After being surprised by the production quality of the first theatrical feature for the Lone Ranger, this one was a let down. Yes, it does offer some strong scenes with powerful dialog - especially those centered around the ugly theme of racial intolerance.
What is missing here is the strong direction and overall tight script of the first, as well as the colorful music score. 'Lost City of Gold' saunters along with a typical television approach, but with the addition of some questionable violence (typical of the late 50s onwards) to spice it up for so called 'adults'. The Australian censors had a field day bringing it in line with it's family origins, but perhaps they too might have been a tad over enthusiastic. Les Baxter attempted a new arrangement of the famous Rossini theme and mostly succeeded with a new colorful orchestration. Tonto is utilized to better advantage with more good character and action scenes than the Lone Ranger, but then he gets to shine in a couple of situations with a neat disguise. Some will still enjoy this ride, but others be warned.
What is missing here is the strong direction and overall tight script of the first, as well as the colorful music score. 'Lost City of Gold' saunters along with a typical television approach, but with the addition of some questionable violence (typical of the late 50s onwards) to spice it up for so called 'adults'. The Australian censors had a field day bringing it in line with it's family origins, but perhaps they too might have been a tad over enthusiastic. Les Baxter attempted a new arrangement of the famous Rossini theme and mostly succeeded with a new colorful orchestration. Tonto is utilized to better advantage with more good character and action scenes than the Lone Ranger, but then he gets to shine in a couple of situations with a neat disguise. Some will still enjoy this ride, but others be warned.