2191. Rango (2011)

Starring: Johnny Depp, Isla Fisher, Abigail Breslin

Director: Gore Verbisnki

Running Time: 107 mins

Rango is an American film about a lone chameleon who finds himself in the isolated town of Dirt, and ends up being entrusted to protect the town from a great threat.

Although it doesn’t quite prove so all the way through, Rango does offer something a little different to the normal family animation affair, with strong humour, vibrant animation and imagination, and entertaining voice performances throughout, all of which make for a very enjoyable watch that’s only brought down by an unfortunately generic final act.

There’s a lot to like about Rango, but the film’s opening sequence is undoubtedly what sums it up best. A bold opening that combines the film’s unique brand of humour with its striking Wild West setting, I was immediately engrossed as the film got going, and with good laughs and surprises right from the beginning, it’s a great way to start a film.

Throughout the rest of the first act, the film sticks with its unique qualities brilliantly, with Rango himself, the lead character, proving a delightful presence right from the beginning, as his misfitting personality with the whole Wild West setting makes for some hilarious contrasts, and along with some very well-written humour throughout that will prove properly funny for viewers of all ages, there’s a real energy to this film throughout the first act that makes it a very enjoyable watch.

Furthermore, the way in which it satirises stereotypes and tropes of the Wild West genre brings even more laughs to the table, with lead voice actors Johnny Depp and Isla Fisher in particular doing a fantastic job at bringing their unique characters into that generic setting and bringing so much flair to it, complementing the film’s excellent humour brilliantly throughout.

In short, Rango is a film that gets off the a fantastic start, and will easily have you engrossed and entertained for the best part of an hour, featuring comedy and surprises the likes of which we don’t normally see in these blockbuster family animations, which really impressed me.

With that said, however, the film’s final act is where things fall down quite a lot. Despite having pushed well with its parody of the western genre and generally strong humour and performances, the film seems to run out steam and ideas towards its finale, ultimately reverting to a fairly simple and action-oriented conclusion that, while as enjoyable as most animated blockbusters, doesn’t quite have the impressive originality of the opening act, making for a somewhat disappointing final act.

Overall, I enjoyed Rango. Starting off on a really strong footing, the film is full of life, energy and ingenuity from the start, not to mention a couple of really entertaining voice performances, all of which will keep you very entertained for the majority of its duration. However, its final act just falls back into slightly generic territory, signalling a loss of ideas and imagination after such a strong opening, which makes for a rather underwhelming finish to an otherwise impressive movie, which is why I’m giving it a 7.5.