Contrived first half, great second

Rating: 7/10 (20 December 2006)

Contains MINOR Spoilers, not Plot integral When I sat down to watch this film I had mixed expectations. Many said it was a great film, but others I knew (and frankly respect their film opinion more) said it was mediocre. I fall between these camps, personally. The film is a good romp, but frankly pales in comparison to the lovable first film. Remaining is the Keira "Pout" Knightly as Elizabeth Swan being a wannabe pirate (let's face it, she doesn't do much), Orlando "Only Good at Stunts" Bloom and Johnny "Weird in a Good way" Depp as the principle characters. One gripe I have with this film, and it's a large one, is that it tries too hard. Both in having to reference the first film to satisfy fans, and whenever these appeared I cringed. Physically CRINGED. It's not as if the new characters are particularly well cast or well written. Davy Jones is a particular hate figure for me, as he seems to embody the MUST HAVE CGI culture. To be honest, the character grated, and considering how much screen time he had and how integral he was to the plot, this knocks off a Star on its own. If I'd made the film, I'd simply cast Christopher Lee as Davy Jones and have him more of a daunting villain. Although cool, the crew of the Flying Dutchman border on the insane in terms of design. It wasn't explained in the film how 100 years of service on a ghost ship could change you into a Hammerhead Shark-Human hybrid. The first half of the film is VERY contrived, to be honest. It's far too far fetched for me, and I'm a big fan of complicated plots. The Second half saves this film from oblivion. It seems to become more like the first film, and that's no bad thing. If the film had continued the way it had, I may have turned it off and watched the News. But I stuck with it, and found it a rewarding film. The next film needs to avoid the pitfalls the first half of Dead Man's Chest does, such as over-reliance on references to other films in the franchise, and to avoid a Matrix-style slump into complicatedness and poor philosophy with an absolute reliance of special effects. The action was good, if a bit long-winded in some cases, but the film is a decent watch. Needless plot lines aside, like the whole island sequence with the natives, and Elizabeth on the ship tricking the sailors and the 'Oracle' woman, this film has a pretty weak main plot. The first film was slightly jarring in this respect, and this is shot and edited in such a manner that it takes leaps of the imagination to get you through the film. This is coming from a guy who got Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind when he first saw it, so be prepared for a second watching if you wish to get the plot. Don't let your parents watch it: they'll probably hate it, as this is nowhere near the Errol Flynn style swashbuckling yarn like the first until the second half when it seems to begin running. 6/10