Pirates Of The Caribbean: Salazar's Revenge - movie review

Pirates Of The Caribbean: Salazar's Revenge

Plot: Captain Jack Sparrow searches for the trident of Poseidon while being pursued by an undead sea captain and his crew.
Cast: Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Javier Bardem
Directors: Joachim Rønning & Espen Sandberg
Certificate: 12A (moderate fantasy action violence)
Runtime: 2hrs 9 mins
Release Date: Thursday 25th May 2017

Avast ye landlubbers, we be entering uncharted waters. A fifth entry into a franchise is a rare occurrence. Usually, we get a solid trilogy, maybe they try their luck with a fourth or there's a full blown universe interconnecting various films. Pirates Of The Caribbean is one of those franchises that, if you were to simply judge it on critical reception, is surprising it even made it to a trilogy. It's fair to say critics are not kind to these films with the exception being the first. Luckily, for Pirates fans, they make a hefty amount of money and have a large following behind it, myself included, so I was fairly excited for a fifth entry. And here's what I have to say; Salazar's Revenge (or Dead Men Tell No Tales as it's known elsewhere) is the best Pirates film since The Curse Of The Black Pearl.

Forget a jar of dirt. I've got a swirly compass.

In regards to how this film slots in with the other entries timeline-wise, Salazar's Revenge is set a considerable amount of time after On Stranger Tides and in this time gap, Jack has begun to lose control of himself and his crew as he's resorted to land thefts (rather than sea pillaging) and a lot of alcohol. Obviously, where there is a Pirates film, Johnny Depp can be found tagging along. Whether you like him or hate him, there is no denying that his performance of Captain Jack Sparrow is iconic and has shaped Depp into becoming one of the greatest character actors this world has seen. Personally, I've never had a problem with Depp's performance of Sparrow but the same cannot be said with his other performances (most notably The Mad Hatter). I don't overly want to open this review negatively but Depp as Jack felt a bit off this time. I remember, during The Curse Of The Black Pearl, Sparrow was always referred as "The best Pirate I've ever seen" due to his cunning escapes and fearsome persona whilst still maintaining a bewildering and highly erratic behaviour. As the films went on, that recognition and admiration began to edge closer to the window and in Salazar's​ Revenge, it's almost tipping over into cartoon territory. With Jack now being an alcoholic, any escapade he does partake in is always accidental and relies more on luck than judgement. This isn't to say Depp isn't firing on all cylinders because he still is as charming and funny as ever but the prestigious side of Jack Sparrow is slowly slipping. 

YouTube makeup tutorials were getting too extreme.

 Another slight issue Salazar's Revenge faces against is a very CGI heavy third act finale. Taking place at the bottom of the ocean on a coral reef as the sea is split Moses style, there came a point when it was difficult to comprehend what exactly was happening. People were flying here, there and everywhere. Jack was fighting one ghost and then another in the blink of an eye and it all felt as if the studio and directors knew they had a ludicrous budget to work with and so, after using it on things they needed, blew the remaining millions in the finale. There's also a few scenes that could have been tidied up a little more to help ensure the pace is at 100% but otherwise, Pirates 5 is everything a big summer blockbuster should be. As far as the plot is concerned, it's pretty perfunctory for a Pirates film and to help bridge the gap between fans and critics, I think that was needed (although judging by the critical reception, it doesn't seem to have worked). The plot is fairly simple. Henry Turner (Brenton Thwaites), the son of William Turner (Orlando Bloom) is on the search for Jack Sparrow to help him find Poseidon's trident in the hope of lifting his father's curse. Already, this shares a direct similarity to the first film in which Will joins forces with Jack to free Elizabeth. In between this crusade, Jack comes face to face with an old enemy in the form of ghostly Javier Bardem and we also meet the mysterious Carina (Kaya Scodelario) along the journey too. By sailing back to the film's roots and not getting ahead of itself by incorporating too many characters and subplots, which At World's End was criticized for, this becomes a fairly safe and by the numbers adventure film that knows it has a simple plot and decides to put the fun and enjoyment at the forefront. 

Me whenever Wetherspoons are doing an offer.

FACT: At two hours and nine minutes long, this has been the shortest running time of all the "Pirates of the Caribbean" films.

As well as Jack, we do get our fair share of returning faces. We see some old familiars like Kevin McNally as the always loyal Gibbs, Stephen Graham as the naïve Scrum and of course, no Pirates Of The Caribbean movie would be complete without Geoffrey Rush's Captain Hector Barbossa who is, at this stage, as equally as recognisable as Sparrow himself. As the film got underway, I was unsure of how it would use Barbossa and became a little frightened that his inclusion would feel forced and unnecessary. Thankfully, as the film progressed, Barbossa's appearance made sense and Rush revels in this role once again. There just seems to be something incredibly natural about Geoffrey Rush in a pirate costume behind the wheel of a ship. It's almost like that, if in another life, he would have made a terrific pirate. For those of you wondering about Orlando Bloom's role in this, it's very minimal. Do not go in expecting a big Jack and Will re-team because Bloom appears in a jaw-dropping three scenes and even in those he isn't given much to say. To fix that Turner-like gap, the baton is passed to Brenton Thwaites who, if you have been following my reviews for a while, is not my favourite actor in the world. In fact, I think it was in my Gods Of Egypt review that I referred to him as "dull, limp and lifeless" and that I've "seen more life in a corpse". So, let's just say that Thwaites wouldn't have been my first pick for this role as I entered the screen however, he did impress me as Henry. He has a level of sincerity and dedication to family and that helped expand his character rather than solely looking like the offspring of Will and Elizabeth. Family is the big theme in this film and that's why, and consider this a bold and possibly controversial claim, Pirates Of The Caribbean: Salazar's Revenge is like Fast & Furious on the seas. More importantly, this fifth entry has a, dare I say, Force Awakens feel to it. Now, I don't necessarily​ mean that both films are on the same calibre of quality nor does Barbossa unsheath a lightsaber instead of a regular sword, but in regards to a familiar, back to what made the series popular feel, the two have a lot in common. In no uncertain terms, this is the Force Awakens of the Pirates series. Make of that what you will.

Does someone want to tell him his ship's on fire?

Perhaps the most unexpected and welcome surprise is the character of Carina and the performance given by Scodelario. I thought that she stole the show from underneath seasoned professionals like Depp and Rush. Carina was similar to Elizabeth in some ways but she's also far more independent, clever and savvy than Keira Knightley ever was. If there is to be a sixth film (an intriguing post credits scene seems to suggest so), then I have no quarrels about Carina and Henry reappearing and potentially leading it. They were significantly better than Sam Claflin's priest and the mermaid that On Stranger Tides gave us. Whatever happened to them? The last we say was the mermaid taking him away into the ocean. Surely he would have just died? She straight up killed him, right? Moving on, the villains of the Pirates franchise have always been the strongest part of these films. Barbossa is iconic in the original and of course, we were treated to Bill Nighy as Davy Jones in the sequels. However, my two favourite villains in this series have been Tom Hollander as Lord Cutler Beckett and then, easily, Ian McShane as Blackbeard. In this fifth installment, Javier Bardem is our villain as Captain Salazar who is currently cursed as a ghost so comes after Jack, who is revealed to be the one that inadvertently cursed Salazar. Despite looking fantastic with the visuals and makeup, Bardem is fine as the villain but nothing more. At times, he's incredibly difficult to understand and that's not just because of Bardem's thick accent but due to heavy voice alterations to suit his ghostly appearance. As for his motives, it makes sense but there comes a few times where he falls second fiddle to the quest for the trident. There even comes a point where David Wenham pops up as a Royal Navy commander on the hunt for Jack and his gang and as you can imagine, he's about as useful as a Twitter account for the President. Spectacle is a big part of the Pirates films and it's no different this time round. The high seas battles are just as amazing and thrilling. The two Norwegian directors have a keen eye for grand set pieces with one feeling like an ode to Fast Five's bank vault escape. But it's also clear that they aren't too keen on rewriting everything and forgetting about what came before. Rønning and Sandberg clearly appreciate the original trilogy and they honour this with a perfect conclusion that arguably wraps up this entire franchise. Will they make another? Undeniably so. However, the ending just worked on every level imaginable delivering the most satisfying of goosebumps as the score, acting and meaning is all at a phenomenal level.

My reaction whenever I hear rumours about an Alice In Wonderland 3.

It's not perfect and does suffer from a tad too much going on but there is no denying that Salazar's Revenge is a solid and fun summer blockbuster. The returning characters are always a pleasure to see but the new ones are just as fantastic, if not more. With action sequences that are sure to become landmarks in the series, Pirates 5 is everything I could have hoped for and more.

My Verdict: 8.5/10

What did you think of Pirates Of The Caribbean: Salazar's Revenge? What is your favourite entry into the franchise? Sound off in the comments below.

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