Pretty good, but somewhat lags at times

Rating: Null/10 (24 February 2009)

"Lord Cutler Beckett" (Tom Hollander), who has declared war on piracy to the point that he will order the hanging of a child who is remotely associated with pirates, is in the possession of "Davy Jones'" (Bill Nighy) heart. Since he has the heart, "Jones" has no choice but to do his bidding, and goes after every pirate ship to destroy it.
However, the great pirate, "Captain Jack Sparrow" (Johnny Depp) is trapped in Davy Jones' Locker, and has to be released by the crew of his ship, which are being led by "Will Turner" (Orlando Bloom) and his love, "Elizabeth Swann" (Academy Award nominee Keira Knightley).
Let me say first that some of the scenes are hard to see on television. This is due to the shadowing and dark colors used in these scenes. I noticed that I was paying more attention to my computer than the movie during these scenes.
The performances, on the other hand, are as good as the last movie in the series I've seen (I have not seen the entire series, and do not recall which one was the last one I watched). Knightley is wonderful as the leading lady who seems to get in some trouble at times, but can fight back when needed. Bloom is nearly perfect as the charmer. Nighy is real good, but the animation effects on the tentacles off the character's face may be a little distracting to pay attention. And Depp is absolutely fun in what may be the role he will be remembered for when his time has come.
Another thing you can't help but notice is the wardrobes and special effects. The pirates outfits appear to have not been washed in about eight months, while the military uniforms appear to be authentic. As for the special effects, they are absolutely fabulous -- especially make-up effects. You can actually believe the actors faces are real and not prosthetics.
As for action, I wasn't too impressed. Because of when the movie is set, you get cannon fire and a lot of sword play. If you ask me, there is just a little too much going on with sword-fights involving most of the cast. In one scene, a ceremony takes place during one of these sword-fights. The fighting around the ceremony, which briefly stopped when one of the others came in to fight those involved, was pretty distracting. However, this scene got some funny moments, as intended.
I didn't think that the actors chemistry was not that great in this film. When Knightley, Bloom reconnect on-screen with Depp, it just didn't work that well if you ask me. I also found that there was little chemistry with the new cast members and the ones already established in the franchise.
Another thing I was not really impressed with was the soundtrack. Although the music enhanced many scenes, I just can't remember any of the music except the excerpt of "A Pirate's Life" sung by "Sparrow" to himself at the end of the movie just prior to the closing credits. Most of the tunes are instrumentals, and are done well. However, none are really memorable.
The script itself was kind of weak as well. I think the writers slacked off after the success of the first movie. The story is pretty good, though far-fetched with the story with the heart.
If you are a fan of the franchise, check this movie out. However, if you have not seen this movie, I strongly suggest that you watch the entire series due to the majority of the characters are well established in this film. I think only one or two characters had some character development in this film, and we learned some background on them. While other characters had little to no new development of any kind.
I would rent this one, and only add it if you have the other movies in the series in your video library.