DVD review: “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” Blu-ray + DVD
From Friday’s Weekend Look section of The Oklahoman.
“Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” Blu-ray + DVD
Johnny Depp’s oddly charming Capt. Jack Sparrow takes his rightful place at the helm of “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides,” but more bloated storytelling threatens to sink the latest installment in the blockbuster franchise.
The fourth film tosses overboard Orlando Bloom’s Will Turner, Keira Knightley’s Elizabeth Swann and several related periphery characters, but unfortunately, “On Stranger Tides” doesn’t get the streamlining previous overblown sequels “Dead Man’s Chest” and “At World’s End” desperately needed.
Director Gore Verbinski bowed out of the fourth movie in the seafaring saga, but not before new helmer Rob Marshall (“Chicago”) plundered his “Pirates” penchant for too many characters, too much action and too many quests within the larger hunt for the Fountain of Youth.
“On Stranger Tides” comes in with Capt. Jack making one of his improbably clever escapes, which this time involves hijacking a vicious London court so he can free his old first mate Gibbs (Kevin McNally).
But Jack is quickly scooped up on behalf of King George II (the excellent Richard Griffiths), who wants to take the wily swashbuckler’s map of the Fountain of Youth so that pirate-turned-privateer Capt. Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) can claim Ponce de Leon’s legendary prize for the English.
The Spanish have already taken up the search, which gets a particularly bloodthirsty competitor when the famed pirate Blackbeard (Ian McShane) hears a zombie prophecy that gives him just two weeks to live.
Jack is tricked into joining the fearsome buccaneer’s crew by crafty former flame Angelica (Penelope Cruz), who happens to be Blackbeard’s long-lost daughter. Along with actually finding the fountain, the pirates must track down the components for the special life-giving ritual: Ponce de Leon’s special silver goblets and, even worse, a tear from a mermaid, who in this tale are ferocious flesh-eating sirens rather than sweet-tempered half-fish ladies.
With Depp’s always-entertaining Capt. Jack officially becoming the star pirate, “On Stranger Tides” sets the franchise back on course but is too waterlogged to match the giddy thrills of the first film, 2003’s “Curse of the Black Pearl.”
Blu-ray features: Lego animated shorts, blooper reel and Disney Second Screen, which allows viewers to see behind-the-scenes photos, illustrations and videos on their iPad or computer while watching the film. Although Second Screen can be more cumbersome than, say, Warner Bros. Maximum Movie Mode, which in my experience offers much more interesting bonus material in a sort of picture-in-picture format, Disney’s approach is perfect if you have one person who just wants to watch the film and another who wants to get the behind-the-scenes look.
— BAM
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