Top Notch Sequel

Rating: 8/10 (16 July 2006)

"Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" builds upon the good will of its fun natured predecessor with the typical "bigger, better, more" attitude of the standard blockbuster sequel. What's so refreshing, is that it actually delivers on the motto and gives audiences exactly what they want.
Unlike the first film, which benefited from originality and lengthy exposition to set up the action and humor, "Dead Man's Chest" gets off to a clunky start with the reintroduction of just about every character and theme both major and minor from "Curse of the Black Pearl." It makes for a somewhat confusing first hour, as I honestly hadn't watched the original since its theatrical run three years ago and didn't quite remember who everyone was and why they were in their current convoluted predicaments. Once the action gets going, and you settle into the preposterous plot that involves plenty of double-crossing, pillaging, tall tales from the sea, and some sort of hocus-pocus involving the mythical Kracken, the audience is treated to a visually stunning ride full of healthy doses of action, humor, and spookiness.
Once again, what makes the film stand out from the rest (aside from Johnny Depp's now iconic Jack Sparrow role) is how director Gore Verbinski handles the material and stages the freak show. He's probably the only commercially trained for-hire director who knows how to sustain a beautiful shot. It's also nice to see him get a little more artistic with his direction, as anyone who has seen "The Ring" or even odder his more recent "Weather Man," will pick up on concurrent themes in his breathtaking visuals. More developed in this film is his classical take on dissolves and dolly shots that are nothing short of fantastic. With a bigger budget (upwards of $200 million) he's also one of the few big time blockbuster directors who makes sure every penny is seen on screen. The special effects were shockingly detailed and crystal clear, especially the insanely creative and unique look of the Davey Jones Crew and the aforementioned Kracken. The visual effects team has taken computerized images to new heights beyond even the superb work done with Gollum in the "Lord of the Rings" trilogy. The amazing effects dance across the screen hand in hand with sweeping natural vistas, brilliantly staged action sequences and elaborate sight gags (witness the human shish-ka-bob scene) that seem as equally inspired by old time Serials and the "Indiana Jones" trilogy as they do by Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and other silent film classics. Despite sometimes the humor falling flat, this infectious combination of old-style film-making with new fangled state-of-the-art technology translates wonderfully into audience satisfaction and perfectly calculated box-office gold.