Good, but it's no Black Pearl...

Rating: 7/10 (6 July 2006)

I must say I'm quite torn in regards to my feelings on this movie, and I'll explain why. The movie has equally good and bad points, and although the good outweighs the bad, the film as a whole feels quite odd. On the one hand the movie had a lot to live up to, the first movie was great. Great characters, great action set pieces, great villains, and great humor. So dead mans chest, like all blockbuster sequels had to try and out-do everything about the first film and in the end, that is it's greatest weakness. It feels like a popcorn movie in parts, but too often it is way too serious. It's entertaining when the action hits, but again, for a popcorn movie, it's too frigging long.
Most of the cast from the first film returns and they are just as good this time around (except when they double dip on jokes which usually gets more of a sigh than a laugh). Jack Sparrow is funny as always, but it's getting harder for the character to carry the film, since there isn't much more to him than there was in the first. Normally I wouldn't mind with a popcorn movie but a lot of scenes in this one are darker, and his character is a tad too silly to fit in to them. Will Turner gets the most interesting story, and Elizabeth Swan gets, well the background really.
As for the villains, they are possibly the movies greatest downfall. Davey Jones is not an intimidating character, and his crew of sea creature folk have little or no character. Full props to Bill Nighy for creating an interesting character out of nothing, but in the end he simply doesn't live up to the charm and menace that Geoffory rush brought to the first movie. The real villain of the piece is the Krakken and once that thing gets going, you know sh*t is going to hit the fan.
The movie as a whole isn't all that bad, it's certainly better than most blockbuster flicks, and would work a lot better on it's own but following on from the first film it's just a slight let down. It could easily lose the first half hour as it's really forgettable. There's a side story involving, well I wont give it away but you'll know when you see it that it's really not interesting in the least. The general feel of the film also feels too broken up, there really isn't a proper flow to any of the proceedings and often, the story just feels like a mixture of cool ideas, but without one story to tie them all together properly.
The movie does have high points, scenes which really make it worth seeing, but it's a case of too little, too late as they mostly occur much later in the movie. These include the 3 way sword fight on a giant rolling wheel, the Krakken scene, and the rather hilarious chase for the titular chest. Special note must also go to the special effects which are, simply put, the most believable CG shots ever put on film. The CG characters that reside on the Flying Dutchman (Davey Jones ship) and Davey Jones himself are so believable, you wont even find yourself thinking they aren't real.
So, in the end, it's a fun ride (more so in the second half) with all the great character returning from the first, only hampered by slightly weak villains, a ridiculously long run-time, and a weaker story. The action is fun on a bun, and the twist at the end certainly brought a smile to my face. I can only hope the third film is slightly better and more fun.
3.5 out of 5