Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Review

Yo ho, Yo ho! 

Today is the U.S. Release date of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides!

My good friend Melissa Branin Wheeler was kind enough to attend the advance screening of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides for me. Melissa and her husband Kyle, went in my place because sadly I live a few hours away from any metropolitan city. Melissa's review of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is posted below...enjoy!

Four years ago, when the credits rolled on Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, I was happy to be done with the whole slimy, swashbuckling mess.  An avid fan of the first installment, Curse of the Black Pearl, I followed director Gore Verbinski as he dragged the beloved Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) down a rabbit hole of unrepentant absurdity that included painfully head-spinning special effects, stomach churning characters (squid-faced Davey Jones (Bill Nighy) and his encrusted crew), and unrestrained narcissism.  As far as I was concerned, At World’s End tightened the noose on my dying interest, and seemed to flush the entire franchise down Calypso’s swirling toilet.

            You can imagine my skepticism with the release of the fourth movie, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.  Approaching the film, there were a few major changes that served as a lighthouse of hope for me: new director Rob Marshall (Chicago, Memoirs of a Geisha, Nine), Kierra Knightly and Orlando Bloom’s names missing from the credits, and the addition of Penelope Cruz as leading lady.

            The story begins in London, where Jack Sparrow’s first mate Gibbs (Kevin McNally), who proves himself through the series as the only pirate with a shred of loyalty, is being tried for piracy while Jack attempts to spring him and barter with the King for a new ship.  We soon find out that Captain Barbossa (the indispensable Geoffrey Rush) is in cahoots with the British King to find the Fountain of Youth, after losing the Black Pearl to the terrorizing and deranged Blackbeard (Ian McShane).  Jackpossesses the map that leads to the Fountain, and the chase begins.

            In this film, there is plenty of what we’ve come to expect from the series: opulent scenery and costumes, twisting plot lines chalk-full of back-stabbing, innuendo,  now-classic-Jack-Sparrow comedic quips, fun fantasy, and imaginative scenes of mayhem.  Captain, er, Director Rob Marshal was wise to identify the treachery in his ranks, and force the mistakes of the last two films to walk the plank (i.e, frenzied and often hallucinatory special effects that were nauseatingly over-the-top, the tired and obnoxious characters Elizabeth Swan (Kierra Knightly) and Will Turner (Orlando Bloom), excessive slime, giant women who turn into crabs, etc, etc).  Marshall’s new crew spells success: Penelope Cruz is perfect as a piratess, Ian McShane’s Blackbeard makes Davey Jones look like the spineless squid that he is, and the magic in this world is tastefully restrained, transforming it from disenchanting to mesmerizing.  Like the first film, and in contrast to the second and third, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tidesis uncluttered, refreshingly straightforward, and reassuringly familiar—a fun, funny, salty ride with our old pal Jack Sparrow, whom I haven’t liked this much in 8 years.

Thanks Mel!