The Pirates of the Carribean: Dead Man's Chest
Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, Bill Nighy; Directed by Gore Verbinski
A wedding interrupted by an arrest, a mad sea creature come for a soul, a tribe of cannibals, a key, a chest containing a beating heart, a few pirates, chases, escapes, miracles, true love…This is a story chock full of equal parts intense drama and furious action. Having sold his soul for prolonged life on the earth, it is Bootstrap Bill that is sent to warn Jack Sparrow that the notorious Davy Jones is coming to collect on the huge debt he owes. The only way Jack may gain an upper hand in the situation is if he is able to find the chest that holds Davy Jones’s heart. The key is kept on him at all times. Meanwhile, Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann have been arrested for helping the wanted pirate Sparrow escape in the last installment. The territory-hungry Lord Beckett makes his own deal with Will, - get the magic compass Jack carries, in exchange for the release of Elizabeth (who is condemned for execution, along with Will, for their crime). Throw in a mad and bitter former Commodore with his own agenda for the chest of Davy Jones, and the plot thickens and boils into a mad frenzy…
Middle films in trilogies (at least I think they’re stopping at three…) are always a little frustrating because both the opening and closing of the movie seem to be rushed and abrupt, as was the case here. Nevertheless, the film itself is still very fun and enjoyable. It is definitely different from the first, - darker, more suggestive, and more violent. The action scenes are bigger and more outlandish. The three-way sword fight that eventually ends on a gigantic spinning waterwheel is a particular wonder to watch. Bill Nighy as Davy Jones was something close to genius. Not only was the visual melding of actor and creature virtually seamless, the performance itself was deliciously devilish and eccentric. It seem that Mr. Nighy really reveled in the part. His Davy Jones was a great and worthy adversary to Jack Sparrow. Captain Jack Sparrow, that is. Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio give us yet another well-crafted screenplay, and the story is very solid, avoiding the plot circle that slightly slowed the last film (Elizabeth is kidnapped, Will and Jack go to save her, Will is kidnapped, Elizabeth then tries to save him.)
Depp is amazing again (when is he not?) and each of the oddball supporting characters liven the scenes, - the returning ones as well as the new. The thing that made this film such a success for me was how much conflict there was. Will comes face to face with the father he though was long dead, coming to make a promise to try and free his soul from the purgatory it now lives in. But also occupying his thoughts are those of his beloved Elizabeth, upon whose life ‘apparently’ rests in his hands. But Elizabeth has actually managed to escape from the jail cell to begin her own search to save Will from the dangers he is facing. Finding her way onboard The Black Pearl once again, she is (as we are) utterly bewildered and even a little frightened to find that she may be harboring secret feelings for Jack. While Jack, seeing this confusion rise, plays it out all he can, trying his best to lure her away from her fiancée. But it is Elizabeth who ultimately exploits this factor to the fullest advantage in the end.
Spoiler: The scene where Bootstrap Bill is forced to flog his own son, Will Turner, particularly surprised me as it was a Disney film and targeted towards families and children. Don’t get me wrong, it was fantastic drama, and gave a lot of depth to the film, I was simply surprise to see it.
However great the film was (and it was) there were three main things that were wrong with it. First, as I mentioned before, the opening did not live up to the grand entrance that greeted us in the first film. It just started right in on the plot, and I usually like to see at least a little bit of an entrance or explanation. Second, Keira Knightley didn’t really have a whole lot to do until the last third of the film. Her character, Elizabeth Swann, appeared sporadically throughout the film at various lags in the main plot, if nothing to remind us that she was still actually in the movie. The third was Mr. Orlando Bloom, who I was always a great believer in, even though he has borne a fair amount of ridicule and scorn for his acting talents. I always tried to give him credit because I do believe that he is learning the craft and gaining skill little by little, film by film. Unfortunately, my merciful attitude did not extend towards this movie. He was actually worse here than he had been in The Curse of the Black Pearl. How could this happen? He was vastly under enthused, and his character had lost far too much of the innocence and adventurous sprit he had possessed before. He was very solemn and very, very bitter. Even though his character had every reason to be (especially regarding Elizabeth’s supposed unfaithfulness at the end), his mood weighed the film down very heavily. This is Pirates of the Caribbean, - not Remains of the Day.
Aside from those three factors, this film won my vote and heart anyway, if only for the sheer entertainment and wit that it brought. So very few films these days are fun. It’s a nice form of escapism to have, especially when the world is enduring increasingly harder times. If you loved the first movie, you will love the second, and by the last frame you will be anxiously awaiting the third. Just be sure to hold onto your hats for the magnificent surprise entrance at the very end.
Story = A-
Acting = B-
Visuals = A+
Originality = A-
Enjoyability = A
Overall Grade = A-
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