PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES
Rating: PG-13 for sexual content/nudity, language and some violence
Running Time: 137 Minutes
Studio: Buena Vista Home Video
Release Date: October 18, 2011
Director: Rob Marshall
Stars: Johnny Depp, Penelope Cruz, Geoffrey Rush, Ian McShane
Technical Details:
Visual: 1080p High Definition 2.40:1
Audio: English 7.1 DTS-HD MA (48kHz/24-bit), English 2.0 Dolby Digital, English 2.0 DVS Dolby Digital, French, Spanish 5.1 Dolby Digital (3D Blu-ray), French, Spanish 7.1 DTS0HD HR (Blu-ray)
Subtitles: English SDH, French, Spanish
Studio Synopsis:
From Disney and producer Jerry Bruckheimer comes all the fun, epic adventure and humor that ignited the original. Johnny Depp returns as Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides. A tale of truth, betrayal, youth, demise — and mermaids! When Jack crosses paths with a woman from his past (Penélope Cruz), he’s not sure if it’s love or if she’s a ruthless con artist using him to find the fabled Fountain of Youth. Forced aboard the ship of the most feared pirate ever, Jack doesn’t know who to fear more —Blackbeard (Ian McShane) or the woman from his past. Directed by Rob Marshall, it’s filled with eye-popping battle scenes, mystery and all-out wit.
My Theatrical Review of May 22, 2011 (3 stars out of 5)
Placing Depp front and center was a smart and effective move and if you can handle the subplots involving the missionary and a mermaid named Syrena, the melodrama between Barbossa and Sparrow and Angelica and Blackbeard, and all of the hokum over the Fountain of Youth, there is an engaging film to be found here. And yet there is just a lot to get through and by the time the fifth “Pirates” rolls around (and a post-credits scene tells us its coming), let’s hope they can streamline this franchise significantly and remember what worked so well the first time. If “Fast Five” figured things out finally in its fifth entry in their series, I have to think Disney can dial up the right combination to restore this franchise going forward.
The Extra Content:
Bloopers Of The Caribbean
A standard gag reel, with some amusing moments, running for all of 3-and-a-half minutes.
Audio Commentary by director Rob Marshall and executive producer John DeLuca
Nothing really all that revelatory, but Marshall and DeLuca are clearly engaged in discussing the film, and while they may espouse the greatness of 3D (yawn!), they do reveal a few interesting tidbits along the way.
LEGO Animated Shorts: Captain Jack’s Brick Tales
Didn’t really do much for me, in all honesty, but fans of the LEGO animated shorts created for other films, will probably enjoy this.
Overall Thoughts:
“Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” is a film which I admired a bit more than most, but comes nowhere near the excitement, novelty, and excitement of the first film in the franchise, which scored 5 Academy Award nominations and Johnny Depp’s first Oscar nomination.
Overall, the Blu-Ray release does a nice job of overcoming the dark and murky 3D presentation the film struggled with in its theatrical run, however the extra features are slight and largely uninteresting.
For diehards of the franchise, or those who really enjoyed “…On Stranger Tides”, there is not a whole lot here to play around with. At best, you watch this once, maybe twice, and file it away. A disappointing release for a film which is the 8th largest grossing film of all time, with worldwide box office totals.
SHOULD I RENT IT?!?! – Yes.
SHOULD I BUY IT?!?! – No.
