Like many others, I opted to set sail once again with Captain Jack Sparrow last weekend for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, the fourth installment in the popular franchise. For me and this series of films, it's been a long, strange journey. When the first film came out, I initially scoffed at the idea of a pirate film. That is, until I actually saw it and was instantly won over by the film's fun nature and Johnny Depp's engaging performance as Captain Jack. With the second and third films, my anticipation led to fatigue as I saw Disney become greedy and over-ambitious as they tried to stretch a confounding narrative over the course of two films.
That leads us to this new film that I came into with some trepidation. On one hand, this was an opportunity, ala Ocean's 13, to be a make-good for the previous ill-received two films. However, this entry was being made without two of the previous films' primary leads. Neither Keira Knightly nor Orlando Bloom are seen or even mentioned in this outing. The end result here is a middling affair that isn't as bad as it could have been, nor does it offer much hope that this franchise has much left in the way of sealegs.
This time out, Capt. Jack is on a quest to find the Fountain of Youth. He's not alone though. The English, led by Barbosa (once again played by Geoffrey Rush) and the Spanish are searching for it. And so is Blackbeard (played by Ian McShane) and his daughter (Penelope Cruz), who also happens to be a former loved of Sparrow's. With so many parties involved its inevitable that there will be plenty of swashbuckling and swordfights between them, and sometime amongst them, along the way. If it all feels like familiar territory, you're not wrong. The film is set up in such a way that you sit patiently waiting until they all arrive at the fountain since you know that nothing of significance will occur until then. In fact the film does sag in the middle as it takes longer than you would like for them to actually arrive at the desired location.
While the action offers nothing new, I did appreciate the addition of Penelope Cruz. While she doesn't really have to try to exude sexiness, she still gives it her all here and the scenes that she shares with Depp offer up the film's few special moments. The same can't be said for the rest of the characters. I like Rush's Barbosa, but he doesn't bring anything new this time to his portrayal of Barbosa. As usual, his character continues to play all sides preventing anyone from knowing his true intentions. As for McShane, he's disappointing as Blackbeard. He never seems to find the right level of menace to make him an engaging villain. Worse of all though is a ham-handed subplot involving a hunky missionary and a mermaid. Their sole purpose in the film appears to help fill the void left by Bloom and Knightly's absence, but they add nothing to the movie. You could excise their entire subplot and have the film be just as entertaining.
Of course, all of these characters take a backseat throughout the film to Jack Sparrow, which probably isn't a good thing. With Depp's original performance of the character, the appeal came from the fact that the character was such a wildcard. Full of energy, with just the right amount of crazy. As the character became more of the central figure of this franchise, that mystique has been stripped. I'd imagine a similar problem would occur if they had made a Star Wars film that featured Han Solo, but didn't have Luke and Leia. By now, we know exactly how Capt. Jack will handle each situation. Depp still appears to be having fun playing the character, but I'm not sure the same can be said for the audience watching it.
Though the franchise may appear a bit weathered, a post-credits scene would lead you to believe that they're leaving the door open for the possibility of another entry. My suggestion would be to stop now before this franchise sinks to the depths of Davy Jones' locker. With the way things stand now, they don't go out on a high note, but they don't completely embarass themselves either. On Stranger Tides can be fun at times, but on the whole feels redundant and unnecessary. You'll have wished that the franchise had found the fountain of youth, because their routine is getting old fast. Grade: B-
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