The Pirates: Band of Misfits

Will kids enjoy The Pirates: Band of Misfits? I honestly can't say. The movie is colorful and fun and all, but will they be laughing at the jokes revolved around Charles Darwin (who has a supporting role in the film) and the Elephant Man (who makes a cameo)? The humor might be a bit too sophisticated for some kids, and the pace might be leisurely at times. All I do know is that accompanying adults who have a taste for dry, British humor will find this a riot. As long as they avoid the trailers, which give away too many of the film's gags.

It's always refreshing to see a stop motion animated film on the big screen, and The Pirates is the work of British animation studio, Aardman, who have mastered the craft of stop motion with films like Wallace and Gromit and Chicken Run. This movie (based on a series of books by Gideon Defoe, who also wrote the screenplay) is not quite as memorable as some of the studio's earlier works, but it's still a lot of fun, and continues their tradition of filling just about every corner of the screen with some kind of visual gag. Besides, how can you not fall in love with a movie that features a band of scurvy pirates as its heroes, who all have self-describing names like "Albino Pirate", "The Surprisingly Curvacious Pirate" (a woman in a not very convincing beard), "The Pirate with Gout", and of course, "The Pirate Who Likes Sunsets and Kittens". This band of pirates don't even have a proper parrot to sit on their Captain's shoulder. He uses a dodo bird, instead.

What they do have is a spirited, if not somewhat bungling, Pirate Captain (voiced by Hugh Grant), who believes in his crew 100%, even if they are frequently unsuccessful in their efforts of looting and pillaging. He sees his crew as the most loyal band that ever sailed the seven seas, and they see him as a great man, due to his bountiful beard, and the fact that he holds a "Ham Night" every week for dinner. The Captain's biggest dream is to win the coveted "Pirate of the Year" award, a prize that goes out annually to the pirate who steals the most booty. Unfortunately, the poor Captain is at a bit of a disadvantage, as he's currently the least-feared Pirate out there. Heck, his wanted poster only offers twelve doubloons (and a free pen) for his capture. Because of this, he is frequently laughed out of the running for Pirate of the Year by his more successful competition, like the stuck-up Black Bellamy (Jeremy Piven), or the sexy Cutlass Liz (Selma Hayek).

During his travels to prove his worth to earn the big prize, the Captain has a run-in with Charles Darwin (David Tennant), who is desperately seeking a girlfriend, but mainly has a monkey butler for company. The monkey can't talk, but can communicate with little signs ala the Coyote in the Looney Tunes shorts. Darwin brings the band of pirates to London, so that they can enter the Captain's dodo bird (the last one known of its kind) in a science competition. Of course, things get even more complicated when the violence-prone Queen Victoria (Imelda Staunton), who has an intense hatred for pirates, gets involved. The movie is filled with absurdist humor, and vicious satire of historical figures that will likely fly over the heads of the younger members of the audience. I almost question the studio's decision to market it to kids, as adults are almost certain to get much more out of it.

Still, that's not to say that there's nothing for kids to enjoy in The Pirates. There are plenty of slapstick gags that will speak to them, as well as an action-heavy third act that goes on a bit too long, and sadly, loses a lot of the wit from earlier in the film. I guess director Peter Lord had to compromise somewhere. Where he fortunately did not compromise is in the casting, especially with the strong central voice performance by Hugh Grant, who hasn't been this funny in years. All of the roles are cast quite well, even if the movie does throw in a few too many recognizable names and voices in small cameo roles, simply so the filmmakers can add another well-known name to its credit list. Still, everyone does a great job here, and the celebrity-heavy casting does not become as distracting as it could have.

Looking on the IMDB, I see that not only did this movie have its title changed before it came to the US (its original title was The Pirates: In An Adventure with Scientists), but some voices were changed for American audiences, and some jokes concerning leper ships and sexual innuendo were toned down or altered. This pretty much cements my belief that this movie was intended more for adults looking for something witty, rather than kids. Oh, don't get me wrong, your kids are bound to find something to like here. But let's face it, this one's mainly for the adults, and it shouldn't have been edited.

One final note: It also shouldn't have been in 3D, which adds very little to the experience, and muddies the picture quality. See it in 2D if you can.

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