On Stranger Tides - first thoughts, part 2
Spoilers!
Part 1
OST plot looks like a lesson taken after AWE. No big '???' this time, there is A --> B --> C instead, with minor holes looking like 'here was a deleted scene'. Seriously, I hope there will be A LOT of them on DVD. Looks like it should be, at least. And speaking of deleted scenes, why in the sanity's sake they were included in the promotional clips...??? *grumble* I wanted to know why Jack sparks, ahem, the typical female at-Jack-sight reaction in a mermaid. That is, in this particular case, apart of the general being Jack... But all in all, I have no problem with the plot.
With the characters, I have.
I cherished the hopes for them. The Most Evil Villain Possible is a sort of obvious, in the way which inevitably turns every such franchise into Escher stairs, farther and farther, though it already was farthest possibly. In a some part it's silly, in other - fascinating. Anyway, the nature of it is that you know it not only before watching, but before knowing that there will be something to watch. Only room for expectations is: how? and: convincing enough?
Possibilities for other characters are... well, it's still mostly 'how?' and 'convincing enough?', but before getting a summary there's also 'who?'. One can insist that A Love Interest For Sparrow, Possibly Fierce is a sort of obvious too, but I don't think so. Anyway, we've got three movies with TMEVPs in every one, but with no ALIFS,PF, haven't we? No, Elizabeth doesn't quite count, she's not ALIFS,PF, she's A Strong Female Element, who accidentally became ALIFS, Fierce Indeed.
One way or another, what we had before OST release was TMEVP, obvious and expected even before first news about PotC4, a bit less obvious ALIFS,PF, far less obvious mermaids, and hardly ever expected a cleric. Not counting the most expected Barbossa and bonus contingent of kings and not-only-English Navies.
Now, what we got with OST release.
Probably there must be a some '???' anyway, cause when a plot is as straight as a Naval wake, I can't keep up with Angelica (who seems to have no surname, by the way; is she officially Teach or not, at last?). Folks, just what is she want, actually...? Telling Jack the first time about her father's fate, she doesn't seem worried overly with this. Ahh, she plays Daddy's Daughter, then? A nice and well-gunned floating heritage in prospect? Well, we'll see. Wait... so, she cares for him indeed...? So much?! And I'm supposed to believe that's based solely on "I had no Daddy before in my life"? Or maybe "oh, I was so pure innocent little girl before that heinous Sparrow happened, now I'm damned, oh oh... I know...! I'll sacrifice myself and save one lost soul...! my always dearest to me Daddy met yesterday! yay!".
Ow, mates, put down that heavy arguments... especially that rumless bottles, please, thank you... I know, I'm exaggerating, but I'm trying to explain why Angelica was unconvincing to me. I simply didn't buy her. And this worries me much.
Blackbeard was my love through almost two hours. They say that the Hell itself spat Barbossa back out due of the blackest heart ever, you heard it, mates? A foul slander, that is! OK, maybe it was for dragging apples everywhere, but the blackest heart...? Pretty rotten, at the best, in compare, really. Blackbeard is the third best performance of the movie, my rum share on this. Details cared as not many actors beside Johnny Depp care. I was in a happy hellish Paradise then, happily adoring a Lucifer with a sole soft spot for his daughter, what improved him much, of course... until the last ten minutes or so, when the satisfying TMEVP turned out a trivial coward. As he was named before. Isn't it just pissing off? So I'm pissed off. Ugh.
And this too worries me much and pisses more, cause how in the hell I'm to be moved by the plot peak concerning two characters which don't move me at all...???!!! And cause it happens this plot peak is the main and peakest plot peak of the movie itself, it results that all the movie has broken its backbone, for me.
OK, hard luck. *shrug*
I was long ago of opinion that PotC could use some mermaids. Skeletons, a lot, checked. Gold, A LOT, checked. Curses, numerous, checked. A kraken, checked. A parrot, a monkey, checked... No mermaids??? Scandalous... No wonder I was quite excited about them in OST, especially when I learned they'll be predators. Yum. I was much more excited when I learned they'll be not only the nameless background but actual characters.
'A cleric & a hellish monster' has even bigger potential than 'a blacksmith & a governor's daughter', IMHO, and... turned out not exploited enough. Not as it could be. In fact, I'm not sure what does seem to lack there. Comparison Philip & Syrena to Will & Elizabeth is inevitable, as it was pointed in the fandom, and the former as the substitute for the latter wouldn't be the best of Disney ideas, to put it mildly. So it's good thing to find that fortunately it isn't. The most distinct difference, for me, is the emotional colouring of their relations. What I find the most interesting between Philip & Syrena it's their approaching to each other, a careful recognition of two captive strangers. There's fear and anger, nothing to laugh of... and that's what was part of Elizabeth & Will characters - humour, often autoironical. And that's absent in Philip & Syrena. Is it also lacking? Hm, depends. Would they be like this through the next movies (if they'd be at all)... Ugh, no, better not. But being a secondary thread, as they are... OK, let it be. But still there's something missing, for me. They are just... too simple? Not enough detailed, maybe. OK, they didn't get much screentime, but come on! the same was Blackbeard! Not to mention others. Maybe that's just actors' inexperience...
Anyway, I still harbor some warm feelings for them. To tell the truth, I anticipate the fandom will make of them what they deserve, and what they didn't quite get. I count for it. And the ending of their thread, or strictly speaking the fact that it has no clear ending, should help much, since it doesn't close any of ways for interpretations. I like it. And speaking of the lack of heartwringing matter in OST, they are the closest thing to this, which I can get, I suppose...
Scrum. At least one my fulfilled hope, even if minor. He's a good purchase in the fine PotC gallery. When I've learned about him the first time, I imagined someone, hm, smarter a bit, maybe, but now I don't complain at all, he's... er, well, adorable. :D Now I only hope he won't be a shark food or something, in PotC 5. I would ask for a spare hammock on The Pearl for him, if it wouldn't be so risky business, you know...
Let's see what we have more...
George II.
Take. Him. From. Me.
Quickly.
Overcaricaturized. 'S all what I have to tell about him. Ugh, why the rum's gone when I want to forget about something...
Spaniards were there only for Its Majesty Chest glimpse and to demolition works, right? Ah, and for to present like a self-respecting sea dog doesn't use a good rope, when there's a need to persuade someone out of wandering a camp. Or maybe it was supposed to work by the weight only...? The lesson for future - a rope coil of Jack Sparrow's size and approximate weight is not enough; one should try with double weight at least. Or more. And a palm doesn't count.
But since we're at Spaniards, can I get the phone number of Señor Fringy Admiral, please? Pleeease...?! Or maybe no, I'd have to listen to what he has to tell, and has nothing interesting, sadly... But at least his name...?! Am I to think on him Almirante D'Encaje...? You know, I'd rather to recognise him immediately when drooling over inevitable fics. And I'm afraid we have to rely on our imagination in this matter, now. Was it so hard, to make the king to call him by the name along with the range? Eeh... *sniff*
Fortunately and happily, we can count on our proven veterans. A five minutes for silly grinning over the memory of OST Jack, please...
Barbossa! Better than ever... OK, at least better than in AWE, for sure. The sliced apple! Frogs! *g* Of course that Jack must uncork the bottle, Barbossa has to get back the monkey...! though he didn't look overly longing, an ingrate bastard...
Gibbs! My, and he even thinks by himself....! (Though, to manage to steal anything from Jack? Jack...?!) If Jack Sparrow, by a some miracle, will find his way to the beyond at last, he spends a hundred years on pure water only, for pushing Gibbs around, you'll see...
PotC has disturbingly high waste of Navies; since AWE - alarmingly. And, OK, I can understand everything, but do they really need to die so... foolishly? Depreciatingly? So unfair? To be so... trifle away? Maybe a bit of respect for a species extincting at such a rate, eh? Gillette? In defence of Barbossa...?! What, that seething sound...? That's Norrington spinning in his wet grave.
Part 3
---------------------------------
Thank you very, very much for you replies and comments under the previous entry. I keep my request - if you read it, please, tell about it. Discussion most welcomed! :)
Part 1
OST plot looks like a lesson taken after AWE. No big '???' this time, there is A --> B --> C instead, with minor holes looking like 'here was a deleted scene'. Seriously, I hope there will be A LOT of them on DVD. Looks like it should be, at least. And speaking of deleted scenes, why in the sanity's sake they were included in the promotional clips...??? *grumble* I wanted to know why Jack sparks, ahem, the typical female at-Jack-sight reaction in a mermaid. That is, in this particular case, apart of the general being Jack... But all in all, I have no problem with the plot.
With the characters, I have.
I cherished the hopes for them. The Most Evil Villain Possible is a sort of obvious, in the way which inevitably turns every such franchise into Escher stairs, farther and farther, though it already was farthest possibly. In a some part it's silly, in other - fascinating. Anyway, the nature of it is that you know it not only before watching, but before knowing that there will be something to watch. Only room for expectations is: how? and: convincing enough?
Possibilities for other characters are... well, it's still mostly 'how?' and 'convincing enough?', but before getting a summary there's also 'who?'. One can insist that A Love Interest For Sparrow, Possibly Fierce is a sort of obvious too, but I don't think so. Anyway, we've got three movies with TMEVPs in every one, but with no ALIFS,PF, haven't we? No, Elizabeth doesn't quite count, she's not ALIFS,PF, she's A Strong Female Element, who accidentally became ALIFS, Fierce Indeed.
One way or another, what we had before OST release was TMEVP, obvious and expected even before first news about PotC4, a bit less obvious ALIFS,PF, far less obvious mermaids, and hardly ever expected a cleric. Not counting the most expected Barbossa and bonus contingent of kings and not-only-English Navies.
Now, what we got with OST release.
Probably there must be a some '???' anyway, cause when a plot is as straight as a Naval wake, I can't keep up with Angelica (who seems to have no surname, by the way; is she officially Teach or not, at last?). Folks, just what is she want, actually...? Telling Jack the first time about her father's fate, she doesn't seem worried overly with this. Ahh, she plays Daddy's Daughter, then? A nice and well-gunned floating heritage in prospect? Well, we'll see. Wait... so, she cares for him indeed...? So much?! And I'm supposed to believe that's based solely on "I had no Daddy before in my life"? Or maybe "oh, I was so pure innocent little girl before that heinous Sparrow happened, now I'm damned, oh oh... I know...! I'll sacrifice myself and save one lost soul...! my always dearest to me Daddy met yesterday! yay!".
Ow, mates, put down that heavy arguments... especially that rumless bottles, please, thank you... I know, I'm exaggerating, but I'm trying to explain why Angelica was unconvincing to me. I simply didn't buy her. And this worries me much.
Blackbeard was my love through almost two hours. They say that the Hell itself spat Barbossa back out due of the blackest heart ever, you heard it, mates? A foul slander, that is! OK, maybe it was for dragging apples everywhere, but the blackest heart...? Pretty rotten, at the best, in compare, really. Blackbeard is the third best performance of the movie, my rum share on this. Details cared as not many actors beside Johnny Depp care. I was in a happy hellish Paradise then, happily adoring a Lucifer with a sole soft spot for his daughter, what improved him much, of course... until the last ten minutes or so, when the satisfying TMEVP turned out a trivial coward. As he was named before. Isn't it just pissing off? So I'm pissed off. Ugh.
And this too worries me much and pisses more, cause how in the hell I'm to be moved by the plot peak concerning two characters which don't move me at all...???!!! And cause it happens this plot peak is the main and peakest plot peak of the movie itself, it results that all the movie has broken its backbone, for me.
OK, hard luck. *shrug*
I was long ago of opinion that PotC could use some mermaids. Skeletons, a lot, checked. Gold, A LOT, checked. Curses, numerous, checked. A kraken, checked. A parrot, a monkey, checked... No mermaids??? Scandalous... No wonder I was quite excited about them in OST, especially when I learned they'll be predators. Yum. I was much more excited when I learned they'll be not only the nameless background but actual characters.
'A cleric & a hellish monster' has even bigger potential than 'a blacksmith & a governor's daughter', IMHO, and... turned out not exploited enough. Not as it could be. In fact, I'm not sure what does seem to lack there. Comparison Philip & Syrena to Will & Elizabeth is inevitable, as it was pointed in the fandom, and the former as the substitute for the latter wouldn't be the best of Disney ideas, to put it mildly. So it's good thing to find that fortunately it isn't. The most distinct difference, for me, is the emotional colouring of their relations. What I find the most interesting between Philip & Syrena it's their approaching to each other, a careful recognition of two captive strangers. There's fear and anger, nothing to laugh of... and that's what was part of Elizabeth & Will characters - humour, often autoironical. And that's absent in Philip & Syrena. Is it also lacking? Hm, depends. Would they be like this through the next movies (if they'd be at all)... Ugh, no, better not. But being a secondary thread, as they are... OK, let it be. But still there's something missing, for me. They are just... too simple? Not enough detailed, maybe. OK, they didn't get much screentime, but come on! the same was Blackbeard! Not to mention others. Maybe that's just actors' inexperience...
Anyway, I still harbor some warm feelings for them. To tell the truth, I anticipate the fandom will make of them what they deserve, and what they didn't quite get. I count for it. And the ending of their thread, or strictly speaking the fact that it has no clear ending, should help much, since it doesn't close any of ways for interpretations. I like it. And speaking of the lack of heartwringing matter in OST, they are the closest thing to this, which I can get, I suppose...
Scrum. At least one my fulfilled hope, even if minor. He's a good purchase in the fine PotC gallery. When I've learned about him the first time, I imagined someone, hm, smarter a bit, maybe, but now I don't complain at all, he's... er, well, adorable. :D Now I only hope he won't be a shark food or something, in PotC 5. I would ask for a spare hammock on The Pearl for him, if it wouldn't be so risky business, you know...
Let's see what we have more...
George II.
Take. Him. From. Me.
Quickly.
Overcaricaturized. 'S all what I have to tell about him. Ugh, why the rum's gone when I want to forget about something...
Spaniards were there only for Its Majesty Chest glimpse and to demolition works, right? Ah, and for to present like a self-respecting sea dog doesn't use a good rope, when there's a need to persuade someone out of wandering a camp. Or maybe it was supposed to work by the weight only...? The lesson for future - a rope coil of Jack Sparrow's size and approximate weight is not enough; one should try with double weight at least. Or more. And a palm doesn't count.
But since we're at Spaniards, can I get the phone number of Señor Fringy Admiral, please? Pleeease...?! Or maybe no, I'd have to listen to what he has to tell, and has nothing interesting, sadly... But at least his name...?! Am I to think on him Almirante D'Encaje...? You know, I'd rather to recognise him immediately when drooling over inevitable fics. And I'm afraid we have to rely on our imagination in this matter, now. Was it so hard, to make the king to call him by the name along with the range? Eeh... *sniff*
Fortunately and happily, we can count on our proven veterans. A five minutes for silly grinning over the memory of OST Jack, please...
Barbossa! Better than ever... OK, at least better than in AWE, for sure. The sliced apple! Frogs! *g* Of course that Jack must uncork the bottle, Barbossa has to get back the monkey...! though he didn't look overly longing, an ingrate bastard...
Gibbs! My, and he even thinks by himself....! (Though, to manage to steal anything from Jack? Jack...?!) If Jack Sparrow, by a some miracle, will find his way to the beyond at last, he spends a hundred years on pure water only, for pushing Gibbs around, you'll see...
PotC has disturbingly high waste of Navies; since AWE - alarmingly. And, OK, I can understand everything, but do they really need to die so... foolishly? Depreciatingly? So unfair? To be so... trifle away? Maybe a bit of respect for a species extincting at such a rate, eh? Gillette? In defence of Barbossa...?! What, that seething sound...? That's Norrington spinning in his wet grave.
Part 3
---------------------------------
Thank you very, very much for you replies and comments under the previous entry. I keep my request - if you read it, please, tell about it. Discussion most welcomed! :)