Absolutely Worth Skipping!

Rating: Null/10 (18 July 2015)

Terribly written, poorly directed & shoddily performed, the fourth instalment in the Pirates of the Caribbean series is an insipid, pathetic & horribly executed chapter that takes whatever right was left about the original trilogy and brings it to an absolute low for this movie is not only the weakest film of the franchise but also one of the worst films ever made.
A stand-alone sequel to the previous three movies, the story of Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides finds Captain Jack Sparrow embarking on a new journey to find the fabled Fountain of Youth but on his way comes across a woman from his past who's the daughter of the feared pirate, Blackbeard, and discovers that they are also looking for the same place.
Directed by Rob Marshall, On Stranger Tides begins a new phase in the famous adventure fantasy series after Gore Verbinski wrapped up his story with three films yet this latest entry is such an uninspiring, tedious & unnecessary instalment that it makes even the least impressive film of the previous trilogy look like an under-appreciated classic for there isn't one thing that this movie gets right.
Even the technical aspects aren't up to the mark and that's disappointing when considering the fact that On Stranger Tides is the most expensive film ever made. The exotic locations are wonderfully captured by the camera but it fails to immerse the viewers into the narrative plus thanks to useless editing, its 137 minutes of runtime is severely felt, while the score by Hans Zimmer is inferior but still fitting for the most part.
Visual Effects also exhibit a downgrade when compared to its predecessors and on various occasions isn't convincing at all. Coming to the performances, Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush & Kevin McNally are the only ones reprising their roles from previous features while the new additions include Penélope Cruz & Ian McShane who play Angelica (Jack's former lover) & Blackbeard (the prime antagonist), and the performance by the entire cast is, in one word, terrible.
On an overall scale, Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is a sequel that shouldn't have been made in the first place. The previous three films by Gore Verbinski may not rank amongst the finest trilogies ever made but it had a wit & charm of its own plus was perfectly good in a way. Even Captain Jack Sparrow fails to keep the interest alive this time and is annoying for the most part. With nothing working in its favour, On Stranger Tides is definitely worth skipping.