Fun, Yet Very Disappointing...

Rating: 6/10 (6 September 2008)

Compared to The Curse of the Black Pearl, Dead Man's Chest is more epic in terms of following the story. Epic is a word I'd place in onto a movie/show with an ever-evolving scope (for example, LOST, The Lord of the Rings, all of the Star Wars movies, and the first Jurassic Park -- as well as Gone With the Wind, Ben-Hur and Lawrence of Arabia). While this is a fun film, it's very disappointing.
The acting this go around is only slightly as good as that of the first. Johnny Depp's Jack Sparrow is into a jam that is nicely conceived, only the jokes this time are old and rely more on slapstick. Orlando Bloom is good here and there, yet some of the more dramatic moments are borderline mediocre. Keira Knightley's mourning near the end of the film is ho-hum, however Bill Nighy has Davy Jones is the best that is offered.
The music is terrible in Dead Man's Chest. Now that Zimmer is fully on board, his contributions are less than exciting or original. There's nice themes for the Kraken that come and go, and the bombast of Davy Jones and the Flying Dutchman is definitely the best of all the score. Just disappointing, as there's hardly any sweep. I don't recommend it to anyone unless you're a collector like me.
The visual effects are terrific. The Kraken is great, and Davy Jones is right up there with Gollum and King Kong as the most realistic CG characters on screen.
The writing is confusing at times. Some of our character's motives are unclear, providing for some awkward scenes of intimacy and betrayal. Gore Verbinski's carbon-copy direction adds nothing to the palette either.
All in all, Dead Man's Chest is worth a watch, even if I didn't enjoy it. It's good for kids 11 and under (the trilogy as a whole), and that's where it should stay.