MovieLPirates of the Caribbean

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Review: For the Pirateers Only

Dated : May 20, 2011
Written by: Roy Daniel D'Silva in Friday Fury, Hollywood Movie Reviews, Movies , 1,135 views , 6 Comments

Rating:  

Genre: Historical/Adventure
Running time: 137 minutes
Release date: May 19, 2011

Cast	Johnny Depp, Penélope Cruz, Ian McShane, Geoffrey Rush
Directed by	Rob Marshall
Produced by	Jerry Bruckheimer
Screenplay by	Terry Rossio, Ted Elliott
Music by	Hans Zimmer
Cinematography	Dariusz Wolski
Editing by	Michael Kahn
Studio	Walt Disney Pictures
Distributed by	Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures

 

Quick Take:

A very interesting addition to the franchise. Not for the young ones though, or those who do not have any exposure to the previous Pirates series.
It is raining sequels for us, and this year and at least the next three will see movies coming our way that would be spin offs from different franchises. This week sees the fourth installment of Pirates of a Caribbean, a Disney franchise that does not seem in the mood of dying out at all. Here is a detailed review of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides.

Plot Review:

An interesting plot, but a bit complicated.
Like all previous Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides takes us immediately to the action, this time the action is set in England, where Jack Sparrow is being tried for… well, being Jack Sparrow. However, Jack Sparrow is one step ahead of the authorities, and not only does he escape the gallows, but also helps his first mate, Gibbs escape the tighter end of the rope, only to meet Royalty, and his old friend, Barbossa.

Jack Sparrow and crew is then caught between the English and the Spanish, and their fight for the Fountain of Youth, a mystical place that has the powers to give life forever, and to put a person out of their misery – but only if they have a mermaid’s tear.
But life is not easy for Jack Sparrow, the pirate extraordinaire. While Jack Sparrow has the map to the Fountain of Youth, there are many foibles that he committed in his youth, that come back to haunt him in this adventure.

Pirates of the Caribbean has a seemingly more mature plot than the previous four movies, and it seems to go the Harry Potter way, with this time mermaids, ghouls and other unholy creatures around in better quantities.  The plot may be a bit confusing for the younger crowd, but for the Pirates of the Caribbean veterans, it is something that they are accustomed to.  Anyway, which adventure movie does not have a jagged alliance?

Thanks to the basic concept of the movie,  – pirates – there is not a moment where the audience feels bored or gets disenchanted by the onscreen travails. This time there is something for everyone. There’s a romantic angle, make that two – there’s a family story arc, there’s also some male bonding between Gibbs and Jack Sparrow, which makes up for the absence of the previous two characters.

Screenplay Review:

Crisp screenplay. Good support to the plot.
The screenplay is ably supported by a ‘what’s gonna happen now’ plot, and the direction of the horror themed sequences is particularly good. The adrenaline rush is intact every time Jack Sparrow is escaping with his derring do and by the skin of his teeth, the mermaid attack sequence could be better choreographed, but one cannot complain. Also, who knew that mermaids had Spider Manisqh webbings to target men who attack them? The mermaids look ethereal enough, and all in all it is a good story arc to add, done out well.

Music Review:

Music is by Hans Zimmer. Enough said.
The Pirates of the Caribbean has some of the best background score, and it goes a few notches higher this time. The music gives perfect company to the adrenaline rushing happenings onscreen, and they have used the original soundtrack of the franchise nicely, which is now actually epic.   And then, you cannot think of Hans Zimmer coming with anything less than his A Game, do you?

Performances Review:

Good performances all over.
With three movies behind the franchise, there is little that the characters can improvise on in their portrayals, but the intensity and comedy that Johnny Depp brings to the Jack Sparrow character, and therefore the whole franchise is intriguing. It is interesting how Johnny Depp becomes the star of every scene of the movie, whether he is in that scene or not. Anything that happens in the movie is then calculated through Jack Sparrow’s eyes. With every sequence done in the movie, one wonders what jack Sparrow would do in this situation, how would he get out of that situation, and how would he handle this particular disorder? Jack Sparrow is the heart of the franchise and everybody knows it.
Penelope Cruz has fun with her supporting role in this one, and so does Geoffrey Rush as Barbossa. The new entrant, Ian McShane makes a stunning debut as Bluebeard, the legendary pirate and now Jack Sparrow’s arch enemy.

Verdict:

Watch this one if you are a Jack Sparrow fan, or if you have the patience to watch all the other Pirates movies before this.

Rating: +1 (from 1 vote)

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