PREVIEWS
PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES RELEASED MAY 20 2011 (USA) TBC (UK) Ah, the whiff of a franchise that may just be outstaying its welcome. The announcement of Pirates 4 (as we shall call it to save space) came as a sort of surprise that managed to surprise no one at all. Riding the wave of the third film’s box office haul (which was larger than the wave of critical appraisal), Pirates 4 is at least something of a departure and should take the plot down a new vein. The many-tiered storyline that came to a close in the third film is done with, and the new film sees Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) teaming up with Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) on a quest to find the Fountain of Youth. As much as this film may feel superfluous to many, those involved have at least been sensible enough to begin a new storyline and the pair up two of the strongest aspects of the past films. Perhaps we will be pleasantly surprised come summer 2011, or at least a bit more surprised than when the film was first announced. It’s easy to be cynical, but the film is not without hope. There’s enough pirate love out there to ensure audiences will flock to it (it will almost certainly be an unmitigated success, financially) and hopefully the elements that made the original films enjoyable will be retained: namely a sense of playfulness and good old fashioned adventure. 0 2 6 FAN THE FIRE JULY 2010