AC1: Random Movie Review - Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales/Salazar's Revenge

Well at least it finally takes a quote from the actual ride at Disney theme park and puts it in the title. But anyway so after a long wait which included a dispute between Disney and Jerry Bruckheimer, we get a fifth film in this franchise which after having had three good films (at least for what they were) and one OK film, I have to ask is there really any point for Pirates of the Caribbean to go on. I mean we've had rum, treasure, curses, ship battles, Davy Jones, Blackbeard as so on and in all honesty, its kind of running out of ideas. Yet here we are with another film and in its defence at least its not trying as hard as Ice Age is which should've never really had sequels in the first place. So how well do they tackle ghosts? Let's find out as we enjoy the pirate life (or at least try too) once again in the first of many posts coming this month:

The film begins with a logo variation of the Disney castle with a pirate flag and cannon balls being shot which all look pretty cool. Then the story begins with a prologue set after At World's End where we meet Henry Turner (played by Brenton Thwaites) who is determined to free his father's curse by finding the Trident of Poseidon with help from everyone's favourite pirate Captain Jack Sparrow (reprised by Johnny Depp). Of course Will Turner (reprised by Orlando Bloom) believes that nothing can break his curse and orders his son to leave the Flying Dutchman. Nine years later and Henry is still determined to save his father. But trouble arises with his position in the British Royal Navy and his ship crashes in the Devil's Triangle. There he meets a ghostly crew led by Captain Salazar (played by Javier Bardem who you may remember from Skyfall) who kills everyone expect Henry telling him to find Jack and pass on a message that he is coming for him. Meanwhile on the island of Saint Martin, Jack and crew rob a bank while meeting a young astronomer and horologist named Carina (played by Kaya Scodelario) who had been sentenced to death because of being accused of witchcraft. This then leads to a series of bizarre events but it all works out as Jack and Carina are saved from death by Henry and Jack's crew and together on the Dying Gull (which is Jack's new ship due to the Black Pearl still being small and bottled), they set out to find the trident unaware of Salazar being hot on their trails and more so with some help from an old adversary turned ally of Jacks'.

So here are the good things. Its got most of the original cast of the first three films back with some being more wanted than others. Its got some good visuals which may not quite match up to what we got in At World's End but it's still pretty good. And everyone plays their parts well. Now for the bad stuff. The story is kind of confusing and tries to pull in as many characters as it can. And I feel that Salazar while played by a great actor, is kind of a weak villain compared to the likes of Davy Jones and Barbossa. But otherwise its an OK film that I'd say is best enjoyed more by fans than anyone else not to mention that it lacks the quality that the original three films had. Its definitely not the worst film, but it could've been made better. 7/10