Booze News: Not Much Rum--Still Great Fun

I don’t know whether you'd heard, but a new theme park ride-based pirate movie opened this weekend. Being that I rather enjoyed the prior two theme park ride-based pirate movies, Mrs. BoozeMovies and I decided to check out the new one on opening weekend. Although there was considerably less rum in this flick versus the first two (they run out of liquor about an hour into the film), it was still a rollicking good time.

Most critics have complained about the film’s length and complex plot, and while they are probably right on both counts, neither issue bothered me at all. I love the universe that Gore Verbinski has created with this series--combining pirate lore and multiple oceanic mythologies--so for me, the longer the better. Also, as tangled as the plot became, I never found the story or character motivations confusing. Of course, I’ve always preferred films that require the audience to pay attention.

I’ll agree that the movie is nowhere near perfect. (MILD SPOILER AHEAD) I could have done without that multiple Jack Sparrows. It's great fun to watch Jack playing off more sober-minded characters. Seeing Jack play against himself diminishes the character rather than expanding upon it. Also, Pintel and Ragetti, the comedy-relief pirates played by Lee Arenberg and McKenzie Crook, had begun growing tiresome in the second film, and they grow more so here. Still, these small negatives are far outweighed by the return of Geoffrey Rush to the series as Captain Barbossa. Rush steals the film with his joyful, scenery-chewing performance and Robert Newton-ish line readings.

All in all, I really enjoyed my third trek into piratical waters, and I found the film to be a fitting capper to the most fun movie franchise since Indiana Jones. Once the third film makes its’ way to DVD, I’ll revisit the entire series and post the official rum-soaked reviews. It is a task I look forward to undertaking.

Pirates of the Caribbean Trilogy [Blu-ray]