Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest - ***1/2
Did you like the first one? Okay, then you’ll like this one. That’s about the best thing I can say. It’s more of the same, and that’s not necessarily a bad thing. It is also a sequel in every sense of the word- it has more in all the places there should be more, and it is lacking in all the areas sequels normally lack.
The plot picks up in some unspecified time after the first one. Both Will (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth (Keira Knightley) have been arrested for their part in helping Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) escape in the first movie. A deal is made- Will and Elizabeth will be set free if they can steal a seemingly broken compass from Sparrow. Meanwhile, Sparrow has been cursed by Davy Jones (Bill Nighy). It seems he sold his soul to Jones a long time ago, and now Jones has come to collect. The only way to save him lies with finding Jones’ heart, which is buried in a secret place. But can they avoid the gigantic Kraken hounding their every step? CAN THEY????
To discuss the movie in detail seems a bit silly. So I’m just going to focus on its merits as a sequel. Where the movie is more is in terms of running time and action. There are more big action set pieces, including not one but TWO rolling wooden contraptions, two big kraken battles, various bar fights, sword fights, and lots of evil grimacing from the bad guys. We also get a strange group of antagonists. Jones is a squid-faced monster, and his henchmen all resemble sea creatures (my favorite being the hammerhead shark, hee hee). His crew, including Will’s father Bootstrap Bill (Stellan Skarsgård) are all people who have sold their souls, and are slowly being covered in barnacles. While a lot of this is cool and fun, the bloated 2 and a half hour running time does start to weigh on you by the final twenty minutes. And fair warning- it ends on a cliffhanger. So don’t expect a resolution.
Where it lacks is first and foremost in the performance of Johnny Depp. While I still laughed at his spinning and preening, the performance didn’t feel as fresh. His character also became much more selfish and less likable. I know, he’s a pirate, but he was likably mischeivious in the first one, and this time comes off much more selfish and uncaring. The other characters suffer a bit too, but it’s not like the first one was a character-driven piece. There’s also a bit too much action- all the action scenes go on interminably. This is fun at first, but slowly begins to make you wonder if there is anything else that might happen. Not to mention the cliffhanger ending. I liked the twist, and am looking forward to part 3, but to come so far and be given nothing? These minor quibbles may be eased in the third one, when we get to see how it all comes together, but Dead Man’s Chest is unfortunately just a connecter between the beginning and the climax. It feels like half a movie…which I guess it is.
But these quibbles are minor, especially for a movie all about pirates and jumping and gooey bad guys. I’ll just repeat myself- if you enjoyed the first one, you’ll have fun at this one. Now go enjoy yourself some pirates.
The plot picks up in some unspecified time after the first one. Both Will (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth (Keira Knightley) have been arrested for their part in helping Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) escape in the first movie. A deal is made- Will and Elizabeth will be set free if they can steal a seemingly broken compass from Sparrow. Meanwhile, Sparrow has been cursed by Davy Jones (Bill Nighy). It seems he sold his soul to Jones a long time ago, and now Jones has come to collect. The only way to save him lies with finding Jones’ heart, which is buried in a secret place. But can they avoid the gigantic Kraken hounding their every step? CAN THEY????
To discuss the movie in detail seems a bit silly. So I’m just going to focus on its merits as a sequel. Where the movie is more is in terms of running time and action. There are more big action set pieces, including not one but TWO rolling wooden contraptions, two big kraken battles, various bar fights, sword fights, and lots of evil grimacing from the bad guys. We also get a strange group of antagonists. Jones is a squid-faced monster, and his henchmen all resemble sea creatures (my favorite being the hammerhead shark, hee hee). His crew, including Will’s father Bootstrap Bill (Stellan Skarsgård) are all people who have sold their souls, and are slowly being covered in barnacles. While a lot of this is cool and fun, the bloated 2 and a half hour running time does start to weigh on you by the final twenty minutes. And fair warning- it ends on a cliffhanger. So don’t expect a resolution.
Where it lacks is first and foremost in the performance of Johnny Depp. While I still laughed at his spinning and preening, the performance didn’t feel as fresh. His character also became much more selfish and less likable. I know, he’s a pirate, but he was likably mischeivious in the first one, and this time comes off much more selfish and uncaring. The other characters suffer a bit too, but it’s not like the first one was a character-driven piece. There’s also a bit too much action- all the action scenes go on interminably. This is fun at first, but slowly begins to make you wonder if there is anything else that might happen. Not to mention the cliffhanger ending. I liked the twist, and am looking forward to part 3, but to come so far and be given nothing? These minor quibbles may be eased in the third one, when we get to see how it all comes together, but Dead Man’s Chest is unfortunately just a connecter between the beginning and the climax. It feels like half a movie…which I guess it is.
But these quibbles are minor, especially for a movie all about pirates and jumping and gooey bad guys. I’ll just repeat myself- if you enjoyed the first one, you’ll have fun at this one. Now go enjoy yourself some pirates.
posted by Brandon at
#3:42 PM
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