Wednesday, February 08, 2012

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (Pirates 4) was not a film I looked forward to seeing.

After less than stellar outing with Pirates 2 (reviewed here) and Pirates 3 (reviewed here), I had given up on the series. But for awards consideration I need to watch a lot of films, and this was one of them.

I have to say it was a pleasant surprise. It did not take itself too seriously, and it was a complete departure from the last film, bringing back Penélope Cruz as the love interest, and introducing Rob Marshall as director. The film did not overstay its welcome, either, like the last entry, which was almost unwatchably long.

Supposedly Johnny Depp took a lot more control over this film, including finding the source material that was adapted. It worked. Although the film was considered a letdown in the US (not sure how $240M is a letdown), the film made over a billion dollars worldwide, so it's likely we will see a Pirates 5. I can only hope they find equally interesting material.

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