I am happy to say that “Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides” is a big improvement over the previous entry, “At World’s End.” Whereas that one had an incomprehensible story that I gave up on following, “On Stranger Tides’” plot is a little more straightforward and somewhat easier to follow. Stars Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, and director Gore Verbinski have done left the building, and in their place are “Chicago” director Rob Marshall, Ian McShane, and the alluring Penelope Cruz. With some of the deadweight removed and new elements thrown in, this showed promise. And of course we have Johnny Depp back as Captain Jack Sparrow, whom without there would be no franchise.

This one has Jack sailing to the Fountain of Youth, and we’re not talking Beverly Hills. Along with him on the voyage is his former lover Angelica (Penelope Cruz) who proves to be every bit as trustworthy as Jack (which is to say not at all). Also onboard is the legendary pirate Blackbeard (Ian McShane) whose giant sword wields a vicious power with a simple wave of it. And just when you thought he was out of the way, Captain Hector Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) is back as well, leaving Sparrow with the usual number of antagonists working against him, and there’s always plenty to go around.

You’d think that by now this franchise would have bought the farm and that the only reason for it to continue is money. But even now, Johnny Depp still looks to be having a blast as this rock star of a pirate. Never easily upstaged, except by Keith Richards who has one of the movie’s best lines, he finds much to play around with and hasn’t lost a beat since the beginning. It could have been a movie where he could just take the money and run, but if he’s having fun then so are we.

Personally, I’m glad Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley are gone as their romance ran its course, and to have them bitching and moaning at each other yet again would have been tiresome from the start. Instead we have Penelope Cruz who remains an actress as fantastic as she is beautiful. She more than holds her own with Depp as Angelica as her character threatens to be even more devious than Jack. Seeing these two play off each other kept me guessing who was the more honest of the two, and if they ever reached a point where they start believing their own lies.

I’m also glad to see Geoffrey Rush back as well and fresh off of the Best Picture winner “The King’s Speech.” His character of Barbossa has had an interesting journey throughout these films as he’s been an antagonist and then a protagonist. By the time you reach him in “On Stranger Tides,” you’re not quite sure what to make of him which is part of the fun. Like Depp, Rush still has a joyous time playing this enigmatic character, and his gleeful delivery of dialogue is highly entertaining.

Ian McShane was an inspired choice to play Blackbeard, but in some ways his performance is a bit of a letdown. He’s very good, but after watching him portray one of the most cold-blooded bad guys ever in “Sexy Beast,” I expected a lot more menace on display for us all to see. That would have made “On Stranger Tides”’ all the more enthralling to watch. Still, he’s a great actor and could have done much worse.

The one character however I could have done without is that stubborn missionary Philip Swift. It’s a bland character who really serves no purposes in a movie that already has many characters to juggle. This is no fault of the actor playing him as Sam Claflin does his best with an underwritten part, but it felt like the screenwriters were making up for the loss of Orlando and Keira, and they so did not need to.

I do have to admit that I really dug the mermaids and their natural beauty as much as I did the filmmakers’ take on them. Whereas they are as lovely as we remember them from stories and fairy tales, these mermaids pack a vicious set of jaws and would sooner devour you than kiss you. There is some nudity here but no breasts (it’s a Disney movie folks), and you will find them. I guess you could say this is Disney’s subtle take on “Fatal Attraction.”

With Rob Marshall taking over directing duties on this one, I really admire how he streamlined this venture. Even though the movie stumbles a bit in the mid-section, Rob keeps things moving at a swift pace and none of it gets overwhelming. “At World’s End” was so over bloated to where I wouldn’t be able to describe to you the plot of it or name the character Chow Yun Fat played. But here you have a good idea of who everyone is, and even if there are things that don’t make complete sense, it won’t matter too much.

In the end, all I really wanted out of “Pirates Of The Caribbean: On Stranger Tides”’ was a good time. It’s not a movie I ask too much from, and I liked how Disney learned from the franchise’s previous mistakes. While the wonderfully entertaining “Curse Of The Black Pearl” set the bar high, this one reaches up far enough towards it. Along with another thunderous Hans Zimmer score, I was pleased with this fourth “’Pirates” film, and I am open to seeing a part 5 (and you know there will be one!).

* * * out of * * * *

Many will probably look at “The King’s Speech” and think it’s one of those snobby British art movies, but that of course will say more about its so-called critics than anything else. The story of a man who “bloody well stammers” and works to overcome this affliction that keeps him from completing sentences (let alone a whole speech) sounds more like one of those formula movies where we watch a human being triumph over personal obstacles with the help of a mentor. Then again, not many of those movies are about King George VI, and with this being (sigh) “based on a true story” adds more dramatic heft to this particular story.

Formulaic or not, “The King’s Speech” is a magnificent film that takes what seems like an easy to overcome problem (or so others might think) and turns it into compelling cinema. This is in large part thanks to a wonderful cast that includes Colin Firth, Geoffrey Rush, and Helena Bonham Carter. There’s nary a single weak performance to be found here, and this may very well be the best acted film of 2010.

Seriously, I bow down to Mr. Firth after watching him here. That he gives a brilliant performance is no surprise as he has had an amazing career to date, but this role in particular seems all the more difficult for anyone to pull off. Mastering the technical part and making the stammering seem utterly believable must have been a job unto itself. How do you get an audience to suspend disbelief and get them to believe you are seriously afflicted with such a seriously irritating impediment when everyone knows you don’t have that problem in real life?

Many actors would probably start off trying to master the stammer to where they are not thinking about it. But with Colin, he digs deep into the role to get at who King George VI is as a person and what has affected him emotionally. All that is prologue to the problem we see him having when he is forced to speak before crowds who expect more from him than he can give. That he gets at the heart of the character and creates such a vivid portrait of a leader we don’t know much about is what makes his performance so damn good. As for the technical aspects of the role, I’m guessing Colin saw that as secondary, but it should go without saying that he perfects the stammer.

Then there’s Geoffrey Rush who also served as one of the film’s producers. As Lionel Logue, the King’s speech therapist, his character serves as the Mr. Myagi of “The King’s Speech.” Lionel gets the King to do a variety of exercises that are physical as well as vocal, but his biggest challenge is in getting George to exorcise the personal problems that affect him and his speech more than anything else. All the tongue twisters and warm ups won’t do a thing until he confronts the emotional scars that he has endured up to this point in life.

Ever since his Oscar winning turn in “Shine,” Geoffrey Rush has been one of the most entertaining actors in movies. I don’t know if it’s his deep voice or his incredibly dry wit, but he’s never boring in any film he’s in. Whether it’s as the Queen’s servant in “Elizabeth” or Jack Sparrow’s foe in the “Pirates Of The Caribbean” movies, Rush has maintained such a fascinating presence in one performance after another. Sometimes all it takes is a look or move from him to get a big response from the audience, and it was a big audience when I saw it at the nearby theater. Seeing him strike a pose in a chair Lionel has no business sitting in is enough to get a laugh.

Now how many great performances has Helena Bonham Carter given? It doesn’t even seem like it’s been all that long since she did “A Room With A View,” and that was made back in 1985! She still glides effortlessly from role to role, and it truly is impossible to pigeonhole her. Whether its “Fight Club” or Tim Burton’s disappointing remake of “Alice In Wonderland,” she has proven capable of playing any role given to her with relative ease. Not many actors can do that it seems these days.

As the King’s wife, Queen Elizabeth, Helena is sublime throughout. She makes Elizabeth both empathetic to her husband’s problems and very strong in the role that is suddenly thrust upon her. Helena s another is powerful in that her work is actually quite subtle, and you can never really catch her acting. Seeing her interact with “commoners” is a delight as she comes off as professional but very polite and never snobby. I keep talking about actors who inhabit roles more than play them and Helena is another name to add to that ever growing list.

There are also a number of other great performances to take note of as well in “The King’s Speech.” I was surprised to see Guy Pearce on board as George’s brother, King Edward VIII, whose passion for another overcomes his royal responsibilities. Derek Jacobi also shows up as Cosmo Gordon Lang, the Archbishop of Canterbury, whose advisements to the King perhaps go a bit further than they need to. I almost didn’t recognize Michael Gambon as King George V, his booming voice covered up by a face that is very un-Dumbledore like. Claire Bloom also is wonderful as Queen Mary, and she’s also another one of those actors who you never catch acting. And then you have Timothy Spall who plays the famous British Prime Minister Winston Churchill almost as well as I did back in the 7^th grade (I played him back in junior high and… well, anyway).

Seriously though, the story does have that setup of that person who asks for help from a “wise old man” and then keeps coming and quitting on him and then comes back again for more lessons. But director Tom Hooper and screenwriter David Seidler keep it from ever becoming a routine film, and their attention to historical accuracy throughout is very commendable. Adding to this all is the chemistry of the actors who interact with each other so well. I also have to say that the process of a man giving a speech to an entire nation has never seemed so exciting before. “The King’s Speech” may not be an action thriller per say, but the last half had me on the edge of my seat.

Director Tom Hooper brilliantly sets up the tension between King George VI and his audience right from the start. As we watch George at a local race, stumbling over a speech he is forced to give, Hooper really puts us in the mindset of someone with a serious problem of speaking in front of others. We are made to feel the way Colin Firth’s character does, and we immediately sympathize with what he is going through. That scene hangs over our heads and the main characters all the way to the end where I guess you could say George has his “Rocky” moment.

“The King’s Speech” is more than deserving of the accolades that are currently being bestowed upon it, and it is clear that there are many more to come. It is easily one of the best and most well made movies of 2010.

**** out of ****