It's Fun, But Does Anyone Know When to Stop

Rating: 8/10 (20 February 2007)

Sometimes I think they sell movies by the pound. This is a pretty delightful tale. The sea creatures, the special effects, Johnny Depp's prancing, tilting Jack Sparrow, interesting rules of the sea, Davey Jones. But it is an eternity. Just like the first one, I thought it would never end. What could be much more suspenseful and captivating is dragged on for two and a half hours. A snip here and there would have done wonders for this film. One thing that always bothers me is the complexity of the hero's task; we are submerged in a whirlpool of details. At times I think the characters themselves are confused by what's going on. How could they know?
Still, it's nice to see someone put forth the effort to tell a really nifty adventure yarn. The sea puts forth obstacles that we don't have on terra firma. It has its own legends and its own being, and it's really quite wet. I like the hammer head guy and the octopus-like Jones. Obviously, the makeup people put in a lot of overtime. It also sets up episode three. See it, but it's quite an investment.