Alternate Title: Existentialism by Salvador Dali

Rating: 9/10 (19 April 2011)

If you took Sam Peckinpah, Terry Gilliam, and Disney and put them all on Hunter S. Thompson's brainwaves, you would get Rango. Yes, this movie is as outrageous as it sounds. It's surreal, it's gritty, it's undoubtedly sneaky with its wit and humor, and its all the more fun because of it.
The film stars a chameleon (Johnny Depp), going through an existential crisis, as he has lived his whole life in a terrarium. When that life is quickly—and literally—shattered, he finds himself walking in search of water. Instead, he finds a town called Dirt, where all the residents are plagued by outlaws and a severe lack of water, which is used as currency, it's so rare. Rango, seeking acceptance, assumes the role of sheriff, a role that has been played before, but with more unfortunate results. To make matters worse, someone is dumping water in the desert and draining all of dirt's resources. Who could it be, what is their diabolical plan, and is Rango really the unlikely hero of his own story?
In case it wasn't obvious enough from this summary, the film's tone is surreal, complex and almost shockingly mature for an animated picture. It blends in so very many movie references, blending the gritty, revisionist western with the surrealism of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, a too-obvious comparison on the latter's part. Director Gore Verbinski had a unique way of producing and directing this picture: he gathered Depp and all the other actors on a sound stage, in various costumes, acting out their scenes, as a sort of visual reference. Depp affectionately—and appropriately—called this 'Emotion capture,' as it gives the movie a more natural, organic feel, as if the reactions were believable. When it's put on screen, it's full realized in both interaction and appearance.
What most people have touched on when talking about the pros of this movie is, indeed, the stellar animationand, boy, is it stellar. Granted, some of the human cameos are kind of on the flat side, but our animal heroes are textured and expressive, which is important in this kind of movie. We can reach out and touch these sets if we were able; the roughness of the scales, the harsh desert heat and the sponge and spikes of cacti that crop up throughout are just a few of the details in this grand visual experience. The characters that make up this floundering town are actually interesting to look at and listen to, as the animation and awesome voice work give them all distinct and likable personalities.
Resident include old prospector mouse Spoons, large, but quiet tomcat Elgin, morose, trigger happy little aye-aye Priscilla (Breslin), and, my favorite, the kind, but no-nonsense Beans (Fischer), a rancher lizard who finds herself falling for the goofy, but sincere hero. But, by far, the biggest fan favorite has to be Bill Nighy's rogue, Rattlesnake Jake, who is hands-down, flat-out scary in any scene he is in! How any kid will survive his scenes is beyond me! However, that made him more of a threat that Rango needs to overcome, which is more satisfying in the long run.
Overall, while Rango has a few glaring problems (like seeing the Spirit of the West, who had been built up too much to show his face and be effective), Rango is easily one of the best movies of the year, if not one of the best-animated movies. It's surreal, but rewarding; strange but still gets the message across in a reasonable way that all can understand. Just don't bring the under 7 crowd, as it may be too odd and definitely too scary (*coughRATTLESNAKEJAKEcough*), but for those who can tolerate it, Rango is a trip that you soon won't be forgetting, no matter how many times you watch "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas."
(I mean, you're already in a reptile house if you think aboutOh, never mind)