The funniest of the "Pirates" films.

Rating: 6/10 (20 May 2011)

Johnny Depp is back as Captain Jack Sparrow and here he gets the bulk of this fourth entry in the "Pirates of the Caribbean" series. This is a great thing, because I was honestly getting tired of Will and Elizabeth's predicament in the previous two movies... and not enough Jack. I guess the producers thought so too, so we have more Jack Sparrow now in this movie that any other "Pirates" before.
I cannot imagine anyone other than Depp as Jack Sparrow. He's become sort of an iconic movie character, the heroic outlaw who can crack a joke in a time of danger or peril, that everyone loves and wants to be (sort of). He fights and moves in situations that Jackie Chan would be proud of. In short, he's a classic movie hero, and it's no different in this installment. Depp still gives his all despite the previous two movies colossal scale potentially tiring him of the role.
However, Sparrow isn't the only one to crack a one-liner. Almost every major character, even the villains, have at least one very funny line. It's as if the screenwriters were having a breeze writing this installment. The beautiful and talented Penelope Cruz joins the franchise as Angelica, an old flame from Jack's past who seems to still want to either kill him or love him - it's nice to see Cruz lightening up from all those grueling dramas and have some fun on an adventure like this. Ian McShane as the villain Captian Blackbeard has a menacing atmosphere around him that makes him quite unsettling. And Geoffrey Rush returns as Barbossa, looking not too good since the last time we saw him, but nevertheless still as wily as ever. It seems his and Jacks' characters were reduced from mortal enemies from the first film to bickering rivals here. The chemistry between all of the actors are great.
"Chicago" director Rob Marshall takes over Gore Verbinski for this installment. It's made clear during the sword-fighting sequences - they are well-choreographed and well-filmed as if it's some sort of musical. Marshall does his job well, as per the lavish production design, great camera work, good special effects (at times really pushing the PG-13 rating and Disney's family-friendly reputation at once) and grand music score by Hans Zimmer (who else?)
However, the film suffers for three problems - One, the lack of character development for some of the characters who, admittedly, serve little purpose to the story whatsoever apart from making them potential comebacks for the next installment. Two, too choppy editing during the sword-fights. They are nearly incomprehensible to watch due to the fast cuts, and it ruins the good camera work and choreography and strips their adrenaline factor away. Three - said sword-fights and other action sequences were filmed too dark during the night scenes, something the 3D viewers will not appreciate (understatement). I saw this in 2D and that's good enough, you don't need an extra dimension to bring you into Jack's world.
I found this more enjoyable than "Dead Man's Chest" and "At World's End". The most lighthearted of the "Pirates" films, this one was on a smaller scale, and had tons more humor than the previous two, and most notably more Captain Jack than ever before. See it for the laughs and Depp. Grab the popcorn and enjoy.
I hope the action sequences are improved in the next installment, however.
Overall rating: 68/100