Entertainment, Lighter

Movie Review: Rango

Rango, http://jordanhoffman.com/2011/03/06/rango-2011-gore-verbinski-a/Rango is a new animated film about a chameleon who gets lost in the Nevada desert. He discovers a town filled with desert animals. Johnny Depp plays the voice of Rango the chameleon.

In the movie, Rango finds out that the water supply for the desert animals in the town is dangerously low. If they run out of water, they won’t survive. Rango has to figure out who is behind the problem and fix it. At the same time, everyone in the town thinks that Rango is a hero. He has to make sure no one finds out that he is really just a family pet.

There are many animals in the film that live in the desert in real life. Rango is a chameleon. A chameleon is a type of lizard that can change the colour of its skin. They can be found in warm places such as the rainforest and the desert.

Priscilla is a cactus mouse in the film. The cactus mouse is found only in Mexico and the United States. They are experts at climbing cactii, using their long tails for balance.

Roadkill is the name of the armadillo in the movie. An armadillo has a shell covering its body that looks like armor. They have sharp claws for digging.

Does Rango find a new water source for the town? Do the townspeople find out that he’s not the hero he claimed to be? You’ll have to go and see the movie yourself to find out these answers. Rango is playing in theatres in North America now; it is 107 minutes long and it’s rated PG – Parental Guidance is recommended.

Related Links:
Official website for Rango.
Some trailers and behind-the-scenes videos for Rango.

Below is the official trailer for Rango.

CURRICULUM CONNECTIONS

Writing/Discussion Prompt
Rango has a flaw in his personality. He doesn’t believe that his friends will like him if he tells them his secret, that he is not a hero.

Have you read stories about characters with the same problem? Which ones? How did the story work out? With this in mind, what prediction can you make about what will happen to Rango in the movie?

Reading Prompt
Connecting new ideas with things we already know is something that good readers do often. So, does the movie, Rango, remind you of stories, movies, or news articles that you have read, seen, or heard? If so, which ones and why?

Primary & Junior
Extend understanding of texts by connecting the ideas in them to their own knowledge and experience, to other familiar texts, and to the world around them (OME, Reading: 1.6)

Grammar Feature: Semi-colon
A semi-colon is a punctuation mark that can be used instead of a period. A semi-colon is used used instead of a period when the two sentences are very closely related (both about the same thing). In the example from today’s article, two sentences are joined by a semi-colon because they are both about the details of the movie.

Rango is playing in theatres in North America now; it is 107 minutes long and it’s rated PG – Parental Guidance is recommended.

Write two sentences about your favorite animated movie and join them with a semi-colon. Remember, the more related the two sentences are, the better the usage of the semi-colon.