‘Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides’ – 2.5 out of 5 stars
"Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" was so disappointing it managed to turn the tides of even the most devoted "Pirates" fans into harsh critics.
With director Rob Marshall replacing Gore Verbinski and actors Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley (who play Will Turner and Elizabeth Swan) jumping ship, the fourth Pirates installment lacks the familiarity expected from a sequel. But I can’t really blame them for not returning — rats abandon a sinking ship, right?
The latest film follows Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) and Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) as they search for the fabled fountain of youth. While Depp’s portrayal of Jack Sparrow is flawless as always, he is upstaged by Oscar-winning Penelope Cruz in her role as Blackbeard’s daughter and Jack’s love interest, Angelica. Angelica matches Jack wit for wit and even holds her own in a sword fight with him. The love-hate chemistry between her and Jack might be the only thing that makes this film worth watching, however.
The quest for the fountain gets tiring fast, especially without Orlando Bloom to stare at the entire time. The film just doesn’t have the same charm and sense of adventure as the other three.
The only bad thing about this film ending? The after-credits teaser that hints at the possibility of yet another washed-up "Pirates" sequel. If you don’t want to be disappointed, save your doubloons and see something else this weekend. It’s time this franchise was buried at sea for good. Savvy?
Comments (14)
7:14 a.m., May 30, 2011
Jim Peters said:
Bit harsh there I think. I found it to be a great return to form, all the bloated convoluted nonsense of the other two sequels is gone, and so is the ridiculously overblown CGI action sequences and the movie is stripped back to a straightforward chase movie with a fantastic cast, fun characters, lots of swashbuckling and a lot of funny lines. Summer matinee fun at its best.
9:21 a.m., May 30, 2011
Nathan Parish said:
I actually really enjoyed the movie, it wasn't as grand or action packed as the first trilogy, but I personally would love to see it as a perfect stepping stone to cross into another film, i would love to see where the next pirates film goes, for me Pirates 4 is the second origin story for the franchise, pirates will be back and I will watch it.
11:11 a.m., May 30, 2011
R.E. said:
This is why I really hate film critics. You guys wouldn't know a good movie if it hit you in the face. Don't lie, the fan reaction has been massivley positive - the people that WANT to see the movie, not the ones that are paid to sit through it. Fact of the matter is, Pirates 4 was a brave step in a new direction for the franchise, and while perhaps it got off to a shaky start, it soon came into it's own, and the ending, especially how it set up the characters for another film were the best few minutes in all of the films so far. Why are you film critics so unfairly harsh? You tarnish the reputation of some truly fantastic stories, just for a paycheck. While the critical response of the movie has been vastly negative, and all run around claiming "Oooohh, it's a disaster, no one liked it", if you took your heads out of the clouds for even a few minutes, you would see that normal movie goers loved this movie, and are clamouring for more. It's time you film critics were buried at sea for good. Savvy?
4:49 p.m., May 30, 2011
Big Sexy said:
u r freakin retarded it wuznt as good as the other three but i thought it wuznt bad at all not every sequel can carry the same characters over and over again did they do that in star wars hell no and look how good that lol stop bein a dooshbag and geta life 4 out of 5 for me
7:34 p.m., May 30, 2011
Pirates loyal said:
Oh go fuck yourself u cynical abrasive useless asshole get a life and stop shitting on one of the only good decent movie series around these days, die and rot in hell
11:54 p.m., May 30, 2011
Josh said:
eff you hater critic man. you probably give high school musical movies a better review ya dumb ass
4:46 p.m., May 31, 2011
cindy said:
I loved the movie, and all of the other ones also. It didnt have sex or vulgar language. Good family movie, and no one can play jack sparrow like johnny depp. So go find another movie you can trash. We liked this one.
8:38 p.m., May 31, 2011
Dead Editor said:
"The quest for the fountain gets tiring fast, especially without Orlando Bloom to stare at the entire time." Sounds like you were extremely attentive during the first three movies to make an accurate judgement on this one... I'm not going to waste my time picking apart the rest of your useless review, but judging by the comments, the statement "'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides" was so disappointing it managed to turn the tides of even the most devoted "Pirates" fans into harsh critics" doesn't seem to have much validity.
2:29 a.m., June 1, 2011
Blah said:
Are you implying that the second and third movies had charm? I wonder if we watched the same movies.
7:13 a.m., June 1, 2011
Tom said:
Obviously judging by all these comments the fans loved the movie, yes it may not have been better than the first and was probably on par with the 2nd, however this film was a brave move by the cast and director, theyve elected to take the franchise back in the right direction, theyve righted the wrongs of the third, and sure this one had flaws but at least it was a movie in itself and has now set the franchise back on the right direction, i cant wait to see what the 5th will be like :) BTW we hate u :)
1:32 p.m., June 3, 2011
Johnny Depp said:
This is a very fair and even review. To be honest this wasn't one of by best performances and I picked up the film more for the money rather than the content. Everyone please show Angie some kindness because I'm Johnny Depp and I agree with this review.
2:26 p.m., June 6, 2011
Diego said:
While I have seen none of the Pirates movies, I think the comments by a few vulgar, lunkhead, gramatically challenged fans would lead me to believe the reviewer was closer to the truth. Anyone incapable of expressing themselves without invective and cursing is surely a poor judge of any film. It's a movie review. One person's opinion. Get over it! Maybe when you enter adullthood you'll have something valuable to contribute to this site.
1:54 a.m., May 30, 2011
Luis said:
Good!But you had better to show some pictures of the movie and characters with this post.Thank you anyway.