As I discussed in my previous blog post about the movie White House Down, Hollywood is obsessed with making sure its movies fit a certain formula. This is, of course, done because filmmaking is a business above all else. Formulas are the best way for studios to ensure that they'll get their money back...the motto is, if it's worked before, it will work again. And that brings us to The Lone Ranger.
Based on the popular radio show from the 1930s and the even more popular television show from the 1950s, Disney's The Long Ranger is a light-hearted adventure western about a masked lawman and his trusty Indian sidekick who try to bring justice to the wild west. I expect most everyone has heard of The Lone Ranger and most people over the age of 60 probably watched the show on television. Therefore, I don't need to go into great detail in explaining the film's concept. The problem for Disney, however, is in making a relic of 1950s black and white TV appealing to younger audiences who have likely seen few if any westerns. That is not to say that resurrections of past pop culture icons is not possible. Just look at the success of Warner Bros.' reboot of the Superman franchise. Superman is not unlike The Lone Ranger. Both originated in the 1930s and thrived on 1950s television. The big difference, however, is that superhero movies are very much in vogue today. And westerns are not.
So the question becomes how does Disney hedge its bets to ensure they'll turn a profit after investing a reported $225 million to make The Lone Ranger and an additional $100 million to advertise it. The answer, according to Disney, lies in the formula. Hollywood studios have seen time and again that they can reap huge profits on properties that are predictable, offensive to few if any groups and tied to huge merchandising campaigns (all the better if they can also be incorporated into theme park merchandising). On paper, The Lone Ranger fits the bill. It has brand recognition, a big producer (Jerry Bruckheimer), director (Gore Verbinski) and star (Johnny Depp). But above all, it has a familiar formula.
What is this formula I keep talking about? Well, it's essentially the formula I described in my White House Down post...in this case, there's a slight variation because The Lone Ranger is primarily a buddy movie and the star of the film (Depp) plays a supporting role. But the formula basically remains the same: the hero doesn't want to be the hero, the villain has no redeeming qualities, the stunts are over the top and unrealistic, the action is punctuated by one-liner quips, a damsel is in need of rescue, a father figure/role model type character turns out to be the ultimate bad guy and the villain is brought down in the end with the hero tying every thing up nicely, then riding off into the sunset. As I said, this formula has worked many times in the past so Disney had every reason to expect it to work for The Lone Ranger.
Unfortunately for Disney, it looks as if the well-worn formula may not work this time around. Initial box office returns have not been good for The Lone Ranger and critics have been panning the film. There can be many reasons for this, but I believe it is because the makers of this film relied too much on the old formula. The western genre is already pretty much played out. Hollywood relied so heavily on that genre in the 1950s, 1960s and into the 1970s, that by the 1980s anytime someone put on cowboy boots, donned a Stetson and rode a horse, they became a caricature and/or a mockery. My feeling is that if Disney intended to throw big money at a played out genre the would have to do so in a fresh and original way...that means diverging from the predictable fare. That is not what Disney chose to do. And I think it will hurt them.
Although audiences feel comfortable with familiarity, too much of it will turn them off. A predictable plot in an over-played genre will likely prove to be too much for audiences. While The Lone Ranger is fun escapist fare and the acting is very good, I don't believe it will connect with audiences for the reasons I mentioned.
A note to Hollywood...let us live under the illusion that our entertainment isn't being spoon-fed to us. Please.
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