Of course you don’t have to have seen the first three Pirates films to follow this fourth instalment but firstly it helps, for fun comparisons if nothing else, and secondly who hasn’t seen the first three Pirates films? So the first one was the surprise hit, the second one suffered from sequel disappointment and the third one, well, what a mess of overcomplicated narrative strands that was. So my expectations for the fourth film, On Stranger Tides, were pretty low. Although I convinced myself that the absence of Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom meant that the film might actually be good and the presence of Penelope Cruz might inject it with some edge. I wasn’t completely wrong with these assumptions and the film is enjoyable for a large percentage of the time. However, it is too long, again, and the plot is stretched out and made more complicated than it actually is.
Jack is back, and so is Barbossa and they are searching for the fountain of youth along with the Spanish and the legendary Blackbeard. I love the supernatural elements included in the Pirates franchise but the zombifying of Blackbeard’s crew is only briefly mentioned, as is his supernatural sword and the voodoo doll, all feel like they are plot conveniences more than anything else. The fight scene between Jack and his impersonator feels straight out of the first film and that is the problem with this film, it feels like it has all been done before, which it has. The beginning scene in London was the most interesting and the mermaids are brilliantly creepy with their vampire teeth but these are the only highlights of the film. Jack Sparrow, Johnny Depp, is as charming as ever but it is an act that many will have tired of already, myself included. On Stranger Tides does not do much to bring the franchise back to life but it also doesn’t damage the sinking ship anymore. It is relatively entertaining and if you want more of the same formula you will not be disappointed.
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