3rd 'Pirates' movie has AWE-some effects, action.

Rating: 7/10 (13 December 2008)

My Take: Though confusing, this third 'Pirates' movie isn't out of batteries just yet.
(Pardon me with using the abbreviations, but I guess you know exactly what they stand for.) Funny how the 2-disc DVD of PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END which I got for Christmas included a list of the many questions asked by fans about this third, possibly the biggest, chapter in the highly successful, wildly excessive yet strongly executed series. But after seeing the film (having overlooked it for a very long time since its release), I realized what the list was for exactly. For, while the biggest most elaborate 'Pirates' of them all, it was also the longest and most confusing. While the first and the second film in the series had their own shares of overlong and muddled moments, POTC: AWE has probably the most confusing plot, not just of the series, but probably for any summer-action 'event' blockbuster for a very long time.
The new adventure, still penned by the originals' Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio, tries to tie up the loose ends from the previous chapter, DEAD MAN'S CHEST, and putting the big-budget series to a complete close (reminding me much of what George Lucas did with RETURN OF THE JEDI). But before the curtains drop, POTC: AWE packs in as much twists, unlikely conclusions and other goodies that the film is either too big to fit in the package, or the package is just too big to fit in to everyone's heads. Too much details, too much characters and too much conclusions make for one confusing escapade that's a bit too hard to follow. By this time, POTC: AWE would seem to drown its own vessel with its own cargo, but in comes Johnny Depp's hilarious Jack Sparrow, in comes the elaborate special effects and in comes are favorite characters which we all loved from the series. When they do, the show gives us exactly what we came for.
POTC: AWE may be too hard to follow, but it is exactly what we came for: A big-budget, go-for-broke action adventure that takes us on a roller-coaster ride that doesn't have a seat belt to keep you from falling from the edge of your seat. The 'Pirates' series has certainly evolved form the enjoyable, if somewhat overrated, CURSE OF THE BLACK PEARL. And while this one isn't as good as POTC: DMC, arguably the best in the series, it's still the biggest and most elaborate. In this third (and probably final) chapter, The gang of Will Turner (Orlando Bloom), Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) and back-from-the-dead Capt. Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) is off to rescue Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp, still in perfect shape) from the legendary Davey Jones' locker, then do battle with their angry-as-hell foes including the corrupt Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander), the slimy Davey Jones (Bill Nighy) and an entire armada of battleships, leading to a 1-hour climax that only a talented action director and a team of creative special effects wizards can create, and the team behind this, and the rest of the film, is just that.
Director Gore Verbinski is a top-flight action director, here showing his best in the film's most action-packed sequences. On the other hand, he also shows his talents in humor in the film's funnier sequences, joined by Depp and Rush's hilarious performances (but I guess that goes to everyone). The special effects are still astonishing, the action is one thrill after another and the comedy is still sharp and hilarious. For pure action and comedy, trust this pirate!
Rating: ***1/2 out of 5.