Review of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011) by Haydenw — 21 May 2011

'Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides' - I've been following the progress of this movie ever since it reported to be in production. I would search for related news articles almost weekly, and each time anything was announced, I was excited about whatever news I'd heard. So you can imagine my excitement during the week leading up to the release of this movie. My expectations were insanely high, and I was confident that a new director and overhauled cast would provide the breath of fresh air or 'shot in the arm' that the franchise was in need of after the overblown, near-incomprehensible 'At World's End'.

However, I must say that my hopes were somewhat lowered when I started reading some of the more negative reviews, and the dismal score that the film held on RottenTomatoes didn't do much to help this. Still, I remained positive and excited for this new installment into this series which I've loved from the very beginning. I was somewhat apprehensive, though; I thought that I was going to have to convince myself that I was enjoying the film - this was my fear. But it wasn't long into the film that this notion completely left my mind. The atmosphere and fun of the movie had taken over. The fast-paced opening to the film completely distracted me from all else; it was the same 'Pirates' action and excitement that drew me into the first two films (and the third, to a degree).

But although the action was exciting and well-choreographed, it wasn't so much the action sequences that were the highlight of the film; but the humor. This film had some of the best witty banter & one-liners in the whole 'Pirates' series. And while Terry Rossio & Ted Elliott can be thanked for this, it was really the actors and their chemistry between them that brought the script alive. Depp was at his best, delivering both the dialogue as well as the physical persona of Jack Sparrow with the professional brilliance that we've come to expect from the man. Cruz played off of Depp perfectly, and vice-versa, as the characters of Jack and Angelica clashed in the most delightful way. McShane was perfect in his role of playing the genuinely evil villain of Blackbeard, whilst Rush was once again terrific in his role as the whimsical villain.