Monday, March 19, 2012

DEPP PERCEPTION

This image crossed my virtual desk last week, and I just had to share it.

Yes, they're making (yet another) retread of The Lone Ranger, due out in May of 2013, and this is the "first look" still sent to the press. That's Armie Hammer behind the mask, looking suitably stalwart as lawman John Reid-turned-masked avenger for justice.

And beside him his faithful Indian guide. Check out the long braids, the warrior paint, the bandana, and the entire dead crow (I think it's dead) perched on his head. Yes, it's none other than the irrepressible Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Tonto.

Rumor has it that Jerry Bruckheimer, producer of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, had a yen for a Lone Ranger remake. He offered the title role to his PotC star, but Depp was savvy enough to opt for the far more interesting role of Tonto—which also evidently comes with a much cooler wardrobe.

It's not that I'm expecting much from this production. The reunion of Bruckheimer with PotC director Gore Verbinski and screenwriters Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio almost guarantees another bombastic triumph of slapstick over substance. On the other hand, it's pulp fiction, not Eurpides. And Johnny Depp wearing a crow may be its own reward—at least, we can hope so!

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