Review: Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Since Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was released in 2003, I have been an enormous fan of the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. No other film series in the last decade has captured my imagination the way Pirates did with its astounding special effects and swashbuckling adventure.
But it never would have been a success without Johnny Depp's inspired performance as Captain Jack Sparrow. Depp practically invented his own pirate language as Sparrow, and indeed, Jack Sparrow costumes dominated Halloween parties that year (and the next). While the first three installments encapsulated the tale of William Turner and Elizabeth Swann, they were also undeniably the adventures of Jack Sparrow on his quest for fortune, reknown and life eternal.
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End not only concluded the Elizabeth-William arc, it neatly set up a new adventure with the map to the Fountain of Youth. Returning for a fourth movie, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, Depp reunites with Geoffrey Rush's Barbossa and joins Ian McShane's dread pirate Blackbeard as well as Penélope Cruz.
As the ultimate fan of the Pirates series, I was anxious that Gore Verbinski would not be returning to direct (probably too busy working on that masterpiece Rango, see my review here), but Rob Marshall (Chicago, Memoirs of a Geisha) is no slouch. I needn't have feared as On Stranger Tides captured the magic and even provided a few pleasant surprises. The decision to film in 3D was my main disagreement. 3D would have better served the epic scope of At World's End, but was entirely unnecessary here.
On Stranger Tides is ostensibly designed as the first of a new trilogy, and is scaled back greatly in scope. While the previous Pirates outings were heavy with sea travel and battles, even going all the way to the end of the world and back, the events in On Stranger Tides take place primarily on land, reflecting a smaller budget. In fact, the action moves smoothly between six locations by my count, and I don't recall there being any battles at sea. However, the film tells a good story, and the land-bound action is entertaining.
Though Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom don't return for this installment, a number of series regulars are back. First among them, Kevin McNally as Gibbs and also Greg Ellis (Groves), Damian O'Hare (Gillette), and Keith Richards cameos again as Sparrow's father. Richard Griffiths and Judi Dench also have hilarious cameos. It was sad to note missing cast members Lee Arenberg, Mackenzie Crook, David Bailie, Martin Klebba, Jack Davenport, Giles New, Angus Barnett and of course Jonathan Pryce. What isn't missing is the Pirates atmosphere, including familar cues in the score, and of course the humor. The subtle nods to fans were exciting to catch. For instance, in one scene, Jack has to "improvise" and performs the exact moves he used on the docks to escape all the way back at the beginning of Curse of the Black Pearl. Little Jack also puts in an appearance, in case you were wondering.
On Stranger Tides was unable to match the dynamic of the Sparrow-Swann-Turner triangle with Cruz and McShane, so Curse of the Black Pearl remains my favorite of the series. But as a mid-series reboot with new characters and a new director, it was far better than I had hoped to expect and easily rates as my #2 favorite.