Review: Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (12A)***

Having impersonated a judge, saved his crewmate from the hangman, escaped from an audience with George III and identified the imposter who was using his name to hire a crew, Captain Jack Sparrow embarks on a new adventure to find the mythical Fountain of Youth.
By Tony Earnshaw
Published 20th May 2011, 11:20 BST

Gone are so many of the familiar faces from the previous movies – not least Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom – replaced by Penélope Cruz and Ian McShane as ex-lover and Blackbeard, respectively. And so Captain Jack becomes a supporting character in his own movie, almost swallowed up by a growing ensemble that incorporates links to the past (such as Geoffrey Rush as Captain Barbossa) whilst looking ahead to new opportunities.

Cruz is beautiful and feisty and Ian McShane has fun as the black-hearted buccaneer. Only Depp (and, to a degree, Rush) comes off badly in an underwritten role that lacks any real direction. Captain Jack has been clumsily inserted into this seafaring yarn, and it shows.

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Clearly looking ahead to the on-going franchise, Disney has shored up a weak script with an abundance of talent. Even Dame Judi Dench makes a cameo appearance as a society lady with just three words to utter. Anyone who loves the Indiana Jones and Mummy movies will adore this. It looks wonderful and the cast has fun. However, the law of diminishing returns is at work; obviously this one was done just for the lolly.

Related topics:Judi Dench