Rating of
3/4
Nice special effects with pretty good performances
The M.O.W. - wrote on 08/02/08
Infamous pirate "Captain Jack Sparrow" (Johnny Depp) is back. And this time, he has to pay a blood debt to "Davey Jones" (Bill Nighy), the captain of the legendary "Flying Dutchman." But, if "Sparrow" doesn't come up with a way to get out of the debt, he will be in service of "Jones" for eternity.
And to complicate things, "Will Turner" (Orlando Bloom) and his love and soon-to-be bride, "Elizabeth Swann" (Keira Knightly) are back as part of "Sporrow's" misadventures.
"Sparrow's" only way out is to find the "Dead Man's Chest", which will give him control over "Jones." However, he's not the only one in search for the fabled chest.
For the most part, this is a special effects and make-up movie with adventure thrown in. "Davey Jones" and his crew, none of which are Monkees (sorry for the joke), are just incredible to look at. It was hard to tell what was make-up, and which was CGI in this film.
There is also some pretty good action scenes. A lot of it is sword play, which appear to be choreographed nicely. There is also some action on the high seas, but they are not very memorable if you ask me. There are also some good stunt work in this movie, with at least two stunts that you will remember for awhile.
The one performance which stands out is easily Depp, with honorable mentions to Bloom and Knightly. Depp is over-the-top and is easily the most memorable cast member. Knightly works well with Depp and can keep up with his energetic performance.
One thing I thought was missing was character development, especially on the characters introduced in the movie. There was also some weak developments in the main characters. None of the characters seemed to have anything that advanced their personal storylines. Also, many characters were under used.
Another thing I liked was the costumes in this movie. The pirate costumes look like they haven't been washed in about eight months, as some of the pirates also appear. Whoever was in charge of wardrobe did a great job with the entire cast's costumes.
The sets are not really memorable in this movie. The majority of the sets were either the "Black Pearl" deck, beaches or jungle scenery. Although there is a lot of stunts and action in these particular settings, that's all you will remember.
The music is pretty good in this movie. Some of the music is used nicely to enhance the action, but with all the metal clanking together in the swords, the explosions from cannons and the war cries from the pirates, you pretty much can't hear the music.
This is still a pretty good movie, despite the flaws. However, the way the ending is done, it is very obvious that another sequel is coming.
