Livi's Corner: Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Second Thoughts

This is a new feature I'd like to run through the course of what will be the best summer ever for Joey's blog! My friend, Olivia, or Livi, would love to rant about things I've reviewed, whether she agrees with them or disagrees with them. So she'll offer her second thoughts about things that I've previously reviewed

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Second Thoughts

The first indication that the movie was going to be anything but original was the music. It was pretty much the exact same as the music from the movie's predecessors. And therein lies the problem - it was the EXACT SAME. Oh, I know, series in a movie tend to keep to the same 'theme' so when a person hears it, she or he immediately recognizes that this music = this movie and makes the connection. Unfortunately, sometimes this tends to backfire, as it did in the case of POTC: On Stranger Tides. You see, POTC was so wildly popular that every band or orchestra concert simply HAD to play the music. Everywhere you went, you heard Jack's Theme and The Medallion. By the time I sat down to the fourth movie and was forced to endure a few hours listening to basically the same thing, I wanted to grab my own pistol and blow my brains out. Hans Zimmer is a great composer, but he failed spectacularly at making this score original. In fact, I have doubts he even tried to make it original. It's like they took all of the scores in the past, added some more choir parts, turned up the volume and called it done. In a shining example of a series music done right, the Harry Potter music has changed a lot since the first movie. John Williams was the initial composer who came up with the tune that we all associate with the Harry Potter films. But did it stay this way? No! By the sixth movie, the theme had been expanded and the music changed just enough to keep it fresh while at the same time touching on those familiar chords. Disney should be on their knees begging the Warren Brothers to teach them musical theory for soundtracks.

Every character had a set personality from the start and by George they kept to it! Jack was a trickster, Blackbeard was evil, Gibbs was blindly loyal, and Barbossa was pretty much the same from the last few movies. Screw character development, this is Pirates of the Freaking Caribbean! Throw a flashy sword fight in and no one will notice the utter lack of character growth, I swear! Some may argue that Phillip, the kindly priest, had some characterization going on there, but only a very small degree - all he did was change his mind that Blackbeard wouldn't be able to be 'saved' at all. And that was because he had fallen in love (predictably) with the first mermaid who garnered pity from the audience. Don't tell me you didn't see that one coming. Angelica wasn't characterized either. She had one motivation : to save poor Daddy Dear's soul. She is also more forgiving and tries to protect the crew to a degree, but that's basically it. She's a more dynamic character than the others, but still stays the same throughout the movie.

Thanks to all of the flat characters, it was easy to see some of the things that were going to happen. Luckily there were still enough twist to keep the movie interesting, but it was no Sherlock Holmes. Every other scene had someone holding someone at gunpoint/knife/pointy thing at their throat, and after the three movies of this going on, it's just not as effective anymore. And all of the fight scenes got boring. POTC outdid themselves in the third movie when Jack, Will, and Barbossa have a three-way duel on a moving wheel of doom. Compare that to barrels falling down, and yeah, sure, impressive, but really....not. At the end I was wishing the fighting would stop. Just nuke the place and hurry up with the damn plot! The ending of the movie killed a bit of my soul as well when I watched Johnny Depp walk along the beach and deliver a perfectly cliche speech with a perfectly cliche parting line : "...it's a pirate's life for me." Can anyone say, "CHEESY"?

The movie had some redeeming points, however. The actors did a great job performing, even if their roles were constricted. The minor characters did a wonderful job : a few of the crew members caught my interest more than the main characters at time. Penelope Cruz was an excellent Angelica, and sometimes overshadowed Depp during some scenes. The chemistry paled in comparison to Knightly and Bloom's, but was passable for a movie labeled in the Action genre. The humorous banter between the two seemed natural, and Jack continued to make me laugh throughout the movie.

The special effects should be appreciated as well. POTC always had some very convincing and realistic effects, and the special effects crew gave their all on this one. The mermaid issue as far as the whole 'walking on land' thing was taken care of smoothly, and the mermaids' tails look great.

Overall, with those in mind, the movie turned out to be disappointing and not as good as the first three. It had some cool points to it, but if you do go to see it, don't expect anything better some witty quips and fancy dueling.

Overall: 3.0/5.0

American Idol - What Went Wrong this Season

Like many, I had insanely high hopes for this season of American Idol. Even though half of the judges were gone, I still felt that Idol could squeeze one more season out of me before I ditch it 100%. The fact of the matter is, however, that this season couldn't have been any worse. From the promises not fulfilled to the awful talent, this season was easily one of the worst in recent history.

Let's start with the good. The judges this season are a surprising fresh of breath air. Jennifer Lopez is NOT the new Paula Abdul, and she actually talks to the contestant on what they can improve on, and usually gives great criticism. Not to mention she is extremely beautiful. Steven Tyler, although a bit crazy, still says things that, for the most part, make sense. Randy, on the other hand, is terrible. He doesn't understand music at all, and he just says a confusing mess of words that sound smart, and then adds "(contestant's name) is in it to win it!!!", and the crowd goes wild.

Were Idol went bad this season, was all the unfulfilled promises that they weren't made. I remember when AI's producers made a huge announcement back in 2010 that said that American Idol would be completely different this season. Sure, the top 24 was gone, for the better, but what about all the stuff they said would change, that didn't? Remember when they said there would be guest judges? Yeah, I didn't see a single new face on the panel all season. How about when they said that contestant's wouldn't be forced to sing genre-specific songs out of their comfort zone? Well, tell that to Naima on Elton John week, or tell it to Casey almost all season. That's why most of the good talent is already gone, and why people like Scotty stayed in all season, because he could sing essentially anything.

The talent this season also wasn't as good as past's. I recall Randy saying that we had the best talent we've had all season, earlier in the top 13. And he was right. Standouts like Thia, Paul, Casey, and Haley really shined, but were eliminated too early. This is partly due to the fact that singers like them can't make it far, because America isn't ready to embrace true talent! (See: Top 40 with Ryan Seacrest).

Scotty McCreary and Lauren Alaina in the top 2? Oh give me a break. Scotty is decent, I'll give him that. He's got a good voice, but how he made it to the finals is beyond me. First, he gets the "12-year old girl vote" (see: Justin Bieber), which isn't a true test of talent. Second, he comes across as the "all-american country boy", which fulfills three more stereotypes. And third, I just plain don't enjoy him. He's awkward, and makes freaky faces at the camera, and shifts his eyebrows up and down and maniacally stares at you. Now, to Lauren. She's sooooooo fake. I'm sick of her act. Her and her mom are the biggest staged family I've ever seen. Not only is she fake, but her singing is terrible. She has virtually no range, and her whole "I broke my vocal cords" thing was just to get the sympathy vote. I miss good talent, like Haley Reinhart and Casey Abrams. Those two were my dream top 2, and then the season all went downhill.

Well, with all my complaining, you're probably wondering: well how do we fix it? Simple. America can vote all they want, but they create the bottom 3, and have no say in who goes home. Then, the judges decide who gets sent home, because the judges understand talent, and know who can shine as a good singer. American Idol could learn a thing or two from shows like America's Got Talent, or Dancing With the Stars (which I hate). These shows give judges more say in how the show turns out, which is what I think it would take to revive this dead reality show.

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Review

Okay, I lied. 1) I said that the next review would be Thor, and 2) I said that I would not settle for another Pirates movie. Even though I said Thor would be next, I felt that while Pirates was still fresh in my head, I should review it first. Pirates 4 was certainly unexpected, and we all thought that we'd seen the last of Captain Jack Sparrow after the third film back in 2007. We were wrong, and, surprisingly, Pirates 4 delivers one of the most exhilarating adventures in years, and is miles better than the second and third films.

On Stranger Tides is a refresh to the Pirates film series. Gone are the boring Will Turner and Elizabeth Swan, and they are replaced with new blood in the form of Sparrow's old flame, Angelica, and her father, the dreaded Blackbeard. The story in Pirates 4 is certainly not it's strong point, but when it came down to it, I didn't care. The film begins with Jack having escaped the hands of British soldiers, and he's in search of a crew. He meets up with Angelica, and boards the Queen Anne's Revenge, Blackbeard's cursed ship. This begins a long race to reach the Fountain of Youth, with Captain Barbossa and his soldiers in hot pursuit. Along the way, they all encounter zombies, mermaids, and a cast of new and familiar faces. The plot is simple, and easy for anyone to follow. It's quite predictable, but that doesn't really take away from the film, as you'll find out in a bit.

Pirates 4 is certainly not breaking any boundaries, but the film is just pure fun. Johnny Depp is once again a laugh riot as Jack Sparrow, and Penelope Cruz and Ian McShane do a good job as Angelica and Blackbeard, respectively. It was nice not having the non-pirate duo of Will and Elizabeth in these films, since their boring relationship never really pushed the plot anywhere at all. Thankfully that's gone, and replaced with a love story between a crew member of Anne's Revenge, and a mysterious mermaid. Like I said, the movie is a lot of fun, and their are some very cool action scenes, including one in particular, when the crew has to capture a mermaid, which is thrilling and unexpected.

The special effects are good, and the ships and locales in Pirates 4 look better than ever. Queen Anne's Revenge comes alive at the wave of Blackbeard's hands, and the last battle at the Fountain of Youth is a sight to behold. Of course, Jack Sparrow's catchy pirate tunes are back, and whenever you hear the first notes of "He's a Pirate", you know you're in for a treat.

Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides is a bold step forward in the franchise, boasting a grand scale adventure that must be seen.

Overall: 4.0/5.0

NEXT REVIEW: THOR

Lady GaGa - Hair

Hot off her past releases, Judas and Edge of Glory, Lady GaGa once again delivers a new single off her next album, in the form of "Hair". Musically, the song is nothing special, with interesting saxophone pieces accompanying a catchy pop piano medley. What sets "Hair" apart from GaGa's other songs, is the message. She says that she is "as free as her hair" and wants to "die living just as free as her hair". Her past songs have more been about relationships, and "Hair" is different because it expresses her freedom and individuality more. It's a good song, with a good message, but don't expect it to blow you away.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Okq8xHrIZ8I

NEXT REVIEW: THOR

Knight and Day Review

Knight and Day is a difficult movie to review. It gets a lot of things right, but then again gets a lot of things wrong. It's a confused action romcom with decent acting and special effects, but is burdened with a poor plot and equally poor writing.

The plot is Knight and Day is ridiculous. Knight and Day follows Roy Miller (Tom Cruise) who is a secret agent running from these evil folks. He runs into June (Cameron Diaz) on an airplane, and then their adventure begins. After surviving a plane crash, they are sent into a frenzy of firefights and chases that never seem to end. It seemed like for every non-action scene there was, there were 3 more action scenes. They weren't terrible, but it seemed like the plot went nowhere because bad guys would jump out of nowhere and then they would attack. The ending is equally as silly, and when it finally reaches the end, it doesn't deliver. This same action romcom formula has been done millions of times before, with Killers, The Bounty Hunter, Date Night, etc. Knight and Day needed to distance itself from the others, and it didn't follow through.

Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz do a good job together. They have decent chemistry, and the characters they played were funny and enjoyable. Cruise played super-cool spy guy who kills people and moves on, and Diaz played his "kidnapee" who is in shock for half of the film. It's funny, and it works. The writing however, doesn't. The writing is stupid, non-sensical, and there were so many writing cliches and one-liners that I couldn't help but laugh at. All the while the movie was trying to be serious, and when Cruise delivers some stupid line, I can't take the movie seriously anymore.

Where Knight and Day does deliver, is in the special effects area. Since there were action scenes abound, one might expect them to get lazy with effects, but no. Cruise and Diaz did most of their own stunts, and there are some scenes that will make you go "wow". It's a bit upsetting, though, that that's all the movie has going for it, because Knight and Day had a lot of potential.

Knight and Day isn't terrible, but it doesn't do much to distance itself from a world full of action romcoms. It's a good movie, and it's worth a rent, but don't expect it to blow you away.

Overall: 2.5/5.0