Film Purgatory | On Stranger Tides (2011)

The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise is definitely one of the most beloved out there, and is one of my favorites. But like many others, it does feel it had overstayed its welcome by the time Dead Men Tell No Tales came around. And again like many, I would like to believe the franchise ended after At World’s End. But then again…the 4th entry, On Stranger Tides is quite the enjoyable experience, even though it doesn’t have Kiera Knightly and Orlando Bloom returning.

Jack Sparrow (played by Johnny Depp) is on the trail of finding his next treasure, the mythical Fountain of Youth. However, Sparrow is not the only one looking for it as Hector Barbossa (played by Geoffrey Rush), now a captain in the British Royal Navy, former flame Anjelica (played by Penelope Cruz), and her father Blackbeard (played by Ian McShane) are all searching as well. It becomes a race against the clock for all parties to reach the Fountain of Youth before its capabilities fall into the wrong hands.

Why does everyone hate this movie??? Every time I hear someone mention Pirates of the Caribbean, they refuse to acknowledge this fun flick! Granted it was unnecessarily added on to the franchise I will admit that, but it never felt like a cash grab compared to Dead Men Tell No Tales. It was a natural continuation from the 3rd film as they teased the Fountain of Youth at the end and it has all the same antics Sparrow has done in the first three and is just as funny. And I also appreciate how they changed up some of the dynamics as well as introducing other ideas such as Blackbeard’s supernatural ship and mermaids.

Speaking of said dynamics, the creators double down on Jack and Barbossa’s friendly rivalry as they both work with and against each other acting more like siblings than the first three films and I love it! I Also enjoy the introduction of Angelica, who can be just as cunning as Jack and the only one who could possibly out-quip him as well. Everyone has amazing chemistry with everyone, nothing felt forced and it seemed everyone was having a fun time. Depp remains as quirky as ever as Sparrow, along with Barbossa, but the introductions of Ian McShane and Penelope Cruz are fantastic. Even though Blackbeard is no Davy Jones, he is still extremely memorable playing against Sparrow!

Yes, there are unfortunately not a whole lot of ship vs ship battles in On Stranger Tides. However, many of these set pieces are extremely well done and choreographed. Such as the time when Jack is fighting his impersonator, or the fight against the mermaids. Which also ends with him doing an Assassin’s Creed swan dive off of a lighthouse window. Not to mention that the Pirates of the Caribbean team still manages to have a few new tricks up their sleeve with some scenes. Such as how The Queen Anne’s Revenge manages to literally tie up all the mutineers plus Sparrow! It is so damn fun to see! STOP HATING ON THIS FILM!

Again why does everyone hate On Stranger Tides so much??? It is a fun little epilogue to the original trilogy of the franchise, and it is clear the entire cast and crew had fun as well. Yes, the action is different from the traditional fanfare of the first three, but still a whole lot of fun and quite inventively choreographed. Angelica and Blackbeard were both welcomed additions to the franchise as our antagonists, but I was sad to not see Will Turner or Elizabeth Swan again. Johnny Depp is still the best as Captain Jack Sparrow and it is still disheartening to hear him never return to the franchise, even though Disney did screw him over. On Stranger Tides is a hell of a good time and should honestly be watched first before getting judged so harshly!