Patchy sequel, with some notable moments

Rating: 6/10 (28 November 2006)

The record breaking, chart topping financial benchmark of film in 2006 had a lot to live up to, Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Deads Man Chest provided an eagerly anticipated sequel to "Pirates of the Caribbean" a blockbuster hit at the Box Office the year before. Being a Bruckheimer production action is set to be in abundance so audiences were pensive and excited with a swashbuckling return of the iconic Captain Jack Sparrow. In recent years, improving on an original title with a sequel has been a weakness in Hollywoods production output. So does Pirates 2 deliver more or is it simply rehashed character plots for substandard results? The film leads on where the first left off, tracking the events of Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) and Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp), by cicumstances Sparrrow discovers that he is doomed to a life of eternal servitude and entrapment unless he repays a debt to the famed Davey Jones (Bill Nighy) captain of the ghost ship "The Flying Dutchman". While trying to avert this fate Sparrow interrupts Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) and Will Turners marriage arrangements, returning to Sparrow's aid in his battle with the unpaid debt with his fate in the balance. The film displays some impressive visual effects, notably Jone's countenance and the Krakens sporadic appearance, which also provides an element of tension to the narrative. The saturated mise-en-scene, with a viridian/sienna hue adds to the murky/aquatic feel of the film and separates it from the originals feel and look into a more stylised concept, as showcased also in the artwork accompanying the film. Depp's performance as predicted is a good rendition of Sparrow, mimicking his previous style pleasantly. Its not the same and feels a bit manufactured and forced in places however. As for Bloom and Knightley, their performance is practically stale. Knightley serves no purpose in the film as such and merely confuses the plot; this is a critical flaw of Pirates 2: DMC. The appeal of the first film is the connection between Jack/Will and their conflict created by the combined fancy towards Ms. Swann. Since this tension is absent, for me the film almost falls apart. The characters seem almost stale and the film appears devoid of energy when Sparrow or Jones are not on the screen. Nighys performance as Davey Jones is also impressive the moments with Depp/Jones together give the film some semblance of structure thankfully. Norringtons involvement played by Jack Davenport is another thing that links the film together, but this also feels a bit rushed, although his drunken ramblings provide some light relief. The downfall of the narrative is the character detail and sense of plot, the scene where they are all scattered on the beach highlights this. Swann is idly serving no purpose clearly, a representation of her involvement in the entire film and most of the other characters appear to have little direction and have no real development in the closing chapters. The film plays out a story that seems to not know where it is going and not in a stylistically intentional way, the movements of the characters seem almost random at times such as (Knightleys on screen smooch with Depp) and this combined with the feeling of a slow paced film that the audience gets doesn't aid the narratives appeal being a strictly action/adventure. It has moments where it supersedes the predecessor such as the comical moments featured, but not as tightly composed. Now we get to the ending the oh-so typical Hollywood ending. Jack is faced alone with the Kraken on the Flying Dutchman; the Krakens mouth faces him positioned to strike as Jack lunges at it with his sword in a melodic climax that goes beyond the borders of cliché. This for me is a dashed, cheap method of closing the film taking the favoured 'easy' route. Also afterwards, we are introduced to Barbossa who proposes a means to rescue Jack. Then the film ends here so, we are hinting at a third film in the series with a ridiculous backdrop for a plot, atypical of Hollywood but providing no real reaction to the events that transpire leaving me empty and disappointed in the cinema. A murky-looking sequel to a hit film, supported only by a couple key performances and the visual effects included. Seriously let down by the plots sense of misdirection and substandard performances carried over a shambled overly-time consuming story, deterring this from being a good sequel. A dark tone is present also, so be aware of this when viewing with juvenile personage.