2007 / 168 Minutes / PG-13
Reviewed by Dale Nauertz

Now this is more like it.

The original “Pirates”, you may remember, was one of those films that I hyped to the moon upon initial reviewing, not unlike the original “Spider Man”. I loved it. It was a breath of fresh air in a summer filled with the stock car chases, explosions and superheroes. At last, here was a summer movie I hadn’t been watching in one form or another every summer for the past ten years. It was distinctive, unique and, above all, fun. Perhaps I overrated it, but it has held up better than “Spider Man”, another film I personally overrated (sorry, Spidey). Personally, I’d rather see sword fights and cannon battles than speeches about responsibility. “Spider Man” is probably a better movie, but the original “Pirates” is infinitely more fun.

Then the second “Pirates” movie came along and screwed everything up. Suddenly that breath of fresh air had become a stale breeze thanks to an overly convoluted, cash-in sequel. Like the “Shrek” sequels, the second “Pirates” movie seemed to exist simply to sell Happy Meals. The sense of fun was largely missing. The movie focused entirely too much on a script that struggled to establish an underlying mythology but instead succeeded in being, by turns, boring and confusing. Johnny Depp’s Captain Jack Sparrow character was possibly the biggest problem. He was given no clever new dialogue and was given essentially nothing to do. He wobbled along the margins of the film, looking nearly as lost as those of us in the audience.

I had little hope left going into the third “Pirates” film. As we all know, this is a surefire recipe for entertainment. Lowered expectations always help. But I didn’t expect much from the second film either and it still pissed me off. Gore Verbinski and the rest of his crew have jettisoned much of what made the second film so intolerable and have delivered more of what made me love “Pirates” in the first place. In short, they’ve brought back the fun.

“At World’s End” begins with a rousing musical number of sorts (it’s low key, but it’s still a musical number) and then launches right into Singapore, where Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) are trying to recruit help, acquire a ship, and steal a magical map (in the “Pirates” films all instruments of navigation are magical, if they were set in modern times someone would have a GPS that could guide them to Valhalla). All of which will help them rescue Jack Sparrow, who was last seen disappearing down the gullet of an enormous sea beastie, and thwart the world domination schemes of the East India Trading Co., led by Lord Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander). The second film’s baddie, Davy Jones (the always wonderful Bill Nighy) is now under the direct control of the East India Trading Co. (you know what, I’m getting tired of typing all that so they’ll be called EITCO for the remainder of this review). As this film opens, Davy is cruising the seas destroying any ship that Beckett commands. Having the all-powerful Davy Jones under the command of an odious little bureaucrat should remove some of the character’s potency, but that’s actually not the case at all. If anything, Davy is an angrier and more interesting villain this time around. He chafes under the yoke of Cutler’s command and the fury is evident in his eyes, no matter how much CGI may surround them. In the second film he wasn’t very interesting, but this new development makes him practically captivating. Davy Jones is a once-all-powerful entity pissed at his subjugation and eager to reclaim his former glory. He even has a moment or two of pathos. That’s a lot more exciting than him simply being some tentacle-face who wants to get even with Jack Sparrow.

Speaking of Captain Jack, he’s got his nuts back in this one. He’s got all the swaggering, drunken glory he had the first time around. The screenwriters, Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio, have given him great, quotable dialogue once again, not just vague references to a lack of rum. His dialogue is still a bit overly ornate at times but, hell, at least it’s funny. Not only that, but we get more of a sense of his schemes and desires this time around. Jack is more interesting when he’s got his own agenda, one that’s a secret to virtually everyone around him. He wasn’t this exciting when he was running from a supernatural aquatic loan shark. Judging by “Dead Man’s Chest”, I thought perhaps that Jack was a one-joke character and that one movie had used up all the material he offered. After his dynamic presence in this one, however, I could easily stomach three more Captain Jack adventures, provided Depp was in as fine a form as he is here.

Even Orlando and Keira’s characters are given some interesting developments this time around. In that area, this film is an improvement over even the first one. In the other two pictures, Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann were bland ciphers that existed simply to propel the plot forward. Here, more than any of the others, they seem like genuine, three-dimensional people with wants, desires and plans of their own. They’re still the most boring part of these movies, but anyone would look boring next to Johnny Depp’s elaborately designed Captain Sparrow.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that while the screenplay that Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio have crafted still has some minor problems (it’s too damn long, for one thing, even though I was pretty masterfully entertained I still got tired of sitting in the theater by the time the credits rolled) it’s a good example of the sort of craftsmanship a summer blockbuster should contain. It juggles a lot of characters and keeps them all rather interesting (I haven’t even mentioned the coolness of Naomie Harris, returning as the Rastafarian gypsy from the second film, with gained dimensions and her own set of schemes). It has a great plot that effortlessly establishes a sense of mythology while still making room for exciting action, hilarious gags, interesting asides and some good, old-fashioned David Lynchian weirdness (witness, for example, Captain Jack’s turn in Davy Jones’ locker). All of which makes this film a lot more fun, and a lot more distinctive than most things you’re likely to see this summer. Between the “Pirates” franchise and the elegant, modern “Zorro” movies, Elliot and Rossio seem determined to bring the swashbuckler back to life. If they do as good a job with all their other attempts, I wish more power to them. I would personally like to see what they would do with the Robin Hood legend. Sure, Costner and his cronies did a good one about sixteen years ago, but that’s a story I wouldn’t mind seeing again.

A more laid-back, confident screenplay also seems to have given Gore Verbinski more free reign as well. He and his conspirators concoct a marvelous visual canvas. They stage some magnificent spectacle and deliver some stunning visuals that further enhance the story to be told. The sequence at the end of the world, for example, is silly, visually stunning and inventive on a grand scale. The same could be said for Davy Jones ’s locker. There is some truly magical imagery onscreen. I was dazzled a lot more than I expected to be. Gore Verbinski and his effects crew have clearly plumbed the depths of their imagination for this one, and it shows.

Not only is this a vast improvement over the second film (the fact that I didn’t want to walk out is testament enough to that) but it’s a glorious example of how a movie can provide eye candy, generous helpings of fun, and give you a little something to think about as well. I didn’t like it as well as I liked the original film, but I can’t honestly think of anything I disliked about it either. It’s silly, but not nearly as silly as “Spider Man 3”. It’s long, but I was never bored by it. It even has moments of tenderness and pathos woven in amongst the grand action and delirious fun. If you’re looking for an entertaining diversion to kill two and a half hours, “Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End” is a marvelous option. It’ll engage your senses and still respect you in the morning.

P.S. Stick around after the credits. Trust me, it’s worth it.

P.P.S. EITCO. There. I used it again.

[tags]Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End, Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, Gore Verbinski, Dale Nauertz, Valhalla, Jack Sparrow[/tags]

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This entry was posted on Friday, May 25th, 2007 at 11:21 am and is filed under Dale's Reviews. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.