Review of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017) by Randall W — 24 May 2017

The fifth outing in the Johnny Deep Pirates of the Caribbean franchise finds the world of the pirates still in a bit of chaos. Henry Turner wants to free his father, Will Turner, from the curse of the Flying Dutchman, especially since Will has started succumbing to the effects of the Dutchman in recent years. So, Henry starts learning about every bit of pirate and sea lore he can find and discovers the one thing that can help him: The Trident of Poseidon. The only problem is, no one knows where to look for it.

Enter Carina Smyth, a woman with a knowledge of astronomy who everyone considers a witch. She has a book that her father gave to her when she was a child and was left on the doorstep of an orphanage. She has been waiting for certain signs that the book talks about that will lead her to the Trident, which she wants to find as proof that she's smart and should be allowed to study at the university. But once she meets Henry, she decides to help him, as well.

And finally there is Jack Sparrow, who gets involved because he has a ship-unfortunately, it is not the Black Pearl, which is still locked in a bottle that he keeps on him at all times. Together, they set sail with Captain Salazar-who wants to kill Jack for cursing him-the British Royal Navy, and Captain Barbossa hot on his heels.

Everyone was in form once again for this adventure, though there were times you could tell everyone was getting a bit old. Depp may not have been on top of his game, but he was close enough that you could forgive any missteps he might have had. Benton Thwaites was good as Henry Turner, turning in a believable performance as a young man who wanted to do nothing but save his cursed father. But Kaya Scodelario was absolutely charming as Carina Smyth, a woman who was sick and tired of being convicted as a witch just because she had some brains. The good thing was, she played it just subtle enough that it wasn't annoying but still got the point across.

The movie looked great, too, with all the tell-tale signs of it being a Pirates movie. The colors and camerawork were as brilliant as always, and if you watched this along with the other four movies, you'd see nothing to differentiate it from the others.

And while the look of the movie was perfect, the music was a bit less so. It had all the rousing music of the others, but the orchestra just did not feel as full. The main Pirates theme was good but just seemed to be missing something that would give it the full, classical sound it needed to be perfect. Otherwise, though, the music was great and added to the movie where needed.

The movie had good flow, without any dull parts; the writers explained what needed to be explained and didn't leave the audience wondering at any points. Sets and costumes were beautiful as always, and Jack still had his classic look. The ships looked great, and it was really awesome to see the Black Pearl again.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales was a great addition to the franchise and did a good job in tying up all the loose threads from all the previous movies, giving the viewer a good, final chapter to the tale of Jack Sparrow, Will Turner, and Elizabeth Swan.

Now if they'll just keep it the final chapter.