Review on Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

Rating: 7/10 (12 June 2012)

Hello, Beastie!
The film Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest is the sequel of the Curse of the Black Pearl, directed by Gore Verbinski. After the first film, high expectations were raised among many people. In this adventurous action movie, Johnny Depp returns as Captain Jack Sparrow. Also the other characters of Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) return to the screen. So the film has got a well-known cast, which makes it a success beforehand, which can turn out either positive or negative for the film. It's set on the Caribbean around the 1750s. The film contains elements from a lot of different genres, for example: action, comedy, fantasy, romance, etc.
When Will and Elizabeth are ready to get married, Elizabeth is thrown in prison for helping Jack Sparrow escape. Will Turner has to go to Jack Sparrow and get his compass. If he gives this to Lord Beckett Elizabeth is set free. In the meantime, Jack Sparrow owes a blood debt to Davy Jones, the half-octopus sea captain of the Flying Dutchman. The only way to escape from his duty is to get help from the voodoo priestess Tia Dalma. She is able to give him the information Jack Sparrow needs to find the key of the magical dead man's chest. Even though the plot isn't very well-written and quite lengthy, the humorous actions of Captain Jack Sparrow, as well as of some of the other characters, make the film worthwhile and funny.
The plot of the film is almost the worst written plot you can imagine. It goes from one subject to another, leaving the viewers completely puzzled. One moment everybody is looking for the magical compass of Jack Sparrow, and the next they are suddenly looking for the key of Davy Jones's chest. When Elizabeth enters the room of Lord Beckett, the audience is likely to get confused how she got there. And if this isn't enough, Elizabeth starts a love triangle with Will and Jack, all out of the blue. It also seems like the characters themselves don't even know what they want and what they are doing. An example of this is that Captain Jack Sparrow has the compass, but he doesn't know what to do with it and how to read it. Neither is there any sense of direction established, just until you watched forty minutes into the film. But the worst thing about this film is that it takes the director two and a half hours to complete nothing. There is a lot happening in the film but in the end everybody ends up with having the same as they had in the beginning: nothing.
Except from bad aspects it also contains various good aspects. For example, the good old humor from the first film returns in the sequel. And of course, Jack Sparrow draws a lot of attention to him again with direct, sarcastic and funny comments. This makes the audience want to keep on watching the film and it makes boring scenes amusing. Another positive aspect of the film is the great amount of spectacular stunts and special effects. This keeps the viewer awake and entertained. For example the numerous sword fights and battles keep you on the edge of your seat. Also the use of CGI is magnificent. The character of Davy Jones is beautifully made, just like the other crew members on the Flying Dutchman. The giant-tentacled Kraken, which appears halfway through the film, is also made by CGI. The appearance of this enormous beast adds some action and amazement to the film. Another good aspect is the use of mattes, during the film it is hard to see what is real and what isn't, this makes you think and try to figure out how they did it. It also makes you get absorbed into the film more, because you accept it as a reality. For example the part when the Kraken appears behind Captain Jack Sparrow, and they also used this technique when the crew members of The Black Pearl swing, captured in the bone cage. The lighting was used effectively in the film: every scene on The Flying Dutchman was quite dark, this created a gloomy mood, also at the wedding the light was quite dim, which created a sad mood and in both cases you could expect some action or drama was about to happen. The sound however is very characteristic for the Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest, so when you hear it again you will immediately recognize it and link it with this film. The acting is very good in this film, because although the plot is horrible, they are able to make it a film worth watching.
Overall Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest is a lengthy film with a dreadful plot, but the humor and spectacular events keep you entertained throughout the entire two and a half hours of the film. Because the first film was such a success, Gore Verbinski is likely to get away with the bad plot, but he probably won't get away with it once more. The use of special effects in this film was amazing and it really got you absorbed in the film. Although it didn't fully meet our expectation that we got after watching the first film, we would still recommend it to our friends and family. Because of the humor, the fights and the stunts.