If you like the first, you'll like this... if you didn't like the first, you still won't like this

Rating: 6/10 (2 January 2007)

The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise is certainly geared towards those who are happy to see the same thing over and over again. Anyone going into these films expecting to see something truly new and unique is going to be sorely disappointed. I had heard the hype over the first film and was not overly impressed with it. It was fun, true enough. But, it wasn't an amazing film by any stretch of the imagination.
So, too, is the second film not a great film in any regards. It has its fun parts mind you, but it is nothing new, nothing unique, and falls prey to rehashing the same action sequences over and over again. I don't know how many times we need to see Orlando Bloom parlaying an action sequence either on top or inside of some round, rolling obstacle... but when you have the main character in a ball made of bones, on a net full of gunpowder and on top of a water wheel all in the same film, you know the writers are running out of ideas fast.
What truly annoyed me about this film was the fast and cheap setup at the end for the sequel yet to come. There was no sense that this film resolves anything or even ends a narrative path. Instead, it leaves the story hanging just as any of the previous action scenes did. In truth, for how little this film resolves anything, it could have ended anywhere and achieved the same result in terms of the story coming to a conclusion.
At least with other films that mandate a sequel, there is some sense of closure in the story lines. Even the second Lord of the Rings film had several plot resolutions, though the ultimate story had yet to finish. This film concludes nothing, and in that it feels like I wasted two and half hours, which is far longer than this type of film can sustain any semblance of relevance. By one and half hours I was already bored, but by the time the film ended with what was not even an ending, I was sick to death of the same things over and over again.
All in all, the second film is full of the same silly humor, rehashed action scenes and forced character development as the first. So, if that is your thing, all the power to you. But, if you are looking for something new or to stir the mind and imagination, this is not it. I like silly humor (I even loved Snakes on a Plane) but this film simply isn't interesting enough to reward the attention it deserves.