A better Pirates film

Rating: 6/10 (21 May 2011)

I had decent optimism going into this film as I was hoping it would be more of a back to basics Pirates film with the intention of really entertaining its audience. With the you know who characters gone this was a clean slate and right from the outset I knew there wasn't going to be an insincere dark plot that fails to get off the ground. The fountain of youth element may seem like a thin plot for a film so long but the writers seemed to remember what genre they are in. This is more of an action film with plenty of sword fights put in. However much of the action is shot in the dark which if you're not a fan of may be off putting. Aside from that camera angle wise it is well shot and doesn't feel disorientating in the slightest clearly wanting their audience to be a part of the action without methods like shaky cam.
The film isn't perfect and the pacing becomes questionable towards the middle with some scenes looking as though they are repeating themselves. Nonetheless there is a decent pay off with the subsequent scenes. Onto the performances and they are mostly good. Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush and co are brilliant in their roles and the film doesn't feel like it is all about Captain Jack with the way it was written. He was in just enough to be humorous without being irritating, although it is all a matter of taste and I would fully understand people becoming irritated by Jack Sparrow by now. Penelope Cruz now plays the female lead and it is clear even though we haven't seen them together before that her character Angelica and Captain Jack clearly have a chemistry and their scenes together were probably the highlight. In this sense Cruz made for a much better female lead this time round and stepped into the series like she had been there since the first film. The film despite its issue with pacing at the mid point didn't feel too long and had mostly kept itself to a premium. There is nothing terribly memorable in the film which is why it doesn't get a higher rating, it simply captures the spirit without being spectacular. In summary though it is a decent Pirates film and an improvement for the series that seemed to treat its audience with more respect this time round.