BEFORE: Sticking it out in the Old West tonight - these Western films are also great films to watch on hot summer nights, since they take place in those hot, sandy deserts that look great on film. Linking from "The Frisco Kid", Harrison Ford was in "Patriot Games" with Anne Archer, who was in "Raise the Titanic" with Jason Robards (last seen in "Crimson Tide"), who appears here as President Grant. Got lucky with that one.
THE PLOT: The sole surviving Texas Ranger of an ambush arranged by Butch Cavandish returns to fight back as a masked hero.
AFTER: This is a pretty basic re-telling of the famous Lone Ranger origin, setting it firmly in Texas (Texas Rangers, ah, I get it...). But the movie takes its time setting up all the elements of the legend (silver bullets, silver horse, etc.) and spends a full hour on the back-story, so we don't even see the man in the mask for the first hour.
That leaves just barely enough time to avenge his dead brother, rescue President Grant, and take down the Cavendish Gang. Pretty by-the-numbers, except he doesn't end up with the pretty girl at the end - I guess some sacrifices have to be made if he wants to keep his secret identity.
It seems like this 1981 film left the door open for a sequel, but one was never made, probably due to bad box office. But essentially this is a comic-book movie, that was released before the current explosion of comic-book films. Word is that another Lone Ranger movie is in the works, with Johnny Depp set to play Tonto - look for Tonto to be the real brains of the operation in that one, I bet. Hey, they made a Green Hornet film, they can make another Lone Ranger film - the two characters are supposedly related, after all.
Starring Klinton Spilsbury (who?), Michael Horse (Deputy Hawk from "Twin Peaks"), Christopher Lloyd (last heard in "The Tale of Despereaux"), with a cameo from Richard Farnsworth (last seen in "Misery") as Wild Bill Hickok.
RATING: 3 out of 10 sticks of dynamite
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