Pure, Fun, and Completely Enjoyable Popcorn

Rating: 10/10 (7 July 2006)

Watching the previews for Dead Man's Chest, I felt slightly apprehensive. I saw a whole bunch of weird creatures, dizzying chases through forest-scapes, and the perennial Captain Jack back and acting like his old quirky and slightly drunk self again. It seemed like this movie might make the mistakes of The Matrix Reloaded, heaping action scene upon action scene, whilst pushing character development way to the side in favor of large explosions and mythical sea creatures. I am happy to report that Dead Man's Chest delivers just as many thrills as the first one, plus a few dozen others along the way. Sacrificing neither character, nor original story, DMC consistently delivers clever witty comedy, fantastic special effects, excellent cast chemistry, and action reminiscent of the good old Indiana Jones days.
The story begins with Captain Jack Sparrow making yet another unforgettable entrance. We learn that Sparrow made a deal with the master of the sea - Davy Jones. Now his blood debt is coming up, and he must pay it. The only way Sparrow can get out of this is if he manages to kill Davy Jones. Alongside this storyline intersects another - both Elizabeth Swann and Will Turner have been sentenced to death for helping Sparrow in the original film. Their stories collide, and thus a new and worthy Pirates story is born.
DMC starts out slow. I believe the reason for this was that it seemed Captain Jack had worn out his welcome in the three years since the last film. His acting seemed a bit forced, as did other quips and witty sayings from other members of the cast. However, this quickly evaporated as the incomparable Johnny Depp settled comfortably back into his role, setting just the right tone - somewhere between clever and insane. Or maybe both. Keira Knightley is back as Elizabeth Swann, with a much greater role and a more interesting chemistry with both Will Turner and Captain Jack. Orlando Bloom's Will Turner seems to be the slightest bit eclipsed the grandiose quality of the film in which he is in, but still, his character is expanded and given as much space as can be expected in a film like this. We are also introduced to new characters, including Bill Nighy as the squid-like Davy Jones.
The sea-creatures that make up Davy Jone's crew must be mentioned here. They are some of the most creative, grotesque, and fascinating villains to ever grace the silver screen. Each one is completely unique and different too - they are quite a step-up from the skeletal pirates in the original movie. Davy Jone's face that is half-made up of tentacles makes his just scary enough, but not too over the top. Bill Nighy's acting is finely pulled off as well.
Above all, what sells DMC is the action. Forget The Last Stand. Forget Superman Returns. Though each of those were fine movies in their own right, DMC trumps all of them, because its action does not require mutants firing fireballs at each other, or planes threatening to destroy baseball stadiums. This is a good, clean, fun action romp that we really don't get to see that often.This film is reminiscent of the good old days, like Star Wars, and, as I've mentioned twice before, Indiana Jones. It just simply is so well pulled off that I don't believe the action in DMC could have been any better than it was.
My qualms with the movie are minimal. As I mentioned, the movie seems a bit self-conscious at first - as if trying to very purposefully to live up to the first one. There is an incongruous set piece, about fifteen to twenty minutes long, where Jack gets captured by a bunch of natives, who, in an age-old cliché, come to think of Jack as their god. Eventually, of course, he escapes, but this long intermission from the main course of the story is very distracting. The action is very creative and very well done, but it just seems tacked on there for the sake of a longer and more action filled movie. Oh well. It works, I guess. Another personal qualm was Jack's old flame - an annoying African shaman queen, or whatever she was. She just seemed kind of cheap, and she was hard to understand. Oh yeah, and one last thing - Jack says "bugger" too much. He said it zero times in the first movie; why is he saying it so much now? It seems a more clever phrase could have been used - one "bugger" could have been okay, but six or seven? Ultimately, also, DMC is a tad too long - at 2 1/2 hours of running time, though drag is minimal, a simple snip of that unnecessary scene with the natives would have helped to sail this ship quite faster.
Don't listen to the reviews. It saddens me when critics try to make a movie out to be more than it wants to be. Fans of the first Pirates did not want a sequel that was more thoughtful, more brooding, and more of a focus on character development, while giving a backseat to the action. What fans want, Gore Verbinski, the director, delivers. More action, more crazy special effects, more Johnny Depp, more of everything that made the first one such a smash hit. This is the Pirates movie that everybody wants to see. Not some high and mighty character study exploring why Jack Sparrow is the way he is, or why Davy Jones is such an upset bugger. Though it may be a tad overloaded, this is completely forgivable, considering how spectacular the movie is. This the first pure, all-out, no-holds barred, popcorn movie of the summer, completely worth a movie ticket, and, if things hold up all right, maybe the third film will be worth a ticket as well.