Pirates of the Caribbean 5

I still quiver in excitement of this movie where dead men sail blue waters under red sky. A story of both pirates and men, death and curses, blood and fire, woman and stars and Jack the Sparrow. And of course, who can forget the nemesis of the endless rumble of a revenge lit belly, quenched by a lethal sip of a collapsing ocean.

I saw this movie at the Global Cinema Accra and the sound system was just ideal – it was as if the canons were bouncing off the walls and straying dangerously close to where I was sited, the crashing sound of swords drew me into the scene, almost in character and the popcorn, the popcorn was almost a distraction but still, I survived.

If you noticed anything in the movie, you definitely noticed the grand heist of the Sparrow and his crew members which was only possible because, like me, they understood one simple truth – if you cannot get to the money in the safe, take the bank! It’s simple really. However, you may require a legion of capable machinery, the kind I am certain was not in the market for the set period of this movie which was loosely between 1720 and 1750. I do believe using but a hand full of horses to pull that off was overstretching the definition of “horse power” by a bit.

The movie started out, of course, with a certain dramatic touch – a cursed father, Will Turner (played by Orlando Bloom), imprisoned behind Mystic bars and a young but audacious son, Henry Turner (played by Brenton Thwaites), ready to go to any length to free his father. However, these two were not alone on the negative family tide list. As the movie unraveled, so did the secret behind Carina Smyth’s birth (played by Kaya Scodelario). I call her “the lady of the stars”. This character is truly an inspiration to women everywhere and a reminder that nothing is bigger than the will of a woman who knows her stuff.

The action, the fantasy and the adventure were pivoted by two main characters, sustained by years of “bad blood” – Captain Salazar (played by Javier Bardem) and the notorious Captain Jack Sparrow (played by Johnny Depp). I got to tell you – the first thing I noticed on Captain Salazar was not his face half burnt out or his imposing presence. It was his hair! My first thought was – okay, I need to know what hair relaxer he uses because it works magic. Believe me when I say it is impossible to fully appreciate the statement “dead men tell no tales” until you’ve seen the movie.

I saved the best for last - Captain Jack Sparrow who was a well sought after character in the movie (and not with good intentions) still managed to provoke some degree of laughter with his hilarious, rhythmic, scamper away from foes and his twisted sense of humor even in the face of getting his head chopped off. The battle at Halman Bay almost made an honest man of him if not for the somewhat punctual arrival of the wedding crasher and I believe he had no regrets with that because she wasn’t exactly “the apple of his eyes”.

Jack Sparrow and everything that he is, is a capable Captain famous for his creativity in times of despair and even his crew acknowledge that at the end of it all, they serve the greatest man to ever skipper a ship. “Make way! Captain Jack Sparrow on deck” echoed through the ship as the sparrow once again manned the black pearl. So, I have a rendezvous somewhere else. Do watch this movie and… see ya!!