My first Pirates movie

Rating: 8/10 (24 July 2006)

I cannot say I like this over the first one since I only saw the ending of the first which was an agreeable entertainment. This one , I enjoyed despite its confusing plot and its length. Depp is as usual, priceless. Bloom and Knightley do well in action and witty quips rather than concentrate on their romance. I like Knightley for doing more than scream (yes she does here). It's the new characters that tickle my fancy. My favorite, of course, is Davey Jones. realistically rendered by ILM, Nighy creates a performance despite being virtually unrecognizable. He's a rascal who tore out his own heart because of love. He's a villain, a squid, a captain of a crew created by special effects (yet you forget they are effects; they each have unique characters) and he holds his own against Depp. That's why the picture succeeds. Davey Jones is perfect against Sparrow like Moriarity is perfect against Holmes or the Joker is perfect against Batman. Another bit I love is the triple sword fight between Sparrow, Norrington and Turner. There's the action between the 3, the physical comedy (all are after a key) and the switching of allegiances (who's fighting who and why actually changes mid-fight thanks to that rascal Sparrow). Selfless acts turn out to be betrayals and betrayals turn out to be purely acts of self-preservation. I'm interested in watching the first now, but I have a feeling (though it would round out what I know about them) I'm only going to be disappointed a little.