Who says movies are played out by the time part four in a series rolls around? While this may be true for some movies– Indiana Jones maybe?– I can point to James Bond and Harry Potter as movie characters that have endured well beyond the trilogy curse. Despite what most critics would have you believe, I think its safe to put Jack Sparrow on that list as well. Oh excuse me– Captain. Captain Jack Sparrow. Savy?
Pirates of the Caribbean on Stranger Tides, the fourth installment in the series based on the wildly popular ride at Disney Theme parks may not have the freshness of the original but it still manages to entertain. The movie picks up some time after the events of PoTC3 At World’s End. Our favorite pirate, Cpt. Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) is attempting to rescue his good friend Gibbs (Kevin McNally) from a hanging and ends up captured himself.
Everyone is looking for the Fountain of Youth, including the Spanish, the English and the most feared pirate in the world- Blackbeard, who is played by Ian McShane. Sparrow finds himself thrust into service aboard Blackbeard’s ship, courtesy of a former lover, Angelica (Penelope Cruz), who just happens to be Blackbeard’s daughter. For the first time in the series Captain Jack actually finds himself doing things without his own agenda.
Barbossa returns to action as well, now peg legged and working for the British Navy as a privateer with a hell of a grudge against Blackbeard. Keith Richards also cameos as Sparrows estranged father, Captain Teague. Otherwise, the cast is pretty much fresh. No Will Turner and Elizabeth Swan love story, no Black Pearl crew– in fact, no Black Pearl at all. You’ll have to watch to find out why.
After Dead Man’s Chest and At World’s End, fans begged for a return to the “thrill of adventure” fun of the first movie and director Rob Marshall delivers. Gone is most of the obvious CGi characters and back drops and in its place we get zombies (boring) and mermaids (wicked cool). There is a rather forgettable relationship between a captured mermaid and one of Blackbeard’s prisoners, a clergy man who falls for the beautiful mermaid. They’re basically the Will and Elizabeth here except far less interesting.
The movie is based– or should I say “suggested” by a book called On Stranger Tides and the only real downfall of the movie is it lacks the awe sequences like the Ghost Pirates of the first, the Krakken sequence of the second or the Maelstrom of the third. But people go to see these movies to see Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow and he is as good as always here. There is a bit more depth to him here, as you get the feeling he may be able to actually have feelings– but when it comes down to it he is and always will be Captain Jack Sparrow. If you’re a fan of the movies, you will enjoy this ride as well. It’s better than the 2 and 3 but falls short of the fun of the first movie.
The movie is fun sets up a fifth adventure nicely. Be sure to stay tuned for an after credits scene, if you’re into that sort of thing.