Viewed twice in theaters, May/June 2011
Anyone who knows me at all, knows that I absolutely love Pirates of the Caribbean. Sure, it's not without its problems (voodoo, oversexualization, romanticizing pirates, violence, questionable morals, pagan gods, etc.). If one is willing to overlook its flaws, Pirates has always represented pure and unadulterated adventure, a romp into the swashbuckling imagination that everyone possesses (whether you try to hide it or not!). Captain Jack Sparrow (played by the flamboyant and always-interesting Johnny Depp, in the role he was born for) is not exactly a laudable hero--he's actually more of an anti-hero. But we can all admit that we like the fun-loving, free-spirited nature of the Pirates franchise.
That having been said, I would rate Pirates 4 as my second-favorite film in the franchise. Nothing will ever, ever even come close to recapturing the carefree spirit of The Curse of the Black Pearl (the first Pirates). And I would rather just pretend that Dead Man's Chest and At World's End don't even exist--they're increasingly uncomfortable and confusing, rife with unnecessary character drama and annoying plot holes and the gosh-awfully obnoxious Calypso. The second and third Pirates films, while establishing Pirates as a viable action-adventure franchise, miserably failed to reproduce the fun-loving adventure of the first film or the theme park ride.
On Stranger Tides, while not the deepest or most philosophical film, has definitely recaptured alot of the original fun and mischief of Curse of the Black Pearl. Yes, they are searching for the Fountain of Youth (a rather goofy goal that is actually relatively justified in the course of the film). Yes, Pintel and Ragetti (the two ragtag comedic reliefs) are not in this film. Neither are Will and Elizabeth Turner (and, as much as I love them, to be honest I didn't miss them one tiny bit). Yes, the Black Pearl is only mentioned a few times in passing. And yes, Barbossa and Jack are at it again. But it's good fun again, and for that, the rollicking film is much more enjoyable than its two disappointing predecessors.
Jack is...well, he's Jack again. Suffice it to say, we get to learn a little bit more of his unrealistically colorful past, and it's rather fun. As always, he is faced with a life-or-death choice between someone's life and his own selfish desires. And as always, we wind up loving him even more for it, while at the same time we're wondering how we could love someone who is such a rascally scallywag of a criminal.
Penelope Cruz plays Jack's old love interest--there are a few unnecessary double-entendre lines of dialogue between Angelica and Jack. The new baddie (Blackbeard, played by delightfully-easy-to-hate Ian McShane) is quite formidable--much more so than the depressing, droopy Davy Jones of At World's End. Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) is delightful as always, and the rivalry between he and Jack turns into a playful one of mutual grudging respect. The moment where the two of them are forced to band together against Blackbeard is one of the more engaging scenes in the film.
The violence level of this film stands up to the precedent set by the other three films. It's extremely violent without being too bloody. Characters are dispatched left and right without a second glance. There are two fight-to-the-death scenes that are particularly violent: One is an epic battle between the pirates and some creepily-weird mermaids (I will never, ever see Peter Pan the same way again). Characters are jerked underwater, stabbed with their own swords, even snapped in half. It's pretty gruesome, but again, no blood. The other particularly violent scene is the final battle scene, where pirates, British sailors, and Spanish infantrymen are all killed without remorse.
**SPOILER ALERT!** Blackbeard's death is pretty disgusting, bringing back images of Indiana Jones villains. In a space of about ten seconds, Blackbeard's body is stripped of all of his skin, then his muscle, leaving him a scary-looking skeleton who then crumples into a pile of gross-looking bones.
On the moral-lessons part of things, On Stranger Tides actually has a good bit to offer. It talks about fidelity (Jack, although a womanizing scoundrel, is ever-loyal to Angelica); fatherhood and the impact it has on daughters; the idea that all of God's creatures are created equal and should be treated with respect (there is a character who is apparently a traveling preacher--he brings in some very interesting and not-entirely-incorrect ideas about God and souls); true value; forgiveness, salvation, and redemption; and selfless sacrifice (placing others above your own interests). Careful, though--there are also some mixed-messages here. Voodoo is still used (Blackbeard's men are mindless, soulless zombies; Blackbeard creates a little-used voodoo doll of Jack); Jack twists the idea of salvation into a "A guy can be saved by doing a good deed" mantra (which we all know doesn't work); women still wear clothing that shows off ample cleavage; Barbossa makes some seriously questionable calls of morality; Jack uses manipulation, impersonation, and deception to get his way in a British courtroom; the mermaids are only-barely covered, and it's pretty obvious that they don't wear anything even remotely resembling clothing.
This film is definitely flawed and misses the mark on many things--but it is absolutely fun and a jolly-good voyage through a new adventure with our old friend Captain Jack Sparrow.
5 out of 6 stars
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