, maybe he will start again to be considered a box-office poison and maybe he will go back to some smaller and, above all, more interesting projects.

From producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Gore Verbinski, the filmmaking team behind the blockbuster "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise, comes Disney/ Jerry Bruckheimer Films' "The Lone Ranger," a thrilling adventure infused with action and humor, in which the famed masked hero is brought to life through new eyes. Native American spirit warrior Tonto (Johnny Depp) recounts the untold tales that transformed John Reid (Armie Hammer), a man of the law, into a legend of justice-taking the audience on a runaway train of epic surprises and humorous friction as the two unlikely heroes must learn to work together and fight against greed and corruption. (c) Disney

PG-13, 2 hr. 29 min.

Western, Action & Adventure, Kids & Family

Directed By: Gore Verbinski

Written By: Terry Rossio, Ted Elliott, Justin Haythe

"Horse says you are a spirit walker. A man who's been to the other side and returned. A man who cannot be killed in battle."

With The Lone Ranger existing in film, television, comic book and radio form since the 1930s, it's unsurprising that the property was targeted to become a big-budget summer blockbuster by the folks at Disney. It's clear that producer Jerry Bruckheimer and the executives at Disney wanted another Pirates of the Caribbean, recruiting director Gore Verbinski, superstar Johnny Depp, and writers Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio in the hope of turning The Lone Ranger into a new franchise. What a shame that the resultant picture is one big mess; a noisy, agonisingly long and painfully leaden endeavour that's only intermittently entertaining. Some movie-goers might be reminded of The Mask of Zorro in terms of tone and story (especially since Elliott and Rossio also wrote it), but Verbinski's endeavour lacks the earlier picture's sense of pacing and panache, placing it firmly in the doldrums.

John Reid (Armie Hammer) is a district attorney dedicated to the proper channels of justice. While transporting vicious outlaw and cannibal Butch Cavendish (William Fichtner) to the Texas town of Colby, where he'll be turned over to John's brother, Sheriff Dan (James Badge Dale), the train is hijacked by Cavendish's gang, who set the murderous criminal free. Although John refuses to pick up a firearm, Dan is compelled to deputise his brother as a group of rangers set out to find Cavendish. Unfortunately, the troupe are ambushed and attacked, with John emerging as the only survivor of the slaughter. Brought back to health by Comanche outcast Tonto (Johnny Depp), John sets out on a spiritual mission of justice. Learning that Dan's wife Rebecca (Ruth Wilson) and her son were kidnapped by Cavendish, John and Tonto look to bring the outlaw to justice, only to stumble upon a scheme involving the railroad and a silver mine fortune.

Rather than recreating the exhilarating magic of 2003's Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, Verbinski channels the dead-on-arrival 2007 sequel At World's End with its bloated runtime, convoluted narrative, and lethally glacial pace. Worse, The Lone Ranger actually opens in 1933, introducing elderly Tonto (with Depp covered in phoney make-up), who tells stories about his adventures with John to a young boy in a Lone Ranger outfit. The device fails to fulfil any essential purpose, instead serving as a disruptive entry point that halts the pacing. Speaking of unnecessary subplots, Helena Bonham Carter shows up as a brothel owner with an ivory leg that can shoot bullets because writers Elliott, Rossio and Justin Haythe were apparently determined to cram in countless asides that detract from plot urgency. There's no reason for The Lone Ranger to run for almost two-and-a-half hours, aside from indulgence. As a result, the picture's midsection is a complete drag; boring and flat. Worse, the picture alternates between taking itself too seriously and not taking itself seriously enough; it's brutally violent one minute and a jokey farce the next. Most egregious is a scene involving cannibalism, which feels out of place in a Lone Ranger flick and even more out of place in a Disney movie.

The Lone Ranger does not look like a $250 million production, period. Films like Man of Steel and The Avengers were produced for less cash, yet both featured several large-scale action scenes and tremendously impressive production values. Even Quentin Tarantino made Django Unchained for a smaller sum, and his efforts are more impressive than anything glimpsed here. For what's supposed to be a fleet-footed adventure, The Lone Ranger is packed with too many scenes of drab character interaction venturing into superfluous narrative tangents. Nevertheless, the flick gets points for its lavish construction, with attractive cinematography making superb use of the magnificent locales, and with intricate sets and costumes. Moreover, some of the action sequences are admittedly spectacular. The best set-piece here is the finale, set to the William Tell Overture, which at long last delivers the type of fast-paced, old-fashioned cinematic excitement that we wanted all along. It's a genuinely rousing and spectacular climax, full of top-notch stunt work and seamless digital effects, and the tone is spot-on. Honestly, however, it feels like too little, too late - by the time the good stuff kicked in, I was numb from the past two hours of excessive bloat. It's a damn shame. And while The Lone Ranger is predominantly grounded, a few action beats are ridiculously over-the-top, killing credibility and clashing with Verbinski's dark tone.

Even though Hammer plays the titular Lone Ranger, Depp is very much the star of the show as Tonto; he's the one telling the story, and Depp is consistently foregrounded. He seems just to be playing another variation on Captain Jack Sparrow, serving as flimsy comic relief as opposed to anything sincere. A few attempts are made to give levity and depth to Tonto, but they're ineffective because Depp plays the character too broadly. Hammer, meanwhile, does what he can, but the material is working against him. Instead of a memorable hero, John Reid is completely bland, and he does a number of things that paint him as an unredeemable scumbag (he's willing to leave Tonto buried in the sand to die while he rides off on a horse…). Fichtner fares a bit better as the villain, and Tom Wilkinson espouses some welcome gravitas as a railroad magnate, but Ruth Wilson has nothing to work with as Dan's widow - she's just a damsel in distress, and Wilson was incapable of giving the role any pizzazz.

The Lone Ranger is entertaining at times, and it's marginally better than this reviewer expected it to be, but it remains an inconsistent, disappointing revival of the age-old brand name. In spite of its impressive production values, it predominantly lacks an all-important sense of spirit and fun. And although it was made for $250 million, it's hard to recall many especially note-worthy or amusing moments. Hell, I can barely remember any of the action sequences, either. Nobody really asked for a big-budget Lone Ranger flick, and calls for a sequel will be even less enthusiastic.

4.8/10