Escape to the Movies: Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

[ZeoAssassin]

just got back from seeing it...i disagree Bob, your a bit harsh on whats really an alright movie...

i mean it has its problems of course but it was still fun. maybe this is because i HATED the fact that all the supernatural stuff was shoved right in my face during the 2nd and 3rd movies. i mean lets face it Davy Jones doesn't exactly look like a subtle character with his fish crew and the Kraken CGI looked like shit to me anyway.

this is why i loved the first one so much, the curse was subtle and took its time before revealing everyone as cursed skeletons.

i think that's why i liked stranger tides, everything was somewhat reasonable compared to the over-the-top-ness of the 2nd and 3rd. mermaids were fine and the fountain didn't have any BS magic CGI sparkles coming out to indicate it working.

Spoiler

that said the the priest/mermaid romance was completely pointless and the Spanish didn't really do jack except show-up seem to ***** about God not wanting magic fountains and arbitrarily creating a dire situation for the climax, but hey i enjoyed what it was.

PS: oh and for those who saw it (don't worry not a spoiler) the scene that made me WTF, Jack runs down the stairs in an effort to escape, runs past a guard knocking down his hat and running off screen. The guard proceeds to realize who he was and calls for help, than he proceeds to PUT HIS GUN AND SWORD DOWN ON THE FREAKING TABLE before running after Jack...who was hiding under the table and steals the weapons from the dumb-ass guard...wtf was that? could they not have a scene where Jack just knocks him out and steals his shit instead of the worlds most retarded royal guard? i mean come on!

 

[Ham Blitz]

I'm pretty sure this has already been said, but the ship has already set sail for the next movie. They were already working on the 5th before this one came out. I am still going to watch this to see if it I even remotely enjoy it, but now I am worried about watching it.

 

[pearcinator]

I disagree with you on this one Bob. Orlando and Keira were the worst characters from the original 3 and I am glad they got rid of them. I love, LOVE the first 2 pirates movies but the 3rd one was a convoluted mess. Thankfully, this new one brought the series back to its roots and while I agree that Blackbeard's powers are underused they are still pretty cool.

I can see the difference in the action scenes, they seem too over-choreographed (making Jack Sparrow more like a dancer who plans moves steps in advance than a guy who improvises on the spot).

However, I thought the movie was fun and I HOPE they make a new one

Spoiler

Hopefully make Barbossa a bad dude again since that he is now the new Blackbeard and has his sword, and therefore his powers.

If they bring Gore Verbinski back to direct a new one then I will be happy. Pirates are awesome, so much better than goddam Ninjas!

 

[PortalThinker113]

*shrugs* You're entitled to your opinion, Bob, but I couldn't disagree with you more. I just got back from seeing this, and although it doesn't hold a candle to the first Pirates, it absolutely blows 3 out of the water and is noticeably better than 2. I was greatly looking forward to a Will and Elizabeth-less Pirates, as I felt as though their characters and mess of plot threads contributed greatly to the top-heavy mess that was At World's End. The fight scenes were noticeably different than the other 3 movies, but they were still well done in their own, new way, and the hand of Rob Marshall was evident in making each one unique and interesting. I'm still not tired of Jack Sparrow, and putting his character at the center of things reaffirmed my faith that Captain Jack Sparrow is one of the few truly iconic movie characters of the 2000s/2010s. I'm a huge Geoffrey Rush fan, as well, and Barbossa was quite interesting to watch-

Spoiler

it was fascinating to see Barbossa noticeably constrained by the neccessary shackles of the involvement with the British Crown at the start, then slowly shed these bonds throughout the course of the movie and make his own path. He will kick some ass with the damn Queen Anne's Revenge!

As far as flaws go, I do totally agree that the romance between the missionary and the mermaid was completely superfluous and stupid- it was the only point where I missed Will and Elizabeth, as it seemed like the director was trying too hard to fill their void when there really was no need to do so. Blackbeard was pretty disappointing as a villain as well- Look, you already did a zombie crew, and they were much cooler the first time you did it.

Despite the flaws, however, it was well-written, charming, and overall, really, really, fun. It's not a masterpiece, it isn't going to win any awards, and it won't be as iconic as the first one, but it's still worth a look- a great summer movie if there ever was one.

 

[Extragorey]

Yeah, it'll probably not be as good as the first 3.
But I doubt it'll suck that much.
And to be honest, you can't fairly review a Pirates movie without taking into account Hans Zimmer's soundtrack.
Thus for this one I accuse Bob of bias until I watch it myself.
I mean, I have seen some pretty decent reviews of this movie.

EDIT: Also Bob, it strikes me that you misunderstood the premise of the original movie. It wasn't just about Will and Elizabeth with heaps of supporting roles at all!
It was a fun look and the morals and choices of industrial-age pirates emphasized by the presence of supernatural events and... Oh, forget it. It's Pirates of the Caribbean. It exists because it can.

 

[iDoom46]

I figured as much, pretty much since the moment the movie was first announced.

This is the last straw, Mr. Depp. I'm through with you playing in bad movies.

From now on, until you get your act back together, I shall call you Johnny Derp.

"This movie sucked."

It's the 4th one. No film series (EVER) has lasting appeal after a 4th one came out.
Ever.

Spoiler: Sure about that?

Raise your hand if you liked Harry Potter 4 more than the first film.

*looks for raised hands*

I enjoyed the 4th film a thousand times more than the 1st. In fact, the series only grabbed me at 3 and 4 era.

Agreed with this. Harry Potter movies only got better and better. The first two-three were amateur displays of direction/production, but they hit there stride and deathly hollows finally brought it all together. The last one should be quite the spectacle.

Really? I considered the Potter movie cycle to be more like an ark.
They started out mediocre with the first, the second was better, the third was the best point it reached, then falling in the fourth and fifth, reaching utter shit by the sixth movie, and then suddenly jumping back up to the level of the third (if not better) for the seventh, and we'll see how well the final one plays out...

 

[Nfritzappa]

Yeah MovieBob, you're just fetching for attention and being a little cry baby now. Opening with "THIS MOVIE SUCKS" is really professional, yeah.

I saw the movie, and I liked it. If you see it for what it is, and like Curse of the Black Pearl, you'll like this one, but don't expect it to be mind blowing. Its a summer movie, and its fun. There were a lot of great moments too, I thoroughly enjoyed it. Yeah it doesn't have Gore Verbinski's directing, but its not BAD like you're making it out to be. The directing is there, and it does what it needs to do.

Also, where did you get this thing about Jack being the main character all of the sudden? He has always been the centerpiece of the PotC franchise, regardless of the first 3 having Will and Elizabeth's overarching story. But even so, 'On Stranger Tides' has an ensemble cast, and if you didn't notice that, then you really weren't paying attention to how the scenes were played out.

Spoiler

And another thing, you said Blackbeard only used his powers when necessary to the plot? No. He only used it when a ship was near. He was quite far from ships for the majority of the plot he was involved in

All in all, if you love Pirates of the Caribbean, you will probably like this one too. Most importantly though: This movie is by no means BAD.
Moviebob, I've learned to distrust your reviews awhile ago.

P.S. 'On Stranger Tides' has the best PotC soundtrack EVER.

 

[PortalThinker113]

Also, interesting pair of after-credits points- I, too, am way more excited than I probably should be at the prospect of a new Muppets movie =D However, I'm really surprised at Bob's excitement for the new Planet of the Apes- from what I saw of the trailer, it seems like the kind of thing he would really dislike.

 

[Vivvav]

I enjoyed the movie, and feel it's a decent movie on its own, but is terrible compared to the first three.

 

[floobie]

Aaaaand just saw it. I'll have to respectfully disagree with this review. First Suckerpunch, now this... you're slipping

I found it quite refreshing to see Jack Sparrow without Will/Liz, both of which were generally my least favourite characters in the previous movies. The only thing (character) that bothered me was Penelope Cruz. For whatever reason, the only movie I've ever seen that I've liked her in was Vanilla Sky. In everything else, this included... eh.

All in all, I think your enjoyment of this movie is entirely dependent on what you liked about the previous movies. For me, the main attraction was always Jack Sparrow and all the hilarious, whimsical pirateyness. As such, this movie pushed all the same buttons for me.

 

[Not Good]

Anyone else other than me notice the gratuitous amount of teal and orange post-processing crap?


[h4]SO MUCH TEAL AND ORANGE[/h4]

 

[AgDr_ODST]

I waited instead of going to go see it the first chance I got and I seem to have been smart in that regard......thats good I guess but Im dissapointed by all the negativity thats driving me away.....still though I can't help but wonder if shooting where they wanted to(Puerto Rico, or some where in the actual Caribbean) as apposed to where the wound up shooting would have made it any better....I'd bet it wouldn't

 

[brodie21]

still going to see it. cant shake me from this one bob.

 

[Adultism]

I've just stopped listening to Bobs review, because a lot of times the movies he say are good are not so great and the movies he say are bad are sometimes pretty good. I honestly now believe that if the movie makes a lot of money or was made by a huge producer that everyone knows, Bob will bash the movie and say it "SUCKS IT SUCKS DON'T WATCH THIS MOVIE IT SUCKS"

Yeah Bob, I'd much rather think for myself.

 

[Jyggalag]

Well, this review has confirmed my fears are indeed true. Thank you, Bob! I almost bought a ticket just to see how it turned out.

 

[Lyri]

Just got back from watching it, Bob is right.

This movie is a 2 hour rerun of all the greatest pirate hits.

 

[ChupathingyX]

Wasn't nearly as good as the first 3, but I still enjoyed it and it had its moments.