We spent quite a long while at the local Multiplex yesterday afternoon.
The Lone Ranger has been showing for about a week, and will soon finish. I wanted to see it, as I can well recall 50-60 years ago that the serial was compelling listening on the valve radio and I still visualise the scene every time I hear the first bars of William Tell Overture.
We got comfortable seats at the Digital Theatre, English track with Thai subs version. While waiting for it to start Mawin [aka The Boy] asked me "What's this movie all about, dad?", to which I replied "Think Captain Jack Sparrow in The Wild West, Son."
I wasn't so far off the mark, as it turns out. On numerous occasions, while watching, I got the strong feeling the Director deferred too much to the creative inclinations of the redoubtable Johnny Depp. It wasn't a lousy movie...in fact, at times it was very entertaining in a tongue-in-cheek sort of a way.
The main problem I had, though, was that it seems certain that it is actually two movies...each cut into scenes and then the whole pile merged together according to someone's whims:
* One movie is a humorous adventure instalment based rather loosely on the traditional yarns of the radio serial era...the main difference being that the principal protagonist is Tonto.
* The other is a re-working of some of the bits and all of the sentiments of Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee...a book I read in a day, and then spent the entire following day emotionally gutted!
I found the blend to be wrenching.
The Lone Ranger has been showing for about a week, and will soon finish. I wanted to see it, as I can well recall 50-60 years ago that the serial was compelling listening on the valve radio and I still visualise the scene every time I hear the first bars of William Tell Overture.
We got comfortable seats at the Digital Theatre, English track with Thai subs version. While waiting for it to start Mawin [aka The Boy] asked me "What's this movie all about, dad?", to which I replied "Think Captain Jack Sparrow in The Wild West, Son."
I wasn't so far off the mark, as it turns out. On numerous occasions, while watching, I got the strong feeling the Director deferred too much to the creative inclinations of the redoubtable Johnny Depp. It wasn't a lousy movie...in fact, at times it was very entertaining in a tongue-in-cheek sort of a way.
The main problem I had, though, was that it seems certain that it is actually two movies...each cut into scenes and then the whole pile merged together according to someone's whims:
* One movie is a humorous adventure instalment based rather loosely on the traditional yarns of the radio serial era...the main difference being that the principal protagonist is Tonto.
* The other is a re-working of some of the bits and all of the sentiments of Bury My Heart At Wounded Knee...a book I read in a day, and then spent the entire following day emotionally gutted!
I found the blend to be wrenching.
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