The Lone Ranger

Bloated, hubristic and an awkward mish-mash of wildly conflicting tones, it’s easy to see why US critics lined-up to give Gore Verbinski’s The Lone Ranger a kicking. But there’s also a good bit of fun to be had in this lolloping behemoth.

Handsome but bland Armie Hammer dons the mask and Stetson, and Johnny Depp puts a Native American spin on his list of eerily similar oddballs to essay Tonto. Thrust together by a shared need for vengeance against a brutal outlaw (William Fichtner), the pair bicker their way through a cartoon Old West, uncovering a broader conspiracy into the bargain.

While the often funny slapstick and sub-Python surrealism sit uneasily alongside some surprisingly strong violence and ill-judged attempts at historical commentary, there’s also great spectacle to enjoy. A few exciting set-pieces might be the least one expects in a 150-minute summer blockbuster, but the prolonged locomotive-set denouement in particular deliciously captures the spirit of the Boys’ Own serials to which Verbinski’s film aspires. A shame they couldn’t have trimmed the fat. [Chris Fyvie]