Pirates of the Caribbean [5]: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017) [Blu-ray]
Action | Adventure | Fantasy

Johnny Depp returns to the big screen as the iconic, swashbuckling anti-hero Jack Sparrow in the all-new Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. The rip-roaring adventure finds down-on-his-luck Captain Jack feeling the winds of ill-fortune blowing strongly his way when deadly ghost sailors, led by the terrifying Captain Salazar (Javier Bardem), escaped from the Devil's Triangle bent on killing every pirate at seanotably Jack. Jack's only hope of survival lies in the legendary Trident of Poseidon, but to find it he must forge an uneasy alliance with Carina Smyth (Kaya Scodelario), a brilliant and beautiful astronomer, and Henry (Brenton Thwaites), a headstrong young sailor in the Royal Navy. At the helm of the Dying Gull, his pitifully small and shabby ship, Captain Jack seeks not only to reverse his recent spate of ill fortune, but to save his very life from the most formidable and malicious foe he has ever faced.

Storyline: Captain Jack Sparrow finds the winds of ill-fortune blowing even more strongly when deadly ghost pirates led by his old nemesis, the terrifying Captain Salazar, escape from the Devil's Triangle, determined to kill every pirate at sea...including him. Captain Jack's only hope of survival lies in seeking out the legendary Trident of Poseidon, a powerful artifact that bestows upon its possessor total control over the seas.

Reviewer's Note: Reviewed by Martin Liebman, September 19, 2017 Pirates of the Caribbean has been a major moneymaker for Disney, even with some steadily declining domestic box office returns. Take worldwide gross into account and the first film, The Curse of the Black Pearl, remains the low-water mark while this fifth film, Dead Men Tell No Tales, holds down fourth place. Return on investment hasn't been much of an issue, but steadily declining critical reviews are, and that proved particularly troubling during Summer 2017 that saw a steady decline in box office revenue as well as a steady stream of panned blockbusters, including this Pirates film. But there's no denying that the films have lost appeal and gained bloat (even as this is the trimmest of the franchise in terms of gross runtime) while failing to innovate, prancing around the same core qualities that shaped the first film and that has been shaping and defining the franchise ever since. Gone is the freshness, here is the staleness, a franchise that has become dependable only in its ability to recreate itself not in terms of innovation but rather recreate itself in terms of throwing the same elements onto the screen time and again.

Henry Turner (Brenton Thwaites) has dedicated his life to finding a way to free his father Will (Orlando Bloom) from eternal captivity on the Flying Dutchman. He believes he's found the answer: Poseidon's Trident, a powerful ancient item that can control the seas and everything therein. He ultimately teams up with an amateur astronomer and horologist, the spirited Carina (Kaya Scodelario), whose connection to the seas runs deep. He also finds himself working alongside Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp), the perpetually tipsy captain who has lost much of his crew and his treasured compass. But in losing it, he inadvertently unleashes Captain Armando Salazar (Javier Bardem) and his crew of undead sailors who are seeking revenge on Sparrow, who fated them to their hellish existence many years ago.

Dead Men Tell No Tales might be new in name, but it can't shake a feeling of franchise fatigue that permeates nearly every moment. Another crew of cursed sailors made up of complex visual effects? Been there, done that. Action scenes could be dropped into any other film in the franchise and, with a few tweaks to the digital animation to swap out characters, they'd fit right in. Character moments, gags, and the movie's basic cadence feel all-too-familiar. The plot is bloated and contrived and even some main characters feel unnecessarily tacked on and thrown in, shoved to the forefront for story convenience more than anything else. The movie isn't exactly teeming with reasons to watch. Even the aforementioned special effects, as fantastic as they may be and which extend well beyond Salazar and his crew, cannot be considered a draw, not when they're just variations on the same style seen in the pervious four films and certainly not when several other overwrought Summer blockbusters are competing in the same marketplace of empty stories propped up by endless and increasingly complex visual effects. It's all window-dressing masking a dull story and largely directionless meandering for a series in need of retirement or, at least, a very long respite.

Yet even with all the negatives swirling around throughout the film's two-plus-hour runtime, a few enjoyable positives do creep in. Jack Sparrow at one point finds himself on death's doorstep, strapped into a guillotine with a couple of severed heads already in a basket in front of him. Of course he handles the situation as only he would, with some choice quips. He is ultimately rescued, quite unexpectedly and literally at the last second, in an unconventional manner that results in one of the movie's most creative and enjoyable scenes. Depp, of course, inhabits the character as only he can, verbally and physically capturing the classic Sparrow cadence like he just stepped off the first film's set; it's a career-defining character, for better or for worse, and in Dead Men he's as good as ever, even if the material limits him in many scenes. The film also features an extensive flashback to Jack's younger days, when he was first entrusted with the compass, before he became the man audiences have grown to love over the past decade and a half. Computer effects help present him as a fresh-faced teenager, essentially, and fighting his first battle against the then-living Salazar and company. It's one of the series' best sequences; it's a shame it's wrapped up in an otherwise forgettable entry that feels like it should have been two shorter films, one focused on Salazar and one on Turner's search for his father.

This ship has sailed, as the saying goes. Dead Men Tell No Tales may offer serviceable entertainment, great visual effects, and the return of fan-favorite characters, but it also offers more of the same of everything else. There's no identity, a convoluted plot, forgettable new faces, and repetitive action. And with talk of a sixth film on the drawing board and with the resounding chorus of "hang it up!" echoing along ship's deck, the filmmakers had better find a way to reinvent the franchise, though no doubt the next film will be a moneymaker, too, regardless of critical voices, franchise fatigue, or stale plot elements. It's only a question of how much it'll make. ROI, baby. Today's movie are all about ROI. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales does excel on Blu-ray. Video and audio are of reference quality. Supplements are fine. Fans can buy with absolute confidence, but those fatiguing on the franchise should wait for a good sale before dropping any money on it.

[CSW] -3.1- The story is all… and this one has much more of a story than the last three "Pirates 2-4." I absolutely adored the ending where you might recognize Orlando Bloom and Kiera Knightly who briefly reprise their roles as Will and Elizabeth Turner. This fifth film in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise is a great popcorn actioner...almost as much fun to watch as the first film. The following conversation is indicative of the tone of this Saturday afternoon popcorn entertainment. Carina Smyth: "My calculations are precise and true. I'm not just an astronomer. I'm also a horologist." Captain Jack Sparrow: "No shame in that, dear. We all have to make a living." Watch for veteran actor (but newcomer to the series) Javier Bardem as the undead Captain Salazar, who leads a vendetta against pirates, especially Jack Sparrow. Balancing out the cast are two young (and talented) actors Brenton Thwaites as the son of Will & Elizabeth Turner; and Kaya Scodelario as the astronomer/horologist, Carina Smyth. As I said before it is great Saturday afternoon popcorn entertainment but if viewed only by adults a drink might also help.
[V5.0-A5.0] MPEG-4 AVC - D-Box helped tremendously.


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