Its hard to generate the same great fun when you go into a whole new direction. Without the cast of characters that we had in the first three it didn't feel right. Sameness or at least familiarity is not always a bad thing. Yeah, Geoffrey Rush was here in make-up that made him less recognizable but this was Johnny Depp's movie without any doubt because he was the most recognizable face in the cast, and maybe that was the idea. Ian McShane was the perfect Blackbeard. He was Blackbeard as one would imagine him to be. The other characters we've never met before and didn't feel a whole lot for. As in the first three the FX were spectacular and maybe a little effusive. We never had this much "magic" or fantasy before but maybe that took the place of the missing familiar characters. A lot more talky than we would like. In fact it reminded me a little of Matrix Reloaded. 6 out of 10 for me because it didn't have the same sizzle as we're used to in this franchise.
