Alright, so we’ve already been teased plenty of set pictures and a short teaser trailer for Gore Verbinski‘s upcoming summer blockbuster The Lone Ranger, but we haven’t really got a taste of the ranger himself all that much. The first short trailer focused more on high profile actor Johnny Depp, playing the Native American role Tonto, and less on the ranger himself John Reid, played by Armie Hammer.
Thankfully, a full trailer for The Lone Ranger has dropped, giving us a much larger sense of the overall tone Verbinski looks to command, focusing more on John Reid morphing into his Lone Ranger alter ego.
Some people are quick to question Depp’s portrayal of a Native American, already rolling their eyes at Tonto’s stereotypical “Good Man Must Wear Mask” Indian dialogue, while others are worried Verbinski might go a little too dark for this Disney adventure. So does the full trailer do anything to curb such fears?
Well, not really, but in the same sense, I’m getting an extremely similar vibe to Verbinski’s Pirates franchise. Think about Jack Sparrow – he wasn’t a goofy court-jester the whole time going for laughs. No, Depp was given plenty of real moments and more somber scenes, even though his character was flaunted as comedic relief in the trailers. Even here, Tonto seems a bit more rigid and serious compared to Sparrow, but I saw nothing to make me believe Depp was a particularly bad choice for the Lone Ranger’s sidekick.
As for Armie Hammer, we’re actually given more insight into his mysterious beginnings, how he meets up with Tonto, and a taste of his motivations throughout the story. It’s interesting because Depp is being marketed as the bigger star here, yet Armie is arguably playing the more famous character. Here’s to hoping Tonto won’t be overshadowing John Reid with Verbinski at the helm?
As for the tone, again, I can’t say I noticed anything off-putting based on the exploding trains and large western landscapes. There’s a very dark and dirty feel about it all, obviously because of the vast deserts and mountainous landscapes, but I’m expecting action on a massive scale again like in Verbinski’s Pirates films. Shoot outs, cowboys, Indians – all the western staples should be pretty intense if this limited footage isn’t just deceiving us.
A trailer is just a trailer though, and I’m basing my opinions on The Lone Ranger off a measly 2 minutes plus of footage. Who knows, all my fears could be proven true come my first official viewing, but we’re just not there yet. It’s not that the full trailer blew me away, but it was just strong enough not to make me worry any more. Does that make sense?
What about you, do you think I’m being a bit optimistic here? Are you already wincing at the thought of Depp carrying on the Native American speech for an entire film? Will he absolutely overshadow Armie Hammer? Does he even belong in this movie?! Let us know in the comments, and feel free to watch the trailer below as many times as you need!
Look for The Lone Ranger July 3rd, 2013, co-starring Helena Bonham Carter, William Fichtner, Barry Pepper, and Tom Wilkinson.
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Source [The Playlist]