Movie Review: Pirates of the Caribbean Dead Man's Chest

Martin goes to the movies. Sometimes, he sees good ones. But did he this time? Find out, on...

Rant at the Screen

The best movie ever made based on a Disney theme park. Enthralling action/adventure on the high seas. Swordplay, undead pirates, and an Aztec curse. It all comes together to capture the imagination of the movie-going audience. But will the sequel woo us? Can it?

Director Gore Verbinski is like a commercially minded Terry Gilliam. The man knows how to take something utterly fantastic and make it seem believable. His previous work (like The Ring) has always commanded the senses. His has a high action and energy style, with even a completely farsical situation coming together and being enjoyable. This lends itself well to our film, PotC:DMC.

Our story continues the tale of Cap'n Jack Sparrow, Will Turner, and Elizabeth Swann. However, everybody else is back, too! Commadore Norrington figures prominently, as does Elizabeth's father Governor Swann. New characters abound, including the amazing Captain Jones and his sea-faring crew, as well as the infamous Dutch-East India Trading Company. The flavor of this movie is somewhat darker, as many of the major personalities end up playing against each other to win the day.

The best new feature of the film is Davy Jones. Jones is 100% CGI (and 110% Bill Nighy!), but you can't tell. He looks... Real. Like he's standing with the men and women around him. He is at once horrible and tragic. He also holds the biggest weapon in the seas, a massive sea-beast called "the kraken."

All the action set pieces are marvelously delivered, the dialogue witty (if a bit reliant on you rememberingt he first film), and things move with an expertly crafted flow. I can only quibble with the movie on the basest levels, as I was thoroughly entertained throughout.

The ending, however, presents a scene so shocking, so 'bwuh!?', our audience had to relent and cheer. I can not spoil this.

I give the movie SIX out of five Jolly Rogers.