Hello once again my readers. Today I bring you my review of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. I've got some good things to say and some bad things. So sit back, relax, and enjoy the read.
I've decided to work my way backwards on this one, starting with audience first and working my way to the movie in general. I find that I have a lot more to say at the beginning of these reviews than at the end, so I've decided to switch the order. That way you'll get more content as you read rather than less. That being said, the audience was pretty good, small groups of three here and there and at least they remained quiet.
As far as producing and directing go. Jerry Bruckheimer knows how to produce a good PG-13 Disney movie. I miss Gore Verbinski on directing, though. The main trilogy was epic, this Rob Marshall guy wasn't bad or anything, just... different, that's all I can say.
The cast of this film did wonderful. Johnny Depp was naturally good at his part and so were the rest of the classics, so let's talk about the noobs. Penelope Cruz: I'm just glad to find out she speaks English. This sounds bad I'm sure, but for some reason, back when she dated Tom Cruise, I was under the impression that she only spoke Spanish, I'm glad I was wrong. Sam Claflin as Orlando Bloom, I mean the missionary, he did well and I believed his character was genuine but he was clearly playing the pretty boy of the new film. Finally we get to Ian McShane as Blackbeard, I'm going to start a new paragraph for him because I have a lot to say.
Okay, so I'm a fan of Ian McShane, he did amazing work on Deadwood and was good from what I remember of Kings, but in Pirates.... eh. My main note here is that Ian McShane was playing, well, Ian McShane. Which isn't a bad thing, Ian McShane is awesome, it's just not what I wanted. I realized in this film that every Pirate in the franchise has their own quirks. Barbossa's voice and long-stride walks seem just as unique as Jack Sparrow's drunken slurs and swaying. Davy Jones felt like half man half squid. But Ian McShane just kind of walks on, speaks in his normal British accent and acts like a dick, he did a good job, just not a memorable job.
I enjoyed the movie in general. It was a Pirates film through and through and I loved it for that. It kept me interested, the mythology was awesome as always, but I can't help but ask myself: was a 4th film necessary? What I mean by this is, the 3rd film in the franchise seemed like a good end to the franchise, it closed off loose ends and seemed like a conclusion. Think about it: Bloom and Knightley had an ending, the bad guys were defeated, and Barbossa got the Pearl (he seemed like a far better Captain of it anyways, that and he's the first one the audience sees as the Captain of it).
Although Jack wanted the Pearl like no other, I felt like he didn't really need the Pearl, he had the map to the Foutain of Youth and he was going to search for it. It gave me the impression that everyone would live happy in the end and Jack's character would literally be immortalized becaue one can assume he finds the Fountain, then, when Barbossa dies, he gets his Pearl back and sails the seven seas. Also, one of the major plot points to the 3rd film was the "end of piracy" thing, I felt like that was a theme for the entire film, the end of a franchise represented by the end of the age of pirates. I just assumed it ended with the 3rd film , but I guess I shouldn't assume things.
If the 4th movie is the beginning of another trilogy then I don't think this new trilogy will workout well. The franchise pretty much ended with the 3rd movie and (SPOILER ALERT) the 4th movie concluded Sparrow and Barbossas journey by giving Sparrow the Pearl back and Barbossa a far better ship. (END SPOILER) I'll watch and enjoy a new trilogy, but it'll never be as great as the original.
All in all it was a good film and a good way to spend 2 hours and 17 minutes. If you're a Pirates fan, Depp fan, McShane fan, or Rush fan then I'd give this movie an A for must see. For the rest of you it's a solid B, see it if you get the chance, it's pretty decent.
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