If there was one thing most fans would expect from this fourth installment of the Pirates series, it was that Johnny Depp would once again provide a memorable/hilarious performance as the lovable Captain Jack Sparrow. Unfortunately, his Sparrow this time around was tired and haggard, much like the film itself. There were still bits and spurts of the usual Sparrow-esque hilarity but Depp looked weary and restrained, simply going through the motions in order to cash another large check from the Disney company. The rest of the cast failed to add any sort of noteworthy turn (the chemistry between Depp and Penelope Cruz was non-existent and Ian McShane's Blackbeard was never given the chance to do anything but stare menacingly at the other actors) and, quite frankly, the presences of Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley were sorely missed. The story was a convoluted mess that tried too hard to be as clever as any of the three previous films but even if it succeeded in grabbing the audience's attention, the characters were so lifeless and uninteresting no one in said audience would care about what was happening on the screen. Oddly enough a movie about pirates was missing naval battles, it was also lacking in time spent by the characters on actual boats. While there were a couple of solid action pieces sprinkled throughout the film (the most intense and exhilarating of which was the mermaid attack on the crew, the mermaids in the "Pirates" universe are a whole lot scarier than any other mermaid one has been exposed to), a naval battle or two would have added some more excitement, which this fourth installment seemed to be lacking.
If you are a completest and have already seen the first three Pirates films, chances are you will be able to find Pirates of the Caribbean 4: On Stranger Tides somewhat watchable but everyone else would be wise to stay away from this lackluster sequel.
Grade: C-
No comments:
Post a Comment