Clever 'Rango' offers just as much for adults as for kids
Rango Opens today at Quality 16, Rave, Brighton Review by Jeff Meyers of the Metro Times Grade: B
The best films of this CGI genre bridge the gap between adult and youngster, paying careful attention to the needs of both. "Kung-Fu Panda" is probably the best recent example. "Mega-Mind" is probably the worst.
So, what to make of "Rango," with its hyperactive action sequences and amazingly photo-realistic critters? For most of the movie, my kids watched with the slacked-jaw intensity of a 16-year-old at a strip club. But the next day neither spoke a word about the flick. For as frenetically action-packed and insanely clever as Gore Verbinski's SpaghettiOs western is, it whole-heartedly casts its lot with the grown-ups in the audience, paying homage to Sergio Leone, Carlos Castaneda, Hunter S. Thompson (Raoul Duke and Dr. Gonzo make a surreal appearance), and Roman Polanski's "Chinatown." Yup. "Chinatown" for the kiddies.