Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides Directed by: Rob Marshall Starring: Johnny Depp, Penélope Cruz, Ian McShane Rating: TBD Release Date: May 20, 2011

TRAILER SCORE: 10/10

MY THOUGHTS: I will admit my bias, as I absolutely adored the first three films, but that aside, this trailer absolutely knocked my socks off. Though it be a mere trailer, it's all here: Jack Sparrow (the franchise's most beloved character), the incredible Hans Zimmer score, a great supporting cast, and of course, the wild combination of action, adventure and romance that we've all come to expect from Bruckheimer's Pirates films. Not to mention the incessant comedic zingers that spout forth from the mouth of Johnny Depp's perfectly played Jack Sparrow: "There should be a Captain in there somewhere."

I will admit that I was skeptical when I first heard that another Pirates film was in the works, but when I learned that Rob Marshall was at the helm (Memoirs of a Geisha, Nine), my shoulders relaxed a little bit. Some skepticism remained, however, as the third Pirates film had solidly completed the complex arc of the Pirates tale, and a part of me just wanted to see the series remain "complete" as is. However, after seeing this trailer, I'm entirely amped to check out this fourth installment of the series.

Based on this trailer, I'm very happy to see that the production values seem to have remained intact, that is to say, this film looks to be a consistent continuation of the saga on all filmic fronts. I'm excited to see that Geoffrey Rush is returning, as well as Keith Richards. I believe Penelope Cruz is a good actress, but she's always struck me as a little hyper, if not wonky -- I'm sure Marshall will work her into the framework just fine though (he did well enough with her in Nine). I'm sure I won't be the only one missing Keira Knightley here, but alas, such is life.

I've just added this film's release date to my calendar -- It looks to be one of the more anticipated films of 2011.

i