So I have been up to my arms in paint all weekend, which has been fun to spend time with my sister and brother in-law. Despite working previously for a general contractor and doing painting and other such work, I had forgotten how much time and work it was to paint a good deal of surface area. So after all of the painting yesterday we all went out for a film, The Lone Ranger. I suppose you could say that I walked in with no expectations; the film was going to be what it was going to be. To say the least, the film was not that good the first time around. I honestly expected more from Gore Verbinski, but with Jerry Bruckheimer I'm not that surprised as that is not the first time with him producing that something "mega epic" wasn't that good (does anyone remember Prince of Persia?). I personally think that mostly any film director that gets money thrown at him or her tends to go a little crazy with it. Think Peter Jackson and King Kong, or Bryan Singer and Superman Returns just to name a few. I think smaller budget films tend to make better and more memorable film going experiences. Johnny Depp as Tonto was the saving grace of the entire film. Splendid acting, witty and humorous; it was like a different kind of Jack Sparrow. Armie Hammer was the perfect Lone Ranger/John Reid; good looking, charming, well spoken, and that boy scout attitude tempered with a streak of darkness. unfortunately Helena Bonham-Carter had a small and negligible role that wasn't all that impressive, but it could have if they had explored it a whole lot more.Tom Wilkinson (Cole) had a dynamic role and did very well with it. Our villain, Butch Cavendish, played by William Fichtner, did quite an effective job; there was actually quite a grotesque scene where he demonstrated how villainous he was. Ruth Wilson played the love interest, Rebecca Reid, although there wasn't interesting at all about her character. The remainder of the cast did well, but that wasn't where the problem was. The film couldn't strike a balance between whimsical and serious, often going back and forth between the two throughout the entire film. There were moments of great darkness, intense drama, and then some of the most ridiculous things would happen. I'm just going to say it; the writing and directing sucked big time. Hans Zimmer's score was also negligible; you would think that some sweeping/epic score would be called for, but nada. For some odd reason they used the William Tell Overture (the music used by the old television show) for the largest actions sequence rather than create new music, that didn't sound quite so...trite. Perhaps I would watch it again, but honestly if I don't ever see it again, then I wouldn't shed a tear, and I don't know how much I would recommend it to anyone. It garners a "Yearning Ability" from me, but who knows how I'll react once I see it again in the future. After all I didn't really like Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl the first time that I saw it. Well there you have it. Pacific Rim looks like it might be a better option for summer film going, but who knows. Work begins again in earnest tomorrow. Good luck to everyone in the world.Johnny Depp & Armie Hammer Interview
For those feeling nostalgic....
