Directed by Rob Marshall. Starring Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Kevin R. McNally, Penelope Cruz, and Ian McShane.
The release of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides, the fourth Pirates film, was a momentous occasion for me. In many ways, my love of these movies made me aspire to work in Hollywood and want to go to film school. Additionally, I can quote the first Pirates very nearly in its entirety, and I often rate Curse of the Black Pearl as my absolute favorite movie ever; Johnny Depp is my favorite actor; Hans Zimmer is my favorite composer... You get the idea. So, as it's been four years since At World's End, suffice it to say, I was extremely excited to see this movie.
While many will agree that the first Pirates film was genius, still more will argue that the overblown, out-of-control ambition that governed the second and third movies spoiled them. Too many mythologies, plot lines, characters, effects, and running times that were punishing (138 minutes / 150 minutes respectively), these sequels *tried to do too much.* Now, I would watch Johnny Depp in character as Captain Jack read the phone book for two hours and call it great fun, so perhaps I am biased, but I still enjoyed those films. That's not to say I don't agree that they went a bit overboard (so to speak).... This past week, I re-watched all three films to "prepare" for the fourth, and I definitely see where they lost many fans. This is all important to keep in mind going to On Stranger Tides. Even Johnny Depp was aware of it when making Dead Man's Chest and At World's End, as he told Entertainment Weekly in his recent cover story.
I've long believed that a film is what you make of it. You can control your enjoyment by crafting your expectations. If you expect Michael Bay to make an Oscar-worthy Transformers film, well, there's no two ways about it... you're going to be disappointed. Same if you expect Terrence Malick to make a fun, light, summer Blockbuster. That said, it's a well known fact that sequels are rarely "as good as" or "better" than their parent films. And, my question is 'why should they be?' Yes, in an ideal world, it'd be great if a creative team could aspire to the same levels they reached before, but it's just not that likely in a business like the Hollywood dream factory.
If you want a film that is as good as Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl, go watch Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl. Films like that are good because they are new, they tried something risky (hello Johnny Depp's portrayal of Keith Richards-inspired Jack Sparrow), they are inventive and creative, unaware of (and thus free from worries about) how they will be received, etc. Sequels aren't and simply cannot live up to those qualities. So, please, if you go watch On Stranger Tides, don't expect Curse of the Black Pearl... or you will probably be disappointed. If you go in expecting to spend two hours with the FABULOUS Jack Sparrow on another one of his crazy adventures, you'll enjoy it eversomuch more.
I really liked On Stranger Tides. I thought it was very scaled down compared to the last film -- not just because of the lack of SO SO many characters and storylines, not just because they filmed in Hawaii instead of the Caribbean... but because this story moves faster, has fewer twists and turns, and doesn't try to do as much. This is a character driven film, driven by Jack and the audience's changing understanding of who he is. Yes, he's a rum-soaked, wobbly-legged pirate... but as we see, he might just have a heart as well. And so, Penelope Cruz is a great addition to the plot as Angelica, daughter of the fearsome pirate Blackbeard, and once-lover of dear ol' Jack. (Fun fact: ever notice that little strip of lace dangling from Johnny's left wrist as part of his Captain Jack costume? He added it in when they were filming the second film, imagining it as a trinket given to him by a lover in the past. Well...) Angelica is in many ways a female version of Jack, which is a fabulous dynamic and one that makes the film feel fresh.
Furthermore, Geoffrey Rush makes a welcome return to this film -- ever since his line that "The code's more guidelines than actual rules," I've had a special place in my heart for Barbossa. The dynamic between Jack Sparrow and Hector Barbossa continues to evolve, and is interesting and fun, one of my favorite parts of the film. The plot is about the race to the Fountain of Youth -- something that was brought up at the end of the last film. Barbossa, the Spanish, and Blackbeard (also a new character) are racing to be the first to get there, and Jack gets caught up in the race. In order to drink from its waters and avoid mortality, you must have a mermaid... which brings in a neat sideplot featuring these newcomers, who certainly may appear in future films. (Yes, the screenplay for the fifth Pirates was turned in recently).
Overall, with all these ingredients in place, director Rob Marshall (Gore Verbinski didn't return for this one) steers the film through new locales -- London, for example -- to familiar lush islands, off cliffs and through caves to the Fountain. I thought there were some great action sequences, plenty of laugh-out-loud lines and moments, and some great development of relationships. In short, everything that I love about a Pirates film was present. My only bone to pick with this film was that, perhaps, the stakes weren't high enough and that the finale wasn't grand enough (yes, okay, grand words after the last two films, but perhaps they skewed my expectations). The action is pretty front-loaded -- with an exciting escape sequence within the first half hour -- that it left me wanting a bit more by the end. Still, given what I've said already about problems with the last two, perhaps it's better they steered clear of anything too crazy.
Personally, I can't wait to see On Stranger Tides at least once more in theaters, and I recommend you see it if you've ever enjoyed Captain Jack Sparrow. This film will entertain you for a couple of hours, and whisk you away on the high seas for another supernatural and grand adventure. It's fun, funny, and made for the fans... proof that this franchise will likely carry on for a while longer. And, well, that's fine by me... I'm not ready to see Jack hang up his hat just yet.
No comments:
Post a Comment