Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

I wondered why so many gave this movie a negative review when I really like this movie so I read those reviews and I'd like to address some of the more confusing aspects to the story. First the disclaimers: 1). If one goes to the super market and shops for steak and only brings home cheese, then one is diss-appointed, but if one goes for cheese and brings home some of the best cheese out there then they should feel elated. When you see this movie expect over the top action, funny sequences and a modern retake of the original interplay between the Lone Ranger and Tonto. Don't expect this to be a somber tribute or the old TV series and you'll be able to enjoy it for what it is. 2). I'm only part native but I have been asked "What tribe are you from?" by perfect strangers before I've had the chance to speak more than three words to them. There are plenty of reviews praising this movie and some reviews which don't understand certain things. I can't shed light on everything, but let me shed light on why this movie is deeper than what most people suspect. I've been subjected to a lot of the myths and the stories from the drum circles and the dream keepers and I can shed some light on the oddities in this movie. Here's some things to keep in mind while watching this movie: Johnny Depp showed a deep sadness and a deep madness (part of being manic depressive) - Most Native Americans can say they lost a relative who died of the depression. The spirit sickness. Sometimes those who get overcome by the depression spend half their time laughing and cracking jokes and half their time wishing to die. Their minds only maintain balance if they are forced to focus on something important in their daily life. Tonto also shows hints of being an untrained shaman (as in one who didn't apprentice under an elder) and as such may be seen as just crazy even by other natives. Part of the mysticism is the balance between doubt and belief and the movie doesn't make the choice for you. The fact that this movie doesn't spell things out for people and challenges people with the "absurd" is a good thing in my opinion as it can get people to ask questions and to explore things. The movie presents a few mysteries which are always good and I think attempts to persuade people to research Native American culture which is also good. Here are a few things which pertain to the movie. - Medicine men of many tribes may tell you that the power of the spirit can transcend time and space... pay attention to the bag of peanuts when you watch this movie, you'll see that this is touched upon. - The term Wendigo is used to address one of the characters in the movie and it does refer to an evil spirit/alternate form of a human being... it is caused by cannibalism and both silver and boiling fat have been attributed as being weaknesses to it (by pouring boiling fat down it's throat or wounding it with silver). - The Spirit Horse is spirit made flesh and it can show up where it wants and when it wants. - When nature is out of balance, the spirit world (the Hunting Grounds) are like a reflection to the real world, evil and dark spirits can take hold of or poison the thoughts and behaviors of animals in the real world. From [...] when an individual is out of balance "the individual experiences sickness. While this might be a physical illness, it might also manifest itself as a psychosis." Though that passage spoke about people the same principals are applied to animals. Now onto the movie: The banter between the Lone Ranger (LR) and Tonto was awesome and reminiscent of the original series (though with a more modern looser sense of what is tolerable or not). Though it is a bit more lop-sided here (yeah Tonto shows a sharper and quicker wit than the LR, but the way Armie Hammer portrayed LR doesn't show a veteran but someone who will become the legendary Lone Ranger ... i.e. think Batman: Year One etc.). Some of the action scenes were a bit over the top and slap stick in nature, but the film doesn't dwell on these or offer them up in awkward sequences - everything seemed to fit together with great pacing. The themes showed in the movie weren't aimed at children: LR's unrequited love of his brother's wife, cannibalism, and a major battle scene all justify the PG-13 rating. The lighting helped set the mood and the photography was great. The music and sound were a bit too old school Disney family fun initially and was distracting for about the first twenty minutes of the movie, but afterwards actually helped set the mood, pacing and overall theme. (Which is a great job since people do tend to have different musical tastes - in my opinion it would have been slightly better to have the music set initially at a lower volume and then set to gradually ramp back up). It was definitely a treat to watch. The acting from both male leads was highly entertaining. I paid for my ticket to get entertained and to see an adventure and I got what I paid for.