Trekker 42 Posted May 20, 2011 Share Posted May 20, 2011 OK, yes I'll get it out now: no it wasn't "Black Pearl" good. Yes it was "Dead Man's Chest" good. All said though, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is, without a doubt, the LEAST weird movie in the Pirates saga. No undead here, no hearts in boxes, and absolutely no sign of cursed gold (Though there is a small joke with what may be a cursed map. It's never fully explored.) Now true Pirates fans, myself included, were probably wondering how the removal of Elizabeth and Will from the story affected it. And I can tell you right now that not having to listen to Kiera Knightley's voice for 2.5 hours in a movie about Pirates was a relief. Removing that couple from the series is the best move On Stranger Tides did without a doubt. Their story was well and truly over and I'm honestly glad that they allowed those characters to move right along. Instead we get what many of my Pirates fan friends want: Lots and Lots of Jack. This is Jack's story and the entire world intentionally revolves around him this time. However that does not mean that great supporting characters are shafted. Far from it as Hector Barbossa is truly given his due for the first time since Pirates 1. The character undergoes an arc quite a bit more interesting than Jack's and I'm very much excited to see the continuing adventures of Hector and, in fact, would love to see a Pirates movie revolve around him considering his position at the end of the film. Now let's talk threats. As many know, a movie is only as good as what the characters face. And this time there are three major threats: Blackbeard, the Spaniards, and, in one horrifying scene, the scariest things in the Pirates world. First, Blackbeard. Blackbeard is easily the best villain Pirates has had since Barbossa led his motley mutineers. Played here by Ian McShane, the infamous pirate is in search of the Fountain of Youth to avoid death by a one legged man. Blackbeard is possibly the scariest villain Pirates has yet given us. Davy Jones's octopus beard is nothing compared to the man who controls his ship with his sword. When Blackbeard makes his grand entrance and utterly destroys an entire crew in no time at all, you know that you're in for a heck of a journey with this man. Plus what the HELL kind of a pirate ship has FLAMETHROWERS!?!?!? Yeah that's how awesome he is. The Spaniards are... a joke honestly. They're there just to have a bit of a cool scene at the end with the Fountain and to continue the theme of all the wonder leaving the world. They're not interesting, they're not fun, and they're easily skipped over. Moving along. Now when I said the most terrifying things to hit the Pirates franchise were in this movie, it's because I was not fully prepared for what I was about to see. The Mermaids were an absolute joyous terror to behold. Yes you read that right. The mermaids are terrifying. As strange as it seems that I would say that, you just have to watch the movie and see if you can understand the reasons I say it... The beauty combined with sheer horror of these creatures is something that clinched the movie for me. The mermaids were a showstopper and a wonderful moment in this movie and it's worth the price of admission to check out the way they deal with them. The usual insanity applies with Depp. No surprises here. The film's plot is actually the tightest and easiest to comprehend since Pirates 1. You do not need a flowchart to keep track of all the lies in this one, thank God. The characters continue to have their own little agendas, but they all fit together for the common goal unlike Pirates 3 where each fit towards a different goal. Here all are after the Fountain but for many different reasons. It's a journey with many paths and all converge in possibly the best ending a Pirates film has had. Now you may have noticed that there seemed to be something missing in the trailers. That would be the Pearl. There's good reason for that and the surprising fate of the Pearl, and Jack the Monkey with it, is a moment that was shocking to myself and probably most in the theater from what I could tell. Stranger tides indeed... Well the final score time. Should you see it? Well if you like Pirates yes. If you don't like Pirates because Orlando Bloom or Knightley pissed you off, yes. If Pirates hasn't been your thing... maybe. If someone else is paying, go. It's not the Pirates fare Verbinski creates and might change your mind about the series. But to finalize the score... 7/10. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lurch77 Posted May 21, 2011 Share Posted May 21, 2011 Do stay around till very end of credits, there is a short little clip. Aye, tis be no Pirates 1 but be ye decent yarn. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trekker 42 Posted May 21, 2011 Author Share Posted May 21, 2011 Yaknow, this just hit me... It reminded me a LOT of what would happen if Jack Sparrow wound up in an Indiana Jones movie. Weird... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gambitron Posted May 23, 2011 Share Posted May 23, 2011 I really liked it. Probably my second favorite of the four. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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