I watch a lot of “family” films with the children (8&11) and they are roundly poor. This, though, exceeded my expectations.
When we sat down to watch this, I had no idea that, like Pirates of the Carribean, it was “based” on a ride. And I honestly thought it was really clever how they made that link without labouring it. With that out of the way it just turns into a fun, fantasy adventure.
Surprisingly, it delivered a lot of laughs, but this is mostly down to the main cast who are all very good. Emily Blunt is a fantastic comic actress and she generated the most laughs for me. Dwayne manages to be earnest in the right places, despite the fantastical themes, and maintains a subtle edge of unlikeability. Jack Whitehall seems to be playing a version of his own Dad from “Travels with my Father” and that’s as excellent as you might expect. And it’s all neatly leavened with Jessie Plemmons, playing a ridiculous caricature of a German prince (or something) and some well conceptualised CG baddies, that make undead pirates seem a bit dull.
The gender politics aren’t hammered home and even my 11 y/o got some of the more subtle jokes on the topic.
On the downside, the music in places is terrible: anachronistic and off the pace. And the pace slackens in a few places so we can learn inconsequential details about characters. Once again, it’s just that tiny bit too long.
★★★★