Rango (7/12/2011)

Rated PG for rude humor, language, action and smoking.

Starring (the voices of) Johnny Depp, Abigail Breslin, Isla Fisher, Timothy Olyphant and Ray Winstone

Directed by Gore Verbinski (Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, and The Ring)

Ain’t no one gonna tango with the Rango.

The story follows the comical, transformative journey of Rango (Depp), a sheltered chameleon living as an ordinary family pet, while facing a major identity crisis. After all, how high can you aim when your whole purpose in life is to blend in? When Rango accidentally winds up in the gritty, gun-slinging town of Dirt – a lawless outpost populated by the desert’s most wily and whimsical creatures – the less-than-courageous lizard suddenly finds he stands out. Welcomed as the last hope the town has been waiting for, new Sheriff Rango is forced to play his new role to the hilt…until, in a blaze of action-packed situations and encounters with outrageous characters, Rango starts to become the hero he once only pretended to be. Rango is an exciting new twist on the classic Western legend of the outsider who saves a town – and himself in the process.

Gore Verbinski’s latest is called Rango, and it may be one of the most rowdy feature-length animated flicks since the original Shrek. (Yes, I mean that as a compliment; the first Shrek still holds up exceedingly well.) Small kids (age six and up, I’d say) will no doubt take great delight in the movie’s bizarre animal characters, its generally broad humor, and its numerous action sequences — but it’s the grown-ups who will find a lot more to enjoy than just another 87-minute cartoon animal-fest.

So with Verbinski at the helm and Johnny Depp at the microphone, I was expecting a great story, interesting characters and a few laughs. And boy did they deliver.

But, as is often the case in truly great animated films, the real beauty lies in the details, and Rango is packed with great little details: consistently clever sight gags, subtle (and not-so-subtle) film references, great little moments from the actors, and a few fun action packed scenes.

Rango has everything going for it — strong characters, a great story, and some great laughs. It’s Theater Worthy for sure.

SHOULD KIDS SEE IT?
I’m not sure if all kids will like it, but I’m pretty certain that Rango’s target audience will have a ball with this silly, strange, exciting, and inspired little piece of animated Western wackiness. (And I think that its target audience is actually somewhere around … 37.)

Conversation Starter
Three Simple Questions (with Answers You May Be Looking for):

Q: What’s the message/theme of this movie?
A: The people of Dirt were desperate for a hero. And when Rango stumbles into town he accepts the role. The problem for most of us is that we know he’s not hero material. He “stretches” the truth about some of his adventures and with a little luck, makes a good impression.

So what does it mean to be a hero? What qualities does a hero have? (Look for answers like Faith, Responsibility, Courage, Honesty, Self Discipline and Courage)

Q: How do you suppose we—as serious Christ-followers—should react to this movie?
A: We often think of heroes as men or women with superhuman powers and/or cool gadgets. But as Christians we know that true “heroes” are those who rely on God’s power, not their own.

Can you think of a few examples of Heroes from the Bible? All of those people had one thing in common…faith.

In fact Jesus said that, “…if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, ‘move from here to there,’ and it will move; and nothing will be impossible to you.” (Matthew 17:20)

How much faith do you have? Do you have enough to be a hero?

Q: How can we move from healthy, Bible based opinions about this movie to actually living out those opinions?
A: It’s never easy being a hero. Rango faced all kinds of difficulties. And while his difficulties will be very different than yours, what can we learn from his experiences?

What are some of the difficulties you face as you try to be the hero God wants you to be?

God wants you to persevere through every difficulty in order to be the hero He has planned for you to be. In fact James 1:12 says, “Blessed is a man who perseveres under trial; for once he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him.”