The critics have spoken and the Lone Ranger has been declared a dud. But wait, I went and saw this movie and I loved it. Who is right? Probably the critics since they get paid and I go slightly crazy for fun movies with totally insane action scenes. But, if like me, you think the critics can be wrong I’ll tell you why I thought the Lone Ranger was as good as any action movie put out in 2013, and better than most.
Ten reasons I loved the Lone Ranger:
1) It was really funny. I love a good action movie, but an action movie that makes me laugh I love twice as much. This movie was so funny that even the horse made the audience laugh.
2) The characters were justified in their actions. I hate it when people do things out of character or for no good reason. I may not like what a character does but I should understand why he did it. The bad guy should have been killed long before he was, but I understood why the Lone Ranger couldn’t do it. I wished he would, but I would have been disappointed if he had.
3) The women were strong characters. Okay, I am female, so I notice female characters, but I hate it when any character is there for no good reason. The women in this movie (and there weren’t many) were important to plot and held their own when the going got tough. They didn’t need a man to save them, but they were glad there were men around.
4) The horse was a strong character. Everyone knows the Lone Ranger has a horse named Silver. So what? Well, in this movie Silver was not just a pretty horse. He was important to the story and even got a few gags in. Oh, okay, he was also a really good-looking horse.
5) The bird was important to the movie. One of the reasons I was reluctant to see this movie was because Tonto had a dead bird on his head. That seemed really weird and hard to look at. I was thrilled when the bird not only enhanced Tonto’s character, but was important to the plot in more ways than one.
6) Tonto was not Jack Sparrow with face paint. I know Johnny Depp can act. I have seen lots of his movies. But sometimes I feel that when he puts on lots of makeup he becomes Jack Sparrow even if he isn’t acting in a pirates movie. So I was worried that I would be watching the Lone Ranger but thinking pirates. That would have really ticked me off. And it didn’t happen. Tonto was a great character and I never thought he was Jack Sparrow or Johnny Depp. He was just Tonto.
7) The bad guys were really bad. Bad guys should be bad or else why do we need good guys. Nothing ruins a movie like weak bad guys. No problem with the Lone Ranger. These bad guys were really bad, yet they were interesting and their motives were understandable. You hate them but you believe them.
8) There were ethical dilemmas. When a character sticks to their guns, even when it doesn’t make sense, it makes for a strong movie. When a good character changes their mind to save their reputation, even if it means joining the bad guys, it makes for a strong movie. Many of the characters had to reexamine what they believed and I liked that.
9) The girl knew what was going on. A common theme in superhero movies is keeping the identity of the hero from the girl he loves. I hate that. Why does the girl need to be kept in the dark? I liked the fact that Rebecca learned the truth and learned how to deal with it. She was a resilient woman and I liked her character very much.
10) The storytelling style made an ordinary movie something really special. I’m trying to not give spoilers so I won’t tell you what the storytelling style was, but I was surprised and impressed with how they decided to tell this story. I think if they had just showed us a movie it would have been ho-hum. Instead I am still thinking about the movie and wondering if they were able to get away with inconsistencies because of the way they decided to tell the story. If you wonder what I am talking about go see the movie. I may talk about this in another post since I was so impressed.
Now, maybe you don’t need or want any of these things in your movies. Maybe you need your movies to be deep, and moody, and full of long conversations. That is fine. That is why lots of different movies are made. But if you want a fun movie that is really funny, really adventurous, and filled with characters you can root for (even the horse) I recommend the Lone Ranger. It gives lawyers a good name. Happiness squared.
Goofy Tip: Are you visiting Walt Disney World when a fun movie is hitting the big screen? Make some great movie memories and head over to Downtown Disney. You can combine dinner and a movie at AMC‘s Fork and Screen Dine-In special. Your food is brought to you in the theater and you can even place orders during the movie. If dinner and a movie is fun try out dinner during a movie.
I was reading an article on OMD (Oh, My Disney) in which the authors said that they had enjoyed the most recent Winnie the Pooh
by Lloyd Alexander. If you have not read this fantasy series I highly recommend it. It is a series for teenagers and it was written in the sixties, but none of that takes away from these thrilling stories that use Welsh legends as their inspiration. What other series has an Assistant Pig Keeper as the hero?
. I own this movie and have watched it hundreds of times. Oh, I also have the book. I love them both. I am definitely having a movie night with these two films. It is a perfect treat for the whole family.
