Amazing! Also a sad but amusing commentary is that the moment the credits started rolling, I turned to Laura and said – “OK I’m ready for the 5th one now!” I guess it’s just a mark of how fun, engaging and exciting these piratical tales are. Plus I can’t wait to see what Jack does next…
The Disney logo is super cool! Once again loving that with major films releases they do funky/cool things to the normal intro – although I think TRON:Legacy still holds the record as the coolest logo modification, this was still very pretty.
I miss Pintel and Raghetti (as well as Murtogg and Mullroy), but with a cadre of new characters to enjoy, you don’t miss them that much.
Laura would like to know for certain what happens to Phillip and Serena at the end and I admit I am curious as well.
Ian McShane is INCREDIBLE as Edward “Blackbeard” Teach (on a side note, I love that everybody calls Blackbeard by his real name…something of a pirates trivia factoid for people to learn as they watch the movie?).
Penélope Cruz is amazingly fun as Jack’s erstwhile love interest.
They’ve got a skeleton captain in a bed!!! Just like in the ride!!! And it’s not forced in or anything!!! It fits the story!!! Yay!
Obviously be sure to stay to the end of the credits. If you didn’t…go see it again! If you forgot to a 2nd time, shame on you. And here’s a spoiler.
Spoiler Alert! (place and hold your mouse over the bar to see)
Penélope Cruz has been marooned on her little island. She has removed her black vest and is sitting lonely on the beach. The tide washes in and she gazes intently at something on the beach…something that looks a lot like her father’s voodoo doll of Jack Sparrow…
I’m really happy that Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio are executive producers as well as the authors of the screenplay – their master strokes on the previous films would have made this a shallow venture without them, but it’s almost like they enjoy these stories too much to give them up!
What’s this? There’s a novel/suggestion behind the bulk of the story? (stares at Wikipedia) Most intriguing! I am very much interested in procuring this “On Stranger Tides” novel by Tim Powers from my local library now….
Both Laura and I were pleased as punch to see that Directed By was one of the few things to change at the beginning of the credits. By this I mean we were happy to spot the same screenplay authors, the same costume designer, the same director of cinematography and the 2nd unit director/stunt coordinator. Really helps the film feel like the others to keep all the same people in place.
Yay for Dame Judi Dench’s cameo!!!
The music was very enjoyable – plenty of rearranged older themes, but some delightful additions (especially cool that Gabriella y Rodrigo are the featured guitarists – they do an awesome cover of Oogie Boogie’s Song from The Nightmare Before Christmas, check it out here!).
I love that Barbossa’s right hand men are Groves and Gillette from the previous films – Gillette is embarrassed by Sparrow and run over by the Endeavour in Curse of the Black Pearl and Groves has two excellent lines – “That’s got to be the best pirate I’ve ever seen” (Curse of the Black Pearl) & “Do you think he plans it all out or makes it up as he goes along?” (At World’s End).
Spoiler thingy about the plot because it’s interesting to me (highlight to see):
Spoiler Alert! (place and hold your mouse over the bar to see)
I was fascinated that when the Spanish marched into the Fountain of Youth, they declared that the only way to eternal life was through faith and that this pagan temple needed to be destroyed. Is this what the kingdom of Spain was like? Is this what the Inquisition was all about? Something inside of me wants to applaud their zealotry except I’m sure it will go too far…
Well none of my predictions came true with this film, but they were mere trifles in the broad scope of things. I predicted that Elizabeth would plead her belly to delay any punishment due to her piratical activities(as Anne Bonny and Mary Read did), I predicted that Barbossa would at some point captain the Wicked Wench (as he does at Disneyland) and I predicted Jack Sparrow would dispatch someone after telling them to “Give my regards to Will Turner!”. But like I said, these are just funny one-liners stemming from the results of the first three films and would have been additional geek outs in an already amazing (and geek out prone) movie.
The more I watch all the movies, the more I want some prequels including but not limited to: how does Jack coerce Davy Jones to raise the Black Pearl from the depths? Why does Barbossa (a pirate lord in his own right) subjugate himself to Jack Sparrow (another pirate lord)…is it just for the treasure on Isla De La Muerta? Jack and Hector have been through a lot and it would be fun to see some of those stories instead of just hearing them. I would also like a little more information on what the rest of Mrs. Elizabeth Turner’s life is like…does she inherit her father’s estate? How does that whole thing at the end of “At World’s End” play out for the Caribbean? You can’t just commandeer an armada there and then give up…can you? Eh whatever…I just like to rant and rave sometimes. Probably just because we did a mini-movie marathon before seeing this one and they’re all bouncing around in my head…
All in all a fantastic sequel worthy of it’s predecessor’s and I hope this franchise lives on! I’m also really hoping for comic books, but I’ll take whatever Disney will give me. 🙂