''Rango'' is a 2011 American

computer-animated Computer animation is the process used for digitally generating animations. The more general term computer-generated imagery (CGI) encompasses both static scenes (still images) and dynamic images (moving images), while computer animation refer ...

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

comedy film A comedy film is a category of film which emphasizes humor. These films are designed to make the audience laugh through amusement. Films in this style traditionally have a happy ending ( black comedy being an exception). Comedy is one of the o ...

directed by

Gore Verbinski Gregor Justin "Gore" Verbinski (born March 16, 1964) is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, and musician. He is best known for directing '' The Ring'', the ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' films, and '' Rango''. He won the Academy Awar ...

from a screenplay by John Logan. Co-produced by Verbinski with Graham King and John B. Carls, the film stars the voices of

Johnny Depp John Christopher Depp II (born June 9, 1963) is an American actor and musician. He is the recipient of List of awards and nominations received by Johnny Depp, multiple accolades, including a Golden Globe Award and a Screen Actors Guild Awa ...

Isla Fisher Isla Lang Fisher (; born 3 February 1976) is an Australian actress and author. Born to Scottish parents in Oman, she moved to Australia at age six where she began appearing in television commercials. Fisher came to prominence for her portrayal ...

Abigail Breslin Abigail Kathleen Breslin (born April 14, 1996) is an American actress. She rose to prominence with the comedy-drama film ''Little Miss Sunshine'' (2006), for which she received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress at ...

Ned Beatty Ned Thomas Beatty (July 6, 1937 – June 13, 2021) was an American actor and comedian. In a career that spanned five decades, he appeared in more than 160 films. Throughout his career, Beatty gained a reputation for being "the busiest actor in ...

Alfred Molina Alfred Molina (born Alfredo Molina; 24 May 1953) is a British-American actor known for his work on the stage and screen. He first rose to prominence in the West End, earning a nomination for the Laurence Olivier Award for Best Newcomer in a Pla ...

Bill Nighy William Francis Nighy (; born 12 December 1949) is an English actor. Nighy started his career with the Everyman Theatre, Liverpool and made his London debut with the Royal National Theatre starting with '' The Illuminatus!'' in 1977. There he ...

Stephen Root Stephen Root (born November 17, 1951) is an American actor. He has starred as Jimmy James on the television sitcom '' NewsRadio'', as Milton Waddams in the film ''Office Space'' (1999), and provided the voices of Bill Dauterive and Buck Strickl ...

Harry Dean Stanton Harry Dean Stanton (July 14, 1926 – September 15, 2017) was an American actor, musician, and singer. In a career that spanned more than six decades, Stanton played supporting roles in films including ''Cool Hand Luke'' (1967), ''Kelly's Heroes ...

Ray Winstone Raymond Andrew Winstone (; born 19 February 1957) is an English television, stage and film actor with a career spanning five decades. Having worked with many prominent directors, including Martin Scorsese and Steven Spielberg, Winstone is perha ...

, and

Timothy Olyphant Timothy David Olyphant ( ; born May 20, 1968) is an American actor. He made his acting debut in an off-Broadway theater in 1995, in ''The Monogamist'', and won the Theatre World Award for his performance, and then originated David Sedaris' ''The ...

. The film's plot centers on Rango (Depp), a

chameleon Chameleons or chamaeleons (family Chamaeleonidae) are a distinctive and highly specialized clade of Old World lizards with 202 species described as of June 2015. The members of this family are best known for their distinct range of colors, bein ...

who accidentally ends up in the town of Dirt, an outpost that is in desperate need of a new sheriff. ''Rango'' was produced by

Nickelodeon Movies Nickelodeon Movies is the film production arm of American children's network Nickelodeon and the family film distribution label of Paramount Pictures launched on February 25, 1995 and based in Los Angeles, California. The division has earned n ...

, Verbinski's Blind Wink Productions, and King's

GK Films GK Films is a British-American film and television production company founded in 1990 by Graham King, located in Santa Monica, California. In 2005, the firm, which was known as Initial Entertainment Group at that time, signed a deal with Warner ...

, and distributed by

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

, with the animation provided by

Industrial Light & Magic Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) is an American motion picture visual effects company that was founded on May 26, 1975 by George Lucas. It is a division of the film production company Lucasfilm, which Lucas founded, and was created when he began pr ...

.Moody, Annemarie
"ILM Jumps to Features with Rango"
Animation World Network, September 12, 2008
WebCitation archive
/ref> ''Rango'' premiered at Westwood on February 14, 2011, and was released in the United States on March 4, 2011. The film was both a major critical and commercial success, grossing $245.7 million against a budget of $135 million. At the

84th Academy Awards The 84th Academy Awards ceremony, presented by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), honored the best films of 2011 in the United States and took place on February 26, 2012, at the Hollywood and Highland Center Theatre in H ...

, the film won

Best Animated Feature This is a list of categories of awards commonly awarded through organizations that bestow film awards, including those presented by various film, festivals, and people's awards. Best Actor/Best Actress *See Best Actor#Film awards, Best Actress#F ...

, making it the first non-

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

Pixar Pixar Animation Studios (commonly known as Pixar () and stylized as P I X A R) is an American computer animation studio known for its critically and commercially successful computer animated feature films. It is based in Emeryville, Californ ...

film to win since 2006's ''

Happy Feet ''Happy Feet'' is a 2006 computer-animated jukebox musical comedy film directed, produced, and co-written by George Miller. It stars the voices of Elijah Wood, Robin Williams, Brittany Murphy, Hugh Jackman, Nicole Kidman, Hugo Weaving, and ...

'', and the last one to win until 2018's '' Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse''.

Plot

A pet

becomes stranded in the

Mojave Desert The Mojave Desert ( ; mov, Hayikwiir Mat'aar; es, Desierto de Mojave) is a desert in the rain shadow of the Sierra Nevada mountains in the Southwestern United States. It is named for the indigenous Mojave people. It is located primarily ...

after his terrarium accidentally falls from his owners' car. He is told by a

nine-banded armadillo The nine-banded armadillo (''Dasypus novemcinctus''), also known as the nine-banded long-nosed armadillo or common long-nosed armadillo, is a mammal found in North, Central, and South America, making it the most widespread of the armadillos. ...

named Roadkill, who is seeking the mystical "Spirit of the West", of an

Old West The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of American expansion in mainland North America that began with European colonial ...

desert town called "Dirt" where water comes in through a mysterious rite on Wednesdays. Seeing no other options, the chameleon heads out into the desert, where he narrowly avoids being eaten by a vicious

red-tailed hawk The red-tailed hawk (''Buteo jamaicensis'') is a bird of prey that breeds throughout most of North America, from the interior of Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies. It is one of the most common members wit ...

before meeting Beans, a desert iguana, who takes him to Dirt. Asked about his identity, the chameleon presents himself to the townsfolk as a tough drifter named Rango and quickly runs afoul of Gila monster outlaw Bad Bill, who challenges him to a shootout. The hawk interrupts the duel and chases Rango, who accidentally knocks over an empty water tower, crushing the hawk to death. In return, the town's elderly

desert tortoise The desert tortoise (''Gopherus agassizii''), is a species of tortoise in the Family (biology), family Testudinidae. The species is native to the Mojave Desert, Mojave and Sonoran Deserts of the southwestern United States and northwestern Mexic ...

mayor appoints Rango as the town's new sheriff. Meanwhile, the townsfolk worry that with the hawk dead, the infamous

gunslinger Gunfighters, also called gunslingers (), or in the 19th and early 20th centuries gunmen, were individuals in the American Old West who gained a reputation of being dangerous with a gun and participated in gunfights and shootouts. Today, the t ...

Rattlesnake Jake (who fears predators such as said hawk) will return. Beans explains to Rango that Dirt is in the midst of a drought and its only water supply, stored in a water cooler bottle at the town bank, is nearly empty. She demands Rango investigate where the water has gone and in doing so he inadvertently helps a gang of bank robbers, led by a mole named Balthazar, to steal the water supply. Rango organizes a posse that finds the banker, Johannes Merrimack III, dead in the middle of the desert from drowning. The posse tracks the robbers to their hideout, where they fight Balthazar's bat-riding clan over the stolen water bottle before discovering it to be empty. The robbers profess that they found it empty, but the posse still takes them into custody. After being questioned by Rango about his buying of the land around Dirt, the mayor summons Rattlesnake Jake, who runs Rango out of town after forcing him to admit his lies to the townsfolk. Dejected, Rango returns to the highway where he passes out while trying to cross to the other side. He tells his story to the Spirit of the West, an elderly

Man with No Name The Man with No Name ( it, Uomo senza nome) is the antihero character portrayed by Clint Eastwood in Sergio Leone's "''Dollars Trilogy''" of Italian Spaghetti Western films: ''A Fistful of Dollars'' (1964), ''For a Few Dollars More'' (1965), ...

, who advises he go back to Dirt and set things right, telling him that "No man can walk out on his own story". With the aid of Roadkill and mystical moving yuccas, Rango discovers an emergency shut-off valve in a water pipeline to

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vega ...

, which the mayor has been manipulating to cause the water shortage so he could buy the land for himself. Rango returns to Dirt and challenges Jake to a duel, a diversion to allow the yuccas to restore the town's water and allow Rango to make his resolve clear to Jake. However, the mayor forces Rango to surrender by threatening Beans' life before attempting to drown the duo inside the bank's vault. He then prepares to shoot Jake with Rango's gun, but finds Rango has taken its only bullet, which he uses to shatter the vault's glass door, freeing himself and Beans. Impressed, Jake salutes Rango for proving his heroism before dragging the mayor out of town. The citizens of Dirt celebrate the return of their water supply and Rango is recognized as their hero.

Voice cast

as Rango, an eccentric but intelligent and heroic

. His actual name is unknown, but he calls himself Rango throughout the film. Johnny Depp also voiced Lars and Raoul Duke in a

cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly ei ...

, reprising his role from ''Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas''. *

as Beans, a hotheaded but good-hearted desert iguana and Rango's love interest. *

as Priscilla, a young and sweet-natured

cactus mouse The cactus mouse (''Peromyscus eremicus'') is a species of rodent in the family Cricetidae. It is a species of the genus ''Peromyscus'', a closely related group of New World mice often called "deermice" (although the term more commonly refers sp ...

. *

as Tortoise John, an elderly and calculating

who is the mayor of Dirt.O'Hehir, Andrew
"'Rango' and the rise of kidult-oriented animation"
Salon.com, March 2, 2011
WebCitation archive
*

as Roadkill, an elderly

. *

as Rattlesnake Jake, a deadly and sadistic

western diamondback rattlesnake The western diamondback rattlesnake or Texas diamond-backWright AH, Wright AA. (1957). ''Handbook of Snakes''. Comstock Publishing Associates. (7th printing, 1985). . (''Crotalus atrox'') is a rattlesnake species and member of the viper family, ...

gunslinger. *

as Balthazar Douglas Peterson, an elderly mole farmer. *

as Bad Bill, a Gila monster outlaw who serves as the brutish enforcer of the mayor. *

as the Spirit of the West. *

as Doc Kenny, a

jackrabbit Hares and jackrabbits are mammals belonging to the genus ''Lepus''. They are herbivores, and live solitarily or in pairs. They nest in slight depressions called forms, and their young are able to fend for themselves shortly after birth. The gen ...

who is Dirt's local doctor, Johannes Merrimack III, a ground squirrel who is a banker at Dirt's local bank and Mr. Snuggles, a

porcupine Porcupines are large rodents with coats of sharp spines, or quills, that protect them against predation. The term covers two families of animals: the Old World porcupines of family Hystricidae, and the New World porcupines of family, Erethiz ...

. *

Maile Flanagan Maile Flanagan () is an American television, film, and voice actress known for her work in cartoons, anime and video games. Some of her prominent roles include Naruto Uzumaki in the English dub of ''Naruto'', Piggley Winks in ''Jakers! The Adven ...

as Lucky * Alanna Ubach as Boo, Cletus, a

raccoon The raccoon ( or , ''Procyon lotor''), sometimes called the common raccoon to distinguish it from other species, is a mammal native to North America. It is the largest of the procyonid family, having a body length of , and a body weight of ...

; Fresca, and Miss Daisy *

Ian Abercrombie Ian Abercrombie (11 September 1934 – 26 January 2012) was an English actor and comedian. He was best known for playing Justin Pitt (Elaine Benes' boss) during the sixth season of ''Seinfeld''. He also played Alfred Pennyworth on ''Birds of Pre ...

as Ambrose, a

burrowing owl The burrowing owl (''Athene cunicularia''), also called the shoco, is a small, long-legged owl found throughout open landscapes of North and South America. Burrowing owls can be found in grasslands, rangelands, agricultural areas, deserts, or an ...

. This was Abercrombie's final film appearance before his death in 2012. *

Gil Birmingham Gil Birmingham (born July 13, 1953) is an American actor known for his role as Tribal Chairman Thomas Rainwater in the Paramount Network's television series ''Yellowstone''. He is also known for his portrayal of Billy Black in '' The Twilight Sag ...

as Theodore "Wounded Bird" Grank, a Native American

crow A crow is a bird of the genus '' Corvus'', or more broadly a synonym for all of ''Corvus''. Crows are generally black in colour. The word "crow" is used as part of the common name of many species. The related term "raven" is not pinned scientifica ...

who becomes Rango's deputy. *

James Ward Byrkit James Ward Byrkit (also known as James Byrkit or Jim Byrkit) is an American film director, writer, and actor. He is best known for directing the science fiction thriller ''Coherence'' and co-writing the script for '' Rango'', one of his many coll ...

as Waffles, a

horned lizard Horned lizards (''Phrynosoma''), also known as horny toads or horntoads, are a genus of North American lizards and the type genus of the family Phrynosomatidae. The common names refer directly to their horns or to their flattened, rounded bodies, ...

; Gordy, Papa Joad, and Cousin Murt *

Claudia Black Claudia Lee Black (born 11 October 1972) is an Australian actress, best known for her portrayals of Aeryn Sun in ''Farscape'', Vala Mal Doran in ''Stargate SG-1'' and Sharon "Shazza" Montgomery in the film '' Pitch Black''. She has had promin ...

as Angelique, a

vixen Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

and the mayor's secretary. *

Blake Clark Blake Clark (born February 2, 1946) is an American actor and stand-up comedian. He is best known as Chet Hunter on ''Boy Meets World'' and Harry "The Hardware Store Guy" on ''Home Improvement''. Clark has voiced Slinky Dog in the ''Toy Story'' f ...

as Buford, a Colorado River toad who is the bartender at Dirt's local saloon. * John Cothran, Jr. as Elgin, a

bobcat The bobcat (''Lynx rufus''), also known as the red lynx, is a medium-sized cat native to North America. It ranges from southern Canada through most of the contiguous United States to Oaxaca in Mexico. It is listed as Least Concern on the ...

whose past is shrouded in mystery. *

Patrika Darbo Patrika Darbo (born April 6, 1948) is an American actress. She is known for her roles as Nancy Wesley and Shirley Spectra in the television soap operas '' Days of Our Lives'' and '' The Bold and the Beautiful'', respectively. In 2016, Darbo won ...

as Delilah and Maybelle * George DelHoyo as Señor Flan, the leader of a

mariachi band Mariachi (, , ) is a genre of regional Mexican music that dates back to at least the 18th century, evolving over time in the countryside of various regions of western Mexico. The usual mariachi group today consists of as many as eight violins, t ...

of owls and the narrator of the film. *

Charles Fleischer Charles Fleischer (born August 27, 1950) is an American actor, stand-up comedian, musician, and writer, best known for appearing in films such as ''Who Framed Roger Rabbit'', ''A Nightmare on Elm Street'', '' The Polar Express'', '' Rango'', '' ...

as Elbows *

Beth Grant Beth Grant (born September 18, 1949) is an American character actress. Between 2012 and 2017, she was a series regular on the television comedy '' The Mindy Project'' in the role of Beverly Janoszewski. She is also known for her role as Gracie ...

as Bonnie *

Ryan Hurst Ryan Douglas Hurst (born June 19, 1976) is an American actor, known for his roles as Gerry Bertier in '' Remember the Titans'' (2000), Sgt. Ernie Savage in '' We Were Soldiers'' (2002), Tom Clarke in '' Taken'' (2002), Opie Winston in the FX dr ...

as Jedidiah, Balthazar's son and Ezekiel's older brother. *

Vincent Kartheiser Vincent Paul Kartheiser (born May 5, 1979) is an American actor. He played Pete Campbell on the AMC television series ''Mad Men'', for which he received six Screen Actors Guild Award nominations for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a ...

as Ezekiel, Balthazar's son and Jedediah's younger brother. * Joseph Nunez as Rock-Eye, a

desert rain frog The desert rain frog, web-footed rain frog, or Boulenger's short-headed frog (''Breviceps macrops'') is a species of frog in the family Brevicipitidae. It is found in Namibia and South Africa. Its natural habitat is the narrow strip of sandy sh ...

who disguises himself as a rock, until he is snatched by the hawk. *

Hemky Madera Hemky Madera (born January 26, 1977) is an American actor. He began his acting career in the Dominican Republic television production ''Grandes Series Dominicanas'' in which he took the leading parts of the mini-series ''En La Olla'' and ''Trio ...

as Chorizo, a

shrew Shrews (family Soricidae) are small mole-like mammals classified in the order Eulipotyphla. True shrews are not to be confused with treeshrews, otter shrews, elephant shrews, West Indies shrews, or marsupial shrews, which belong to differ ...

Chris Parson Christopher L. Parson is an American voice actor and a 2001 graduate of the USC School of Cinema Television (now USC School of Cinematic Arts). Career Parson began his career working primarily as an assistant in talent management while still a ...

as Hazel Moats, Kinski, Stump, Clinker, Lenny, Boseefus, Dirt Kid *

Lew Temple Lew Temple (born October 2, 1967) is an American actor, known for his roles as Locus Fender in the action film, '' Domino'', Cal, the diner manager in the comedy-drama '' Waitress'', and Axel in the third season of '' The Walking Dead''. Early ...

as Furgus, a

bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...

and Hitch *

as Sergeant Turley, a

wild turkey The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an upland ground bird native to North America, one of two extant species of turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey, which was originally d ...

; Crevice, Slim, a

vulture A vulture is a bird of prey that scavenges on carrion. There are 23 extant species of vulture (including Condors). Old World vultures include 16 living species native to Europe, Africa, and Asia; New World vultures are restricted to North and ...

; and Lupe, a member of the mariachi band of owls. *

Kym Whitley Kym Elizabeth Whitley is an American comedian and actress. She is best known for her roles on television sitcoms, such as '' My Brother and Me'', '' Sparks'', ''Animal Practice'', '' The Boondocks'', ''Young & Hungry'', '' The Parkers'', ...

as Melonee, a

frog A frog is any member of a diverse and largely Carnivore, carnivorous group of short-bodied, tailless amphibians composing the order (biology), order Anura (ανοὐρά, literally ''without tail'' in Ancient Greek). The oldest fossil "proto-f ...

* Alex Manugian as Spoons, a

mouse A mouse ( : mice) is a small rodent. Characteristically, mice are known to have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, a body-length scaly tail, and a high breeding rate. The best known mouse species is the common house mouse (''Mus musculus' ...

prospector. The likeness of

Benicio del Toro Benicio Monserrate Rafael del Toro Sánchez (born February 19, 1967) is a Puerto Rican actor and producer. He has garnered critical acclaim and numerous accolades, including an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe Award, two Screen ...

is briefly used to represent his character of Dr. Gonzo from ''Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas'' in a

, alongside Johnny Depp as Raoul Duke.

Production

The filming was described as "emotion capture" as the actors shot their scenes in live action for the animators to use as reference. During production, the actors and actresses received costumes and sets in order to "give them the feel of the Wild West"; star

had 20 days in which to voice Rango; and the filmmakers scheduled the supporting actors to interact with him.Vejvoda, Jim
"What Exactly is Rango?"

IGN.com ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...

, June 30, 2010
WebCitation archive
/ref> Verbinski said his attempt with ''Rango'' was to do a "small" film after the first three large-scale ''

Pirates of the Caribbean ''Pirates of the Caribbean'' is a Disney media franchise encompassing numerous theme park rides, a series of films, and spin-off novels, as well as a number of related video games and other media publications. The franchise originated with the ...

'' movies, but that he underestimated how painstaking, time-consuming and expensive animated filmmaking is. Paramount stepped in at the last possible minute as Verbinski's slim financing was about to run out. Unlike many studio animation projects produced since ''Avatar'', ''Rango'' was shot in 2D, not 3D, as the budget would allow for it and Verbinski did not want to do a "half-assed 3D." The film contains a number of references to movie Westerns and other films, including '' The Shakiest Gun in the West'', ''

A Fistful of Dollars ''A Fistful of Dollars'' ( it, Per un pugno di dollari, lit=For a Fistful of Dollars titled on-screen as ''Fistful of Dollars'') is a 1964 Spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Leone and starring Clint Eastwood in his first leading role, a ...

'', ''

Chinatown A Chinatown () is an ethnic enclave of Chinese people located outside Greater China, most often in an urban setting. Areas known as "Chinatown" exist throughout the world, including Europe, North America, South America, Asia, Africa and Aust ...

'', ''

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly ''The Good, the Bad and the Ugly'' ( it, Il buono, il brutto, il cattivo, literally "The good, the ugly, the bad") is a 1966 Italian epic spaghetti Western film directed by Sergio Leone and starring Clint Eastwood as "the Good", Lee Van Clee ...

'', '' Once Upon a Time in the West'', '' Cat Ballou'', '' Raising Arizona'' and '' Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas''; as well as references to earlier ILM work including the dogfight in the Death Star trench in '' Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope''. Verbinski has also cited ''

El Topo ''El Topo'' (, "The Mole") is a 1970 Mexican acid Western art film written, scored, directed by and starring Alejandro Jodorowsky. Characterized by its bizarre characters and occurrences, use of maimed and dwarf performers, and heavy doses of Ju ...

'' as an influence on the film. In a discussion about the nature of contemporary animated features, Verbinski said in December 2011,

Release

Marketing

''Rango''s

teaser trailer A teaser (or more specifically teaser trailer) is a mini- trailer and a form of teaser campaign advertising that focuses on film and television programming. It is a videography pre-release move or television show advertisement. Short in length, te ...

was released on June 9, 2010, alongside the film's official site RangoMovie.com. It depicted an open desert highway and Mr. Timms, Rango’s orange, wind-up plastic fish floating slowly across the road.Rango – Movie Trailers – iTunes
/ref> On June 28, 2010, the first poster was released showing the main character Rango. Additional on March 6, 2011. A two-minute film trailer was released June 29, 2010.Young, John
"'Rango': A peek behind the scenes of Johnny Depp's epic lizard western"
''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular ...

'', June 30, 2010
WebCitation archive
Another trailer was released December 14, 2010. A 30-second spot was made specifically to run during

Super Bowl XLV Super Bowl XLV was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Pittsburgh Steelers and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion Green Bay Packers to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion ...

on February 6, 2011.

Home media

The film was released on

Blu-ray The Blu-ray Disc (BD), often known simply as Blu-ray, is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 2005 and released on June 20, 2006 worldwide. It is designed to supersede the DVD format, and capable of st ...

and DVD on July 15, 2011. The release had been produced as a two-disc Blu-ray, DVD, and "Digital Copy" combo pack with both the theatrical and an extended version of the film, cast and crew commentary, deleted scenes, and featurettes. The extended version adds a final scene in which the flooded town is now a beach resort renamed Mud and Rango rides out to deal with news that Bad Bill is causing trouble elsewhere.

Reception

Box office

''Rango'' earned $123,477,607 in North America and $122,246,996 in other countries for a total $245,724,603. It is the 23rd-highest-grossing film of 2011 worldwide. In North America, ''Rango'' debuted in 3,917 theaters, grossing $9,608,091 on its first day and $38,079,323 during its opening weekend, ranking number one at the box office. Even though the film dropped into second place behind '' Battle: Los Angeles'' the following week, it would go on to outgross the weaker opening of Disney's animated

flop In computing, floating point operations per second (FLOPS, flops or flop/s) is a measure of computer performance, useful in fields of scientific computations that require floating-point calculations. For such cases, it is a more accurate meas ...

, ''

Mars Needs Moms ''Mars Needs Moms'' is a 2011 American 3D computer-animated science fiction film co-written and directed by Simon Wells, produced by ImageMovers Digital and released by Walt Disney Pictures. Based on the Berkeley Breathed book of the same ti ...

''. On March 26, 2011, it became the first film of 2011 to cross the $100 million mark in North America. In markets outside North America, during its first weekend, it earned $16,770,243 in 33 countries. It topped the international box office two times in March 2011. Although the film did not double its budget, it was declared a success by Paramount which subsequently announced the formation of its own animation department.

Critical response

The critical consensus on Rotten Tomatoes reads, "''Rango'' is a smart, giddily creative burst of beautifully animated entertainment, and Johnny Depp gives a colorful vocal performance as a household pet in an unfamiliar world." Audiences polled by

CinemaScore CinemaScore is a market research firm based in Las Vegas. It surveys film audiences to rate their viewing experiences with letter grades, reports the results, and forecasts box office receipts based on the data. Background Ed Mintz founded Ci ...

gave the film an average grade of "C+" on an A+ to F scale. Richard Corliss of ''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and event (philosophy), events that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various me ...

'' applauded the "savvy humor" and called the voice actors "flat-out flawless." He later named it one of the 10 best movies of 2011, saying, "In a strong year for animation ... ''Rango'' was the coolest, funniest and dagnab-orneriest of the bunch." Bob Mondello of

National Public Radio National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other n ...

observed that "''Rango''s not just a kiddie-flick (though it has enough silly

slapstick Slapstick is a style of humor involving exaggerated physical activity that exceeds the boundaries of normal physical comedy. Slapstick may involve both intentional violence and violence by mishap, often resulting from inept use of props such ...

to qualify as a pretty good one). It's a real movie lover's movie, conceived as a ''

Blazing Saddles ''Blazing Saddles'' is a 1974 American satirical western black comedy film directed by Mel Brooks, who also wrote the screenplay with Andrew Bergman, Richard Pryor, Norman Steinberg, and Alan Uger. The film stars Cleavon Little and Gene Wilde ...

''-like comic commentary on

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other f ...

that's as back-lot savvy as it is light in the saddle."Mondello, Bob
"Ride 'Em, Chameleon! 'Rango' A Wild, Wacky Western"

NPR.org National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from othe ...

, March 4, 2011
WebCitation archive

Frank Lovece Frank Lovece () is an American journalist and author, and a comic book writer primarily for Marvel Comics, where he and artist Mike Okamoto created the miniseries ''Atomic Age''. His longest affiliation has been with the New York metropolitan ...

of ''

Film Journal International ''Film Journal International'' was a motion-picture industry trade magazine published by the American company Prometheus Global Media. It was a sister publication of ''Adweek'', ''Billboard'', ''The Hollywood Reporter'', and other periodicals. H ...

'', noting the nervous but improvising hero's resemblance to the

Don Knotts Jesse Donald Knotts (July 21, 1924February 24, 2006) was an American actor and comedian. He is widely known for his role as Deputy Sheriff Barney Fife on '' The Andy Griffith Show'', a 1960s sitcom for which he earned five Emmy Awards. He als ...

character in '' The Shakiest Gun in the West'', echoed this, saying that "with healthy doses of

Carlos Castaneda Carlos Castañeda (December 25, 1925 – April 27, 1998) was an American writer. Starting with ''The Teachings of Don Juan'' in 1968, Castaneda wrote a series of books that purport to describe training in shamanism that he received under the tu ...

Sergio Leone Sergio Leone (; 3 January 1929 – 30 April 1989) was an Italian film director, producer and screenwriter credited as the pioneer of the Spaghetti Western genre and widely regarded as one of the most influential directors in the history of cin ...

Chuck Jones Charles Martin Jones (September 21, 1912 – February 22, 2002) was an American animator, director, and painter, best known for his work with Warner Bros. Cartoons on the '' Looney Tunes'' and '' Merrie Melodies'' series of shorts. He wrote, pro ...

and ''

'' ... this sthe kid-movie equivalent of a

Quentin Tarantino Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, dark humor, non-linear storylines, cameos, ensembl ...

picture. There's no gory violence or swearing, of course, but there sure is a film buff's parade of great movie moments."

Roger Ebert Roger Joseph Ebert (; June 18, 1942 – April 4, 2013) was an American film critic, film historian, journalist, screenwriter, and author. He was a film critic for the ''Chicago Sun-Times'' from 1967 until his death in 2013. In 1975, Ebert beca ...

of the ''

Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the '' Chicago ...

'' gave the film four out of four stars calling the film "some kind of a miracle: An animated comedy for smart moviegoers, wonderfully made, great to look at, wickedly satirical ... The movie respects the tradition of painstakingly drawn animated classics, and does interesting things with space and perspective with its wild action sequences." After praising "the brilliance of its visuals," Joe Morgenstern of ''

The Wall Street Journal ''The Wall Street Journal'' is an American business-focused, international daily newspaper based in New York City, with international editions also available in Chinese and Japanese. The ''Journal'', along with its Asian editions, is published ...

'' wrote, "The narrative isn't really dramatic, ... utmore like a succession of picturesque notions that might have flowed from DreamWorks or

while their story departments were out to lunch." In one of the more negative reviews, Michael Phillips of the ''

Chicago Tribune The ''Chicago Tribune'' is a daily newspaper based in Chicago, Illinois, United States, owned by Tribune Publishing. Founded in 1847, and formerly self-styled as the "World's Greatest Newspaper" (a slogan for which WGN radio and television ar ...

'' acknowledged its "considerable care and craft" but called it "completely soulless" and that watching it "with a big suburban preview audience was instructive. Not much laughter. Moans and sobs of pre-teen fright whenever Rattlesnake Jake slithered into view, threatening murder."

Smoking controversy

The

Sacramento ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento ...

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

-based

anti-smoking Tobacco control is a field of international public health science, policy and practice dedicated to addressing tobacco use and thereby reducing the morbidity and mortality it causes. Since most cigarettes and cigars and hookahs contain/use to ...

organization Breathe California regards the film a "public health hazard"; it said there were at least 60 instances of smoking in the film. Because of this, some anti-smoking organizations, including Breathe California, petitioned for the film to receive an R rating instead of the original PG rating received by the

Motion Picture Association of America The Motion Picture Association (MPA) is an American trade association representing the five major film studios of the United States, as well as the video streaming service Netflix. Founded in 1922 as the Motion Picture Producers and Distrib ...

. However, no change was made to the smoking scenes and the film maintained its PG rating.

Accolades

Video games

Console games

Electronic Arts Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted the ...

released a

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedba ...

of the same name based on the film. It is rated E10+ and was released for the

PlayStation 3 The PlayStation 3 (PS3) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, Sony Computer Entertainment. The successor to the PlayStation 2, it is part of the PlayStation brand of consoles. It was first released on Novemb ...

Xbox 360 The Xbox 360 is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. As the successor to the original Xbox, it is the second console in the Xbox series. It competed with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generati ...

Nintendo DS The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens working in t ...

, and

Wii The Wii ( ) is a home video game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released on November 19, 2006, in North America and in December 2006 for most other regions of the world. It is Nintendo's fifth major home game console, ...

Online games

Funtactix FTX Games is an American video game publisher based in San Diego. Originally founded as Funtactix in 2006, the company was acquired by Playtech in March 2016 and was rebranded as FTX Games. In July 2020, FTX Games was acquired by Tilting Point ...

launched ''Rango: The World'', a browser-based virtual world set in the Rango universe, on March 4, 2011, the day of the film's release.

Music

The score was composed by

Hans Zimmer Hans Florian Zimmer (; born 12 September 1957) is a German film score composer and music producer. He has won two Oscars and four Grammys, and has been nominated for two Emmys and a Tony. Zimmer was also named on the list of Top 100 Living G ...

and features contributions from songwriter and actor Rick Garcia, Latin rock band

Los Lobos Los Lobos (, Spanish for "the Wolves") are an American rock band from East Los Angeles, California. Their music is influenced by rock and roll, Tex-Mex, country, zydeco, folk, R&B, blues, brown-eyed soul, and traditional music such as cu ...

, and hardcore punk/industrial band

Lard Lard is a semi-solid white fat product obtained by rendering the fatty tissue of a pig.Lard
entry in the ...

. Non-original music includes “Finale”, composed by

Danny Elfman Daniel Robert Elfman (born May 29, 1953) is an American film composer, singer and songwriter. He came to prominence as the singer-songwriter for the new wave band Oingo Boingo in the early 1980s. Since the 1990s, Elfman has garnered internation ...

for the 2007 film '' The Kingdom'', as well as excerpts of

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

’s “

Ride of the Valkyries The "Ride of the Valkyries" (german: Walkürenritt Ritt der Walküren, links=no) refers to the beginning of act 3 of '' Die Walküre'', the second of the four operas constituting Richard Wagner's '' Der Ring des Nibelungen''. As a separate pie ...

” and

Johann Strauss II Johann Baptist Strauss II (25 October 1825 – 3 June 1899), also known as Johann Strauss Jr., the Younger or the Son (german: links=no, Sohn), was an Austrian composer of light music, particularly dance music and operettas. He composed ove ...

’s “ The Blue Danube”. Original songs performed for the film include:

Future

During a Reddit AMA with Verbinski in February 2017, he said that he did not plan on making a sequel to ''Rango'', but he would like to be involved in animation again and to try and come up with an original idea.

References

External links

*
WebCitation archive
(Archived site's opening page requires clicking on onscreen URL for entry.) * * *
Rango at Nickelodeon
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rango 2011 films 2011 action comedy films 2011 computer-animated films 2010s American animated films 2010s Western (genre) comedy films 2010s children's animated films American Western (genre) comedy films American action comedy films American children's animated comedy films American computer-animated films American films with live action and animation Animated films about animals Animated films about reptiles and amphibians Western (genre) animated films Best Animated Feature Academy Award winners Best Animated Feature Annie Award winners Best Animated Feature BAFTA winners Best Animated Feature Broadcast Film Critics Association Award winners Fictional chameleons and geckos Films about lizards Films about water scarcity Film controversies Films directed by Gore Verbinski Films produced by Graham King Films scored by Hans Zimmer Films set in deserts Films set in the Las Vegas Valley Films with screenplays by John Logan GK Films films Metafictional works Nickelodeon Movies films Nickelodeon animated films Paramount Pictures animated films Paramount Pictures films 2010s English-language films