Review of The Lone Ranger

After the Pirates Of The Caribbean film series director Gore Verbinski and producer Jerry Bruckheimer decided to bring a different genre movie to the big screen. The Lone Ranger is a big budget action-packed Western with a cast of talented actors, including a number of Brits. Johnny Depp's Tonto is another original comedic creation by the actor. Depp is often funny in the role and Tonto is easily the most memorable character in the film. Armie Hammer plays Tonto's partner John Reid, a masked vigilante who seeks the perpetrators responsible for his brother's death. Hammer is fine in the role but I found his interpretation to be somewhat stiff. It's not entirely his fault because the screenplay by Justin Haythe, Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio is clearly weak sometimes. This hurts the film too because it takes a long time to reveal the back story of the characters. William Fichtner, playing the ruthless and cannibalistic outlaw Butch Cavendish, is excellent as one of the villains in the film. Tom Wilkinson as Latham Cole and Ruth Wilson as Rebecca Reid also deliver good performances. Hans Zimmer composed a memorable score. I like Zimmer's atmospheric, eerie score for The Dark Knight Rises (2012) very much. He composed a rousing score for Man Of Steel (2013), and he again aids The Lone Ranger with a set of music themes that may compel some viewers to get the soundtrack. In the action department Verbinski delivers a number of enjoyable, cartoonish action sequences. They're lengthy but they're something that viewers have never seen before. I found The Lone Ranger to be an entertaining blockbuster. One can say that it lacks originality, that it's ponderously plotted, and that it's made according to the Pirates Of The Caribbean formula. Still, there are enjoyable bits throughout the film. More time should have been spent on developing the characters though. Like John Carter (2012) before it The Lone Ranger is another Walt Disney Studios release that underperformed at the box office. This may be because it's a high-concept Western or because, as Armie Hammer said, many critics unjustly bashed it. The film earned $239 million on a budget of $225 million. In the end, however, The Lone Ranger is an adventure comedy that's well worth seeing. I recommend it.