It seems that the latest trend among Hollywood executives is to squeeze as much money as they can out of a film franchise. This begs the question of whether studio heads would rather sacrifice their credibility for guaranteed box office
It seems that the latest trend among Hollywood executives is to squeeze as much money as they can out of a film franchise. This begs the question of whether studio heads would rather sacrifice their credibility for guaranteed box office gold.
In the case of the “Pirates” franchise, it seems Disney would rather cash in.
“On Stranger Tides” is the fourth installment of the multi-billion dollar “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise. It’s silly and action-packed, but ultimately, the film doesn’t have anything new to offer audiences.
Johnny Depp and company restocked their black eye-liner for another round of excitement on the high seas, except there isn’t much swashbuckling on the water. Not one cannon was fired in the entire film.
Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley were also absent from the film, a smart move by Disney, since their characters had grown stale.
Instead, the studio opted for some fresh blood in the form of the sultry Penelope Cruz and the grizzled Ian McShane.
Cruz portrays the spirited Angelica, Jack’s former flame and the daughter of the villainous Blackbeard (McShane).
In this go-round, Angelica and Blackbeard are on the hunt for the elusive Fountain of Youth.
As is Captain Jack. Why? Well, the audience never really finds out.
Geoffrey Rush returns as Barbossa (now with one leg) who is captaining the English navy, which is trying to beat the Spanish in search of — you guessed it — the Fountain of Youth.
The storyline is predictable, as is the formula of the film: The audience is whisked from one exotic location to another only to be broken up by a choreographed fight sequence that lasts much too long.
While Depp’s portrayal of Captain Jack was totally unique the first go-around, by the fourth installment, the shtick has gotten much too old.
Also lost in the film’s chaos is McShane’s top-notch performance as the cold-hearted Blackbeard and Cruz’s portrayal of Angelica, in which the audience doesn’t quite know if she is a dutiful daughter or master con artist.
Visually, the film delivers in a big way. The audiences are treated from the streets of London to the jungles of our own backyard.
The cast and crew of “Pirates” descended on Kaua‘i last summer to film scenes before they shipped off to O‘ahu, Los Angeles and the United Kingdom.
Residents with a keen eye can have fun trying to recognize their friends who played extras in the film or pinpoint what scenes were filmed on Kaua‘i (shooting locations included the Na Pali Coast, the coconut grove at the Coco Palms, Allerton Garden in Po‘ipu and Kipu Ranch).
Rob Marshal (“Chicago”) directs.
