Pirates of the Caribbean: Salazar’s Revenge
Directors: Joachim Ronning, Espen Sandberg
Stars: Johnny Depp, Javier Bardem, Orlando Bloom, Kaya Scodelario, Brenton Thwaites
Three stars
Pirates-a-plenty, undead sailors, sea monsters, mystical treasure maps, legendary magical items and swashbuckling by the bucketload – it can only mean one thing: Disney has dusted off its Pirates of the Caribbean franchise.
In Salazar's Revenge, the fifth instalment and the first since 2011's On Stranger Tides, the series remains as big, brash, action-packed and, well, downright silly as ever.
There was a sense in the last two movies that the series might be losing its lustre – there are only so many salty old sea-dog myths you can plunder for the big screen without repetitiveness setting in, however impressive the CGI. This time we are introduced to a new pair of star-crossed lovers, in the shape of Henry Turner (Brenton Thwaites) and Carina Smyth (Kaya Scodelario).
This must partly, at least, have been a practical decision since Bloom, in particular, as a 40-year-old, was perhaps getting a little long in the tooth to convincingly take on that role, as in previous movies.
Purists will be pleased to hear that both he and on-screen romantic interest Keira Knightley do both make an appearance, after they both opted out of On Stranger Tides. Bloom's character is fairly central to the story in Salazar's Revenge but Knightley's blink-and-you'll-miss-it cameo is unlikely to impress anyone but the most die-hard fans.
Johnny Depp also returns, of course, as Captain Jack Sparrow, adding new depth to his character as he has done in each of the previous films: by appearing slightly more intoxicated than the last time we saw him.
One can’t help wondering how many more films it will take for him to complete the transition from grog-swilling scourge of the seven seas to mumbling old man to avoided at all costs – he is certainly getting close.
The film is, nonetheless, an enjoyable enough yarn. It opens up with a series of stunts and CGI-heavy set pieces that set the tone for the next two hours of over-the-top action. Although the movie lacks some of the charm of the earliest instalments, it rarely pauses for breath long enough for the audience to worry about this too much. Old favourites, including Geoffrey Rush's Barbossa, return, while Javier Bardem gives new villain Salazar a hammy, overstated degree of evil that his Skyfall Bond villain, Raoul Silva, would be proud of.
Paul McCartney, meanwhile, steps into the “rock legend in a cameo” spot vacated by Keith Richards, bringing a somewhat incongruous Liverpool accent to Sparrow’s Uncle Jack in the process.
This movie was initially announced as filming back-to-back with a sixth, and final, instalment. Those plans were shelved and it was rumoured this would be the final Pirates movie. Director Joachim Ronning has since indicated though that there could yet be more.
While the series does, just about, have enough sea legs for another instalment – perhaps even two if done well – it is to be hoped the producers are wise enough to quit while they are ahead.
Familiarity, after all, breeds contempt – and this is all starting to look really familiar.
cnewbould@thenational.ae
