Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides

Pirate extraordinaire, Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp), finds himself in a race with the Spanish, the British, and Blackbeard the Pirate (Ian McShane) to find the fountain of youth. Of course, Jack is nothing without his star crossed lover Angelica (Penelope Cruz) in the mix; and, complicating matters Angelica is Blackbeard’s daughter. As all parties move closer to the prize, magic, action, and adventure lies ahead, but who will make it to the finish alive, and what of these stirrings Jack is feeling towards Angelica? Breaking from the previous storylines On Stranger Tides works as a stand alone film featuring many of the same characters and concepts we’ve already come to know in the last three films. And, as the case may have it the plot line here actually seems considerably more thought out, a welcome gift as the last two pirates films have felt anything but. Acting from the ensemble feels pretty much on par with what we’ve come to expect from our regular players, that includes Geoffery Rush too. Standing out from the bunch Ian McShane offers up a fresh new batch of pirate flavour, appreciated. The weak link, sadly, Penelope Cruz, I want to link her, and she has her moments, but overall her character feels misplaced. Fight sequences and computer animation come across in good form. Although, in 3D, the opening sequences and several other darker scenes look too dark, without the 3D glasses the brightness seems more appropriate. I’d opt for the non-3D version for maximum viewability, you won’t miss anything special anyway. Poised for box office success, it’s another shoo-in summer hit. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is rated PG-13.