Rango

With the voice talents of Johnny Depp and Isla Fisher, Rango is the story of a pet lizard who has dreams of being a hero and finds himself in the Mojave desert, the sheriff of the animal town of Dirt, trying to give the townspeople hope as they run out of water.

The story is classic Western: there is the new guy in town, bad guys, corruption, showdowns, fighting, and romance. The story is smart too though, it had a lot to say about our dependence on water, and how it's running out, and about how big business is capitalizing on our basic needs. The animation is detailed and brilliant, although it kind of bothers me that I can't identify what some of those weird little animals were, and that foxes and cats were about the same size as lizards and moles.

I don't know if it's because I have motherhood on my mind, or it's just the way I think, but this movie definitely has some parts that I would be nervous showing my little person. I'm glad it's rated PG and not G because there are certainly some adult moments. And there are TWO scenes with people smoking, the first is towards the beginning - a quick shot of a guy smoking in his car, and then later when some toad or something is smoking a cigar. I really thought that was a major faux pas in kids movies these days.

The characters are what you need them to be: Rango and Beans are likeable and well-developed, the mayor is sweet on the surface but conniving and evil, and there is a good balance of other characters, the helpful but oblivious spoons, the wise raven, the cute Little Sister, and the scary Jake.

A solid and smart animated offering from Nickelodeon.