The Pirates! Band of Misfits (2012)

Pirate Captain sets out on a mission to defeat his rivals Black Bellamy and Cutlass Liz for the Pirate of the year Award. The quest takes Captain and his crew from the shores of Blood Island to the foggy streets of Victorian London.

Directors:

Peter Lord, Jeff Newitt (co-director)

Writers:

Gideon Defoe (book), Gideon Defoe (screenplay)

Stars:

Hugh Grant, Salma Hayek, Jeremy Piven

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 19 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Hugh Grant	...	The Pirate Captain (voice)
Martin Freeman	...	The Pirate with a Scarf (voice)
Imelda Staunton	...	Queen Victoria (voice)
David Tennant	...	Charles Darwin (voice)
Jeremy Piven	...	Black Bellamy (voice)
Salma Hayek	...	Cutlass Liz (voice)
Lenny Henry	...	Peg Leg Hastings (voice)
Brian Blessed	...	The Pirate King (voice)
Russell Tovey	...	The Albino Pirate (voice)
Anton Yelchin	...	The Albino Pirate (voice)
Brendan Gleeson	...	The Pirate with Gout (voice)
Ashley Jensen	...	The Surprisingly Curvaceous Pirate (voice)
Al Roker	...	The Pirate Who Likes Sunsets and Kittens (voice)
Ben Whitehead	...	The Pirate Who Likes Sunsets and Kittens (voice)
Mike Cooper	...	Admiral Collingwood (voice)

Storyline

Always outclassed by fierce opponents such as Cutlass Liz, Peg Leg Hastings, and Black Bellamy, the hopeless, Pirate Captain, decides it's high time he won the prestigious 1837 "Pirate of the Year Award". However, this is easier said than done, as the determined captain embarks on a foolhardy quest along with his ragtag crew of misfits which involves Queen Victoria herself, an extremely rare dodo bird, and a brilliant young scientist named Charles Darwin. Will Pirate Captain manage to pull off a surprise victory?

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Plot Keywords:

queen victoria character | swashbuckler | post credits scene | chimpanzee | pirate | 

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Taglines:

Join the crew and kick some booty.

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Genres:

Animation | Adventure | Comedy | Family

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG for mild action, rude humor and some language

Details

Official Sites:

Official Facebook Official site

Country:

UK USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

27 April 2012 (USA)

Also Known As:

The Pirates! Band of Misfits

Filming Locations:

Aardman Animation Studios, Bradley Stoke, Bristol, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

$55,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$11,137,734, 29 April 2012, Wide Release

Gross USA:

$31,051,126

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$123,054,041

Company Credits

Production Co:

Columbia Pictures Corporation,Sony Pictures Animation,Aardman Animations

Technical Specs

Runtime:

88 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital Datasat SDDS Dolby Surround 7.1

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The pirate with gout has a Blue Peter badge on his hat.

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Goofs

The London scenes clearly show Tower Bridge as a landmark. The story is set in 1837 yet this bridge wasn't opened until 1895.

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Quotes

[from trailer]
Pirate Captain: You're the best crew a captain could wish for!

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Crazy Credits

No dodos were made extinct during the making of this motion picture.

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Alternate Versions

For the US release, replaced as the voice of the Albino Pirate, and replaced as the voice of the Pirate Who Likes Sunsets and Kittens.

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Connections

References 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

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Soundtracks

Fiesta
Written by Jem Finer, Shane MacGowan, Edmund Koetscher, and Rudi Lindt
Performed by The Pogues
Courtesy of Warner Music UK Ltd.

User Reviews

A rousing triumph from Aardman

Having loved Aardman's other work, especially Wallace and Gromit, Creature Comforts, Chicken Run and Shaun the Sheep, I was much looking forward to The Pirates! And I found myself loving it. Apart from sagging slightly in the pace in the middle with a couple of scenes that could've done with more punch perhaps, it has all the attributes that made me love Aardman in the first place.

For instance, The Pirates! is a marvellous looking film, you could really tell that a lot of creativity and effort went into it. The colours and backgrounds are plentiful and rich with always something interesting to look at, and the character designs are appealing with the title character reminding of a youthful Wallace with hair and a beard. The 3D is one of the rare instances where it enhances the visuals and action rather than detract from it.

Theodore Shapiro's music is enough to rouse the spirit, and does very well conveying a sense of adventure. The songs featured are fun and memorable. I also loved the crispness and wit of the dialogue managing to appeal to children and adults alike, and the story is exciting with lots of charm and heart. The characters appeal because of their larger-than-life personalities, true the names are on the generic side(Pirate Captain, Pirate with gout) but that was probably the intention. I did enjoy seeing the likes of Charles Darwin and Queen Victoria as well, and they especially Queen Victoria added a lot to the film.

As for the vocal cast, the cast itself was one of the film's main attractions and the voice work is first rate. Hugh Grant shows impeccable comic timing, and Salma Hayak voices Cutlass Liz with lots of sass. Jeremy Piven shows that he can do wonderfully with a character that is strongly-written and provides a good contrast to Grant's Pirate Captain. Brendan Gleeson and Brian Blessed give rousing turns, David Tennant's Charles Darwin charms and Imelda Staunton voices Queen Victoria as if she were born to do it.

Overall, Aardman does it again, a wonderful family film that anybody could enjoy. 9/10 Bethany Cox