Back in 2014, period adventure comedy “The Pirates” released to much admiration from the public, becoming the third highest grossing feature of the year. Even today, it sits comfortably in the top 30 highest grossing Korean films of all time at the domestic box-office. As a result, conversation of a follow-up had always been on the table, but several reasons, including leading pair Son Ye-jin and Kim Nam-gil's refusal to return to the high waters, meant that the sequel couldn't materialise until now, when producers decided to change tracks with an all new director, new characters and cast to bring us “The Pirates: The Last Royal Treasure”. After being the first to cross 1 million admissions in Korea this year and to date being the highest grossing Korean production on 2022, it is now streaming worldwide exclusively on Netflix.
Leader Woo Moo-chi, self-proclaimed Greatest Swordsman in Goryeo, and his group of merry bandits find themselves marooned at sea, where they are rescued by the beautiful pirate captain Hae-rang and her gang of pirates. While they still debate what to do with these new passengers after they recover, their ship comes across a Japanese vessel that they quickly win over. From their captives, they find that the Japanese were actually in the waters to find the legendary final treasure of the Goryeo dynasty, which was taken away and hidden by the top generals of the last Goryeo king. With a task this mammoth at hand and with people necessary to find the task on both teams, Woo Moo-chi and Hae-rang decide to join hands and find the treasure. Unbeknownst to them, also in search for the treasure is rebel general Boo Heung-soo and his team, who will stop at nothing to get their hands on a treasure that is capable of financing an entire new kingdom.
This new swashbuckling adventure on the high seas takes several pages out of its predecessor's book, since once again, we have a group of bandits and pirates joining hands for a common cause. The action comedy element too stays intact, but here the slapstick comedy is more of the hit-and-miss variety and enjoyment of certain jokes and scenarios would largely depend on how individual audiences warm up to a certain character or actor. Betrayals, romance, comedic sword fights and other standards of the genre all find a place here, making the overall feature feel rather generic at times and never quite living up to its promise and ambition, seemingly taking inspiration not just from the first feature but also the “Pirates of the Caribbean” series and, for one sequence, the other famous underwater adventure, “Finding Nemo”.
There is, however, fun to be had. The film lives by its action scenes, which are frankly well done and are found in plenty. If the first half feels a bit messy, the second one fares a lot better, culminating in an outright ridiculous yet entertaining finale. CGI is used with a heavy hand and while its limitations show in some instances, particularly in the realization of animals, it is generally pleasing, even proving to be impressive in a number of sequences. Productions values too are high, with the sets, costume and make-up all combining with the cinematography and succeeding in recreating the period and people. The runtime of more than two hours tests one's patience, but the fact that neither the cast nor crew are taking themselves too seriously for a minute of that helps keep the entertainment quotient on the right side of the spectrum. The music makes some interesting choices but the lack of a signature theme tune, a staple of productions of this kind, is sorely felt.
The narrative is helped largely by a cast even bigger than the last one that is totally up for a good time, ensuring the right energy gets through to the audience. Of these, Han Hyo-joo is easily the runaway winner as pirate captain Hae-ran. Though we are never given an explanation how she came to be the captain of her motley crew of ruffians, she presents herself in the way that is easily believable and towers over the rest with her performance. Kang Ha-neul has proved a deft hand at comedy in the past, with projects like “Midnight Runners” and he is equally likeable here too as Woo Moo-chi, with his comic timing being a highlight. One does wish that his character had a bit more depth though, giving more to the actor to sink his teeth into. Same goes for most characters in fact, including Kwon Sang-woo's villainous Boo Heung-soo, Chae Soo-bin's Hae-geum and Han-goong played by Sehun, the latter two amounting to little more than eye-candy. Response to Lee Kwang-soo's turn as Mak-yi will largely depend on if the viewer is a fan of the actor/comedian.
Ultimately, though “The Pirates: The Last Royal Treasure” fails to score any marks for originality, it remains a watchable fare thanks to its light tone and a cast that is more than up for the task of giving the audience a good time.
