If you have been a fan of the previous Pirates Of The Caribbean movies, or at least have some investment placed on the characters of the franchise, then go see "Dead Men Tell No Tales." It's pretty much a combination of everything good about the previous entrees, and tries to expunge itself of the things that previously didn't work. I suppose what worked or what didn't work in this series of movies are all purely subjective, but this fifth installment is arguably the second best; or probably even the best, of the whole franchise.
In terms of the story, it undeniably feels a little convoluted, messy, and over stuffed at times. However, in the whole it still has a rather simplistic plot progression of different characters that eventually converges together into the final act. Story and logic aside, what stitches the whole thing are the action / adventure set pieces in this film. In fact, it feels like this whole movie is almost nothing but a series of back to back, grandiose action / adventure set pieces. Each of those big set pieces could easily have been the final act of a regular movie, but this one crams them all into a 129 minutes movie. Thankfully I thought each of those huge scenes were so incredibly imaginative and visually amazing, that I enjoyed every minute of this movie indulging itself with what a big budget could put on screen.
Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow is still a highlight character to keep an eye on, even though he hasn't changed that much from being this drunk buffoon of a character who manages to be lucky in very unlucky situations. If you're tired of that shtick, well this movie is just more of that. Geoffrey Rush is still a welcome sight as Barbossa, and I liked where they went with his character. Javier Bardem as Captain Salazar is awesome as the main antagonist, with how he looks, his intimidating presence, and even his cadence, all make for a very memorable character.
For this entry, the prerequisite of it needing young actors is filled by Brenton Thwaites as Henry Turner; serviceable but doesn't really stand out that much, and Kaya Scodelario as Carina Smyth; who is interesting enough as a representation of feminism in this pirate era (that's a different kind of patronizing compared to Elizabeth Swann).
As much as there are things to complain about with this movie, be it some of the characters, or the insane plot, or how unbelievably ridiculous things can get, I still had fun watching it. The fact that this movie is a little bit on the gonzo side of story telling is probably why I did enjoy it as much as I did.
lovedit ENJOYED IT itsokayitsmehitsterrible
