Read Mixed User Reviews for The Lone Ranger

4

neocomp92Jul 13, 2013

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. The Lone Ranger effectively made me felt something I have not felt for some time: that awful feeling of having sunk in money to buy tickets to an otherwise lackluster film.

Johnny Depp here was (supposedly) a secondary character to Hammer's protagonist role, but it seems that the director felt that the film should receive the Pirates charm, and asked him to bring Jack Sparrow front and center in his portrayal. As a result you get all the mannerisms of Sparrow sans the eloquence of the British pirate; the familiar behavior of doing random things as part of a larger plan afoot, the manipulation of people around him for his own goals, the oddities of being mad but secretly brilliant. It made audiences laugh, but this isn't Pirates. The comedy in both Pirates and here was supposed to be icing on the cake, but here the icing covered the cake and pretentiously tried to pass on as the cake itself. Depp was supposed to be background, complementing not overshadowing Hammer.

Hammer on the other hand, gave a decent portrayal, if somewhat limited by the screenwriter's need to put Depp front and center, and the movie's generally bumpy efforts in presenting a story. The movie could be summed up in two themes: Upholding justice by the book vs. vigilantism, and revenge or redemption for past sins. Straightforward themes that writers surprisingly took their time milking out to the detriment of pacing and boring audiences badly. When you do get to some of the fleshy part of the story, its actually quite shallow, piecemeal and sometimes outright nonsensical.

This poor pacing issue even infected the action scenes. Never have I seen action scenes so boring despite the amount of napalm being thrown around. And that's because before any scene begins. there isn't a lot of tension being twisted to set up for the scene. When it plays, there is no discernible story to be told, no underlying struggle or emotion that the director is trying to show here. All it serves is to show off Jack Sparrow in a Western setting, coupled with that freakish white horse, and John Reid's awkward efforts of delivering civilised justice, followed by improbable aiming skills with a single shot. In short, the scenes were alien, not even trying to be integral to the story.

One good thing that should be noted was the chemistry between the leading duo. You get the sense of both characters representing what the underlying themes are, and the struggles of being an effective duo here is played somewhat decently, if not sometimes mired by the and giggles that were sometimes too distracting.

The use of flashback and unreliable narrator tropes here actually serves no purpose in the movie at all. The point of using them here was to supposedly show off Tonto's supernatural abilities, that certain missing parts of the story were actually out of divine/supernatural origins. Quite distracting, and frankly a waste of time that could have been used to flesh out a bit more back story, like that of John Reid and that forgettable damsel-in-distress character, which was placed there as a stereotypical damsel-in-distress given how shallow her characterisation was.

In short, if you enjoy turning off your brain at the door of the theater walking in, or you like to see Depp as Jack Sparrow in a Western, or indulge in occasional nonsensical slapstick comedy mixed with average action scenes, go ahead and watch, Otherwise save up your money for more decent films, or at least rent this movie if you're so tempted to watch, coz really, I don't want to even recommend it as a matinee.… Expand

3 of 3 users found this helpful30

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4

hendri2182Jul 13, 2013

This review contains spoilers, click expand to view. You can say what you want about critics and I say plenty, but the got it right this time.

Spoiler alert: If you haven't seen it, I get into plot below.. so read at your own risk.

Overall, the movie had some redeeming qualities, but generally it was just pretentious and overdone.

I thought the villains were not atypical of a greedy corporate wonk and the dirty lowdown scoundrel you find in these kinds of pictures. Relatively predictable, but much more extreme than it needed to be (a bad dude that eats body parts.... really...kind of sickening). The actual premise of the movie and how it unfolded was pretty good from the Tonto perspective but completely lacking from the Lone Ranger perspective. James Badge Dale as the Lone Ranger's brother was credible as was his wife, actress Ruth Wilson. Even the notion of a long past "triangle" between the 3 of them had the makings of a good twist even though it pretty much was meaningless beyond the reason the sheriff had him go with him to what would be the ambush.

But the notion of a "come back to Texas" lawyer who shuns guns being the lone ranger is pretty stupid, frankly. A "justice seeking local prosecutor turned vigilante because his sheriff brother got killed in an ambush that was part of a bigger conspiracy" would have been plenty of back story. Sheesh.. it didn't have to get stupid with the dude shunning guns and generally being an idiotic coward. Remember, this is supposed to be about the "larger than life" Lone Ranger.

Then there was the whole railroad invading Indian lands with the bad gang pretending the Comanches were invading local settlements thing. That was ok... in fact, it's a well heeled but twistable plot that did get some twists. Not too bad. But, then there's the savage Indians getting cut down by the cavalry that was so prosaic it made you wonder if you were all of a sudden in a Michael Moore documentary. Completely unnecessary and unjustifiable violence with no point and with no real additional value to the story. Better would have been the Lone Ranger and Tonto actually saving that... as the character and the show was built in that vane rather than slaughter em all social commentary.

Armie Hammer who played the Lone Ranger was lacking, although I think it was more about the script and some guy confusing the Lone Ranger with "Dudley Do-Right" of the Canadian Mounties. Entirely too "clean and wholesome" to have grown up in Texas and entirely too naive to have been the Lone Ranger. The character did not develop at all and then when the Lone Ranger went into action at the end paying homage to the comic book and TV series heroics (which I thought was cute as heck) it left you wondering what had happened. A better actor was needed to play the give and take with Johnny Depp. Not to the level of the "Sheriff" brother who was hardened and wise etc, but something better than some silly city flatfoot; it's an insult to the name of the Lone Ranger. Somebody like Chris Evans (who played Captain America in the Avengers and "The Flame" in the Fantastic 4), or Jeremy Renner who has played in everything from the Avengers and GI Joe and who has the capacity to play a good guy gone back who goes good again. Somebody who had a little dirt under his fingernails. The scene where Depp is trying to draw the "spirit horse" who would be Silver, to the Sheriff was a perfect setup for the transformation that would be the Lone Ranger through the collaboration of the due. But, alas, it never came to be.

Not without merit, I really do think that Johnny Depp played a very good Tonto and some of his stunts were great. I also thought the compliment of actors who played the Comanche were fantastic, albeit, in a limited role. Likewise, the premise of the story, an ancient Tonto found in a circus sideshow in the 1930's by a Lone Ranger worshiping boy (who would have been listening to the radio program back then, was brilliant. It was completely reminiscent of the "Buffalo Bill Wild West Show" idea that was very much alive and well in the 1930's and was a great add. Similarly, the horse, the silver bullet etc that were brought up in the story (the silver bullet coming from the silver in the ranger stars of his brother and the other rangers that were murdered) and the Horse being named Silver because of the silver mines the bad guys were trying to exploit from the Indians... perfection. As was the horse, which I know some will think stupid, but Silver was as much of a star in the Lone Ranger saga as was Tonto and the man himself. The fact that Silver keeps showing up to help the other two "save the day" was a fantastic way to add some humorous twists and it worked well (must have been Tim Burton and Depp on those). Similarly "Red" played by Helena Bohnam Carter was a great side character that played a key role.

The ingredients were all there. Some of it even came through, but sadly, the movie as a whole flopped… Expand

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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5

The3AcademySinsJun 7, 2016

The Lone Ranger is a pretty mediocre film. The script isn't the worst thing in the world, even though it does forget about some plot points. The acting is pretty sub par all around. However, the payoff at the end of the movie is quite fun.

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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4

JPKDec 7, 2019

Not Good
The Lone Ranger, Like Prince Of Persia tries WAY too hard to be like Pirates Of The Caribbean, But with this film, It’s A LOT more obvious.

1 of 1 users found this helpful10

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6

wvmoviefanJul 7, 2013

Movie suffers from an identity crisis! Depp is playing it coy and going for the laughs; Hammer is trying to play it straight and go for the action. The scenes jump from Let's Make a Comedy to Now It's Die Hard Time. The audience neverMovie suffers from an identity crisis! Depp is playing it coy and going for the laughs; Hammer is trying to play it straight and go for the action. The scenes jump from Let's Make a Comedy to Now It's Die Hard Time. The audience never knows how to react or relate. It's not nearly as bad, though, as the critics would have you believe. Interesting footnote: at the showing I saw many waited and watched as Depp literally walked into the sunset AFTER the credits. Most were older audience members perhaps trying to hold on to earlier memories of "Hi, Yo, Silver."… Expand

9 of 10 users found this helpful91

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6

shpostalJul 6, 2013

A slick movie like this one coming from Disney has "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchising written all over it, and it probably will. That said, while it isn't the lousy movie so many people seem to be claiming it is, it's not theA slick movie like this one coming from Disney has "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchising written all over it, and it probably will. That said, while it isn't the lousy movie so many people seem to be claiming it is, it's not the greatest, either. The high point is Johnny Depp, obviously. Armie Hammer comes across likeable enough but lacking in the charisma department severely.
The laughs though are plenty, Tonto being a smart ass in particular. One actor playing Butch Cavendish gets the ugly award, and it's obvious it's the same make up department that made "Pirates" alternately enchanting and disgusting. It's not a very deep movie plot wise, so the best idea is to enjoy it for the escapism it was intended to be, perhaps giving latitude as one did when watching the often twisted world of the old TV classic "The Wild Wild West". "The Lone Ranger" is a nice way to get in out of the heat and watch something silly, but not much else.… Expand

6 of 7 users found this helpful61

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4

CorvinAug 10, 2013

This one has some funny moments thanks to Johnny Depp but is too heavy-handed with the slapstick action escapes. I also detested the title character a bit more than perhaps the writers intended or would have wanted, since it kept me fromThis one has some funny moments thanks to Johnny Depp but is too heavy-handed with the slapstick action escapes. I also detested the title character a bit more than perhaps the writers intended or would have wanted, since it kept me from engaging more with the film.… Expand

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

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4

DrahgoScribeJul 9, 2013

This movie was entertaining, but had a lot of problems with its characters, plot, and pacing. One of the most noticeable problems is that i doesn't really have an audience its aimed at. There are moments where poop and fart jokes are thrownThis movie was entertaining, but had a lot of problems with its characters, plot, and pacing. One of the most noticeable problems is that i doesn't really have an audience its aimed at. There are moments where poop and fart jokes are thrown at the audience and other moments where we witness SPOILER ALERT; a man eating another man's heart. Armie Hammer never became his role and at times was very awkward to watch, Jonny Depp acted well in his role of Jack Sparrow in a native american costume, but ultimately their chemistry fell face flat. The entire story is told to a little kid similarly to Princess Bride, but this format quickly becomes strange and feels very out-of-place. It had cool action scenes and a few comedic moments, but in between was just a very stretched-out boring plot that goes literally no where. Out of generosity towards the good moments in this film I will give it a 4 out of 10. Seriously that's being generous.… Expand

2 of 3 users found this helpful21

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6

TVJerryJul 5, 2013

Yet another modern adaptation that details the creation of the myth (and sets us up for sequels). This time, a city-slicker prosecutor (Armie Hammer) dons the famous mask to team up with a multi-layered Tonto (would you expect anything lessYet another modern adaptation that details the creation of the myth (and sets us up for sequels). This time, a city-slicker prosecutor (Armie Hammer) dons the famous mask to team up with a multi-layered Tonto (would you expect anything less from Johnny Depp?). The plot revolves around the advancement of the railroad in the Old West and so do all 3 of the action sequences, which are full of daring do and spectacular stunts. The rest of the time is dialogue in the dessert…a lot of it.,,too much (this is 2.5 hrs). And it's often in jarring modern slang. While the leads are both OK and the movie never bores, it never captures the imagination or thrills the spirit.… Expand

5 of 8 users found this helpful53

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4

JacobJul 16, 2013

While I do not hate The Lone Ranger as much as the critics do I still did not love it. The movie had some good laughs, fun scenes, and a nice performance by Johnny Depp; but the interesting characters and story along with an unnecessary 2While I do not hate The Lone Ranger as much as the critics do I still did not love it. The movie had some good laughs, fun scenes, and a nice performance by Johnny Depp; but the interesting characters and story along with an unnecessary 2 hour running time prevent me from recommending this film to anyone. If you wind up seeing this movie though it is not terrible but at the same time there are more entertaining movies out right now that you could be seeing like Despicable Me 2 (which I have softened up a bit on), Monsters University (which made me smile a lot), and Pacific Rim & World War Z (which I have heard are really good). Or you could save up your money for the Wolverine. Again not a terrible movie I mean it is watchable but you can afford to skip this one.… Expand

2 of 4 users found this helpful22

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4

ThegodfathersonJul 3, 2013

Disney’s The Lone Ranger follows the origins of the masked rider, John Reid (Armie Hammer), and the events that lead him to become a symbol of justice in the Old West. After completing a law degree, Reid returns to his hometown, Colby, Texas,Disney’s The Lone Ranger follows the origins of the masked rider, John Reid (Armie Hammer), and the events that lead him to become a symbol of justice in the Old West. After completing a law degree, Reid returns to his hometown, Colby, Texas, to become the city’s government prosecutor and hold criminals accountable under United States law (along with a firm commitment to John Locke’s “Two Treatises of Government”). However, when his brother, Dan (James Badge Dale), is murdered in cold blood by ruthless outlaw Butch Cavendish (William Fichtner) Reid realizes that some criminals operate above of the law and he turns to a different form of justice as a masked vigilante. As a tenuous peace between the Native American tribes and white settlers is threatened, the Lone Ranger must join forces with a heroic, though slightly offbeat, Comanche warrior, Tonto (Johnny Depp), who has spent years hunting Cavendish. Together, Reid and Tonto set out on a mission to investigate the circumstances that led to Dan’s death before more blood is spilled. In an effort to re-imagine the Lone Ranger as a modern blockbuster franchise, Disney turned to the team behind their highly-successful Pirates of the Caribbean series, including producer Jerry Bruckheimer and director Gore Verbinski, along with star Johnny Depp. Unfortunately, despite a number of strong individual components, the final Lone Ranger movie experience misses the bar (and longterm promise) established in the first Pirates of the Caribbean installment. For many audience members, Verbinski’s latest will likely succeed in delivering mindless summer entertainment with a number of humorous character moments, a quirky (albeit familiar) performance from Depp, and an elaborate third act set-piece. Yet, for all of the film’s successes, most of the core story arcs and action beats are either derivative or underwhelming misguided in attempts to piece together a blockbuster experience out of well-known parts. A flawed but often entertaining summer blockbuster experience, The Lone Ranger falls short as a sum of its promising individual parts. Unfortunately, the mixture of two likable leads and a cast of accomplished character actors, backed by highly-successful producers and a $200 million budget, based on a well-known pair of American heroes, doesn’t necessarily deliver a quality moviegoing experience. No doubt, certain audience members will thoroughly enjoy the bangs and gags in this Lone Ranger story but it’s still style over substance at nearly every turn, and fails to evolve or elevate the series canon in any meaningful (or particularly exciting) way.… Expand

4 of 12 users found this helpful48

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6

Compi24Jul 5, 2013

It's impossibly bloated and almost entirely thrown together, but thanks to the help of an appealing tone and two likable performance from Hammer and Depp, the "Lone Ranger" just barely makes it past watchable.

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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6

robertoiglesiasApr 23, 2020

The film tries to be like Pirates of the Carribean. I would like the film more if it wasn't 2 hours and 29 minutes long! Like seriously, this story could be told in 1 hour and 50 minutes. What's with all the padding? Were the filmmakersThe film tries to be like Pirates of the Carribean. I would like the film more if it wasn't 2 hours and 29 minutes long! Like seriously, this story could be told in 1 hour and 50 minutes. What's with all the padding? Were the filmmakers trying to be overlong and boring like Pirates of the Carribean 3?!… Expand

1 of 3 users found this helpful12

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5

DarkCriticJul 7, 2013

The Lone Ranger is a knockoff of "Pirates of the Caribbean" flick, but very weak. It's almost the same problem as "Man of Steel" does and this movie is way too dark, way too broad, and way too underwhelm. The story takes place I 1869 where weThe Lone Ranger is a knockoff of "Pirates of the Caribbean" flick, but very weak. It's almost the same problem as "Man of Steel" does and this movie is way too dark, way too broad, and way too underwhelm. The story takes place I 1869 where we meet John Reid (Armie Hammer) is visiting to see his brother and his wife at Texas, until he meets bad outlaws to capture Butch Cavendish from prisoner and he meets a local Indian warrior named Tonto (Johnny Depp). So he and his brother must find bad outlaws in the desert, until his brother and his men where dead. Reid was saved from Tonto to bring back alive and he teams up with Tonto to face bad outlaws from justice, so he wears a black mask and becomes "The Lone Ranger." We've seen too much Johnny Depp's performance like his face expressions and other roles he's been done lately, but Johnny Depp is miscast as Tonto. Tonto is the same formula as that they borrowed from Jack Sparrow roles like he done in Pirates of the Caribbean series. Depp turns very ugly and acting like a Indian stereotypical of Tim Burton's Indian Zombie and I guess that the creators want Johnny Depp to play a weak supporting role. Armie Hammer is alright in his role, but not very memorable because they forgot to stay focus on the character instead of Johnny Depp and they shouldn't just called "The Lone Ranger and His Tonto." That's what is all about, The Lone Ranger is based on the classic TV series and comes along with his adventures. The characters are recycled from Pirates of the Caribbean stereotypes and also the villains are so forgettable. Not only that, the movie is also too bloody and too dark for a Disney action flick, I don't if the movie makes it promise to the audience and there's couple of scenes where they get killed, shot, and murdered in each battle scenes. There's one scene where the train gets switch into a next rail or next train is pretty entertaining that takes only 10 or 12 minutes in the final act. Outside of that, this movie is pretty weak and we're watching the same formula like the first Pirates of the Caribbean does and they shouldn't call it "Cowboys of the Dessertain." Thumbs Down.… Expand

0 of 2 users found this helpful02

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5

Movie1997Jul 5, 2013

For a movie like this, it's not really the story quality you'd expect. Sure it has its fun and exciting moments, but it never just completely comes together as a whole. The movie has some stupid moments which lingers on and on. It's basicallyFor a movie like this, it's not really the story quality you'd expect. Sure it has its fun and exciting moments, but it never just completely comes together as a whole. The movie has some stupid moments which lingers on and on. It's basically just all over the place, but somewhat manages to work. This is definitely more of a pop-corn flick (in which people will enjoy this movie for sure). But then if you're one of those who want not only fun action, but also containing good/quality moments, then you've just wasted your money. Also, it seems to me that Johnny Depp is playing an Indian/Native American version of Jack Sparrow. When I say that, I'm talking about his mannerisms and weird off putting dialogue. Armie Hammer on the other hand didn't really work for me that well. He just didn't convince me that he was "The Lone Ranger". The movie does contain some good old western memorabilia that i actually loved, but overall, it's a movie that just lingers on and off in storytelling.… Expand

0 of 4 users found this helpful04

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6

RobwinzAug 7, 2020

The Lone Ranger is an ok movie. It's got a very basic plot, some really good acting from The Lone Ranger (Armie Hammer) and Tonto (Johnny Depp) there's only a few little odd scenes where Johnny Depp feels out of character.

The dialogue canThe Lone Ranger is an ok movie. It's got a very basic plot, some really good acting from The Lone Ranger (Armie Hammer) and Tonto (Johnny Depp) there's only a few little odd scenes where Johnny Depp feels out of character.

The dialogue can feel quite forced from the side characters at scenes and the same goes with the main characters.

The cinematography from Bojan Bazelli is alright. He does a pretty decent job on capturing certain scenes pretty well in my opinion.

Also, the action sequences are pretty unique and clever for the most part, I really enjoyed the action sequences where they're fighting on the train, all of those ones were honestly class in my opinion.

There's a few funny moments throughout this movie, which made me laugh quite a bit.

I think the problems, I've got with this movie would have to be how many **** characters it tries to throw in, it feels quite bloated with characters.

You start to forget about most of the villains who are still in this movie because my god, you start to forget about them quite quickly.

Another problem I've got with this movie would have to be, how some of the scenes have been put together.

There's a certain scene which I noticed, where it feels like something's been cut out or they've shot some scenes before those certain ones.

Overall, The Lone Ranger isn't that bad of a movie, it's got a few problems here and there but the brilliant acting from Johnny Depp and Armie Hammer save the movie quite a bit. The same goes for the action sequences, the action sequences are very unique and very clever and they're very enjoyable.… Expand

0 of 1 users found this helpful01

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6

TheQuietGamerFeb 21, 2014

Not that bad. It's not perfect, but the movie has a lot of potential and is definitely better than the last few "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies. I wasn't expecting much considering the negative reviews and my lack of love for every "PiratesNot that bad. It's not perfect, but the movie has a lot of potential and is definitely better than the last few "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies. I wasn't expecting much considering the negative reviews and my lack of love for every "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie after the first, but overall while flawed the movie is still a decent, but non-essential watch. There are a lot of better ways to spend your time, but there is some fun to be had here.

The plot is pretty decent even if the movie treats it's main characters a goofballs who are impossible to take seriously. Literally The Lone Ranger and Tonto come across os what would typically be the comic relief characters in other movies, and the only reason they survive 90% of the events in the movie just comes down to shear luck. There are plenty of funny moments, and the action scenes can get pretty great at times, but it really is hard to take any of it seriously thank to how stupid the film treats it's two leads. That being said Johnny Depp's Tonto manages to be even more enjoyable than his "Jack Sparrow," which is an incredibly impressive feat.

Overall the film has a lot of flaws, and there are plenty of better movies to watch, but there are also tons of worse options and at least "The Lone Ranger" doesn't feel like a complete waste of time. I can't compare it to the original TV show it's based off of because I've never watched it, but I would have a hard time believing it does it that much justice at all. In the end though this movie isn't bad, just really flawed. I wouldn't recommend you go out and watch this over the tons of better options out there, but if you've got nothing better to watch this is an ok choice. Just don't expect to be blown away or particularly impressed, because it's just decent all around.… Expand