10 Promising Films Ruined By Changing The Director
10. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was a movie that nobody expected to do well. Pirate movies are notoriously difficult to sell to audiences, Johnny Depp was far from anyones idea of a leading man at this point in his career, and the film was based on a ride. So far, were looking at three big reasons why the movie was doomed to sink to the bottom of Davy Jones Locker. Thats why it was such a welcome surprise when it turned out to be a fun adventure. And though the sequels that made up the first trilogy never quite lived up to the original, they still managed to be entertaining enough. When the announcement was made that the series would continue on, but focusing on Depps Jack Sparrow and Geoffrey Rushs Barbossa, it was an interesting approach, especially sending them after the Fountain of Youth and adapting the novel On Stranger Tides for the story. But Gore Verbinski, who directed the first three films, wasnt available for On Stranger Tides. And though Penelope Cruz was a welcome addition to the cast, director Rob Marshall wasnt a good fit for the film. The entire movie felt too safe, and the shoe-horned love story between the missionary and mermaid like something that was thrown together to make up for the lack of Bloom and Knightley.
Percival Constantine is the author of several novels and short stories, including the Vanguard superhero series, and regularly writes and comments on movies, comics, and other pop culture. More information can be found at his website, PercivalConstantine.com
