All the same strengths and weaknesses

Rating: Null/10 (2 June 2007)

By the time I climbed aboard, this movie had already broken the record for worldwide box office takings in the first six days ($401M), ensuring that the huge expense (a reputed $200M) is going to be more than recouped as the treasure chest overflows for Walt Disney Productions. But: is it any good? In truth, it has all the strengths - wonderful entertainment, stunning visuals, clever effects, constant action, visual and verbal jokes, and above all Johnny Depp - and all the weaknesses - a confused narrative, poor dialogue, some wooden acting - of the earlier two sailings in the franchise, but with a few extra little nuggets and problems.
On the plus side, we get to see some multiple versions of Jack Sparrow in a series of surreal sequences, there's a cameo appearance from Jack's dad, and the final exciting battle sequence in a swirling vortex has everything from mayhem to matrimony. On the other hand, there is no synopsis of what has gone before, there are many more pirate leaders than before, there are more double-crosses and betrayals than one can mentally accommodate, and the whole thing is so incredibly long (168 minutes) that in my local cinema they introduced an intermission at an utterly random point. If after this interminable voyage, one sits through an endless stream of credits, there is an extra little clip that takes us 10 years on - leading the way to yet another sequel?