This movie did everything a sequel should do

Rating: 9/10 (17 July 2006)

I went into this movie not expecting anything. I didn't think they would be able to make a movie as good as the first. I thought they would go the safe route and simply remake the first one, only have a different backdrop.
I have never been so glad to be wrong.
For the first 30 to 45 minutes, I was cringing. They kept referencing the first movie in such a way it seemed to me they were saying, "We had a huge hit with the first movie and it was a lot of fun, so don't forget it!". It seemed they weren't sure this movie was going to do well, so they had to keep reminding people how well the first movie did. But it slowly and surely started to change. The first sign of the change was the arrival of Davy Jones. You know an actor does an amazing job when someone can recognize who they are, beneath prosthetics and CGI. Bill Nighy plays Davy Jones, and does a wonderfully brilliant job.
The next sign was the characters started to change. Elizabeth and Jack Sparrow in particular. Both of the characters were explored in such a way that it showed them to be real people, and not one-dimensional movie characters. They were real people. Jack Sparrow was a pirate and made decisions like a pirate. The only character that wasn't memorable was Will Turner. The reason for that I believe is that he was exactly the same character as in the first movie. He was static, nothing changed with him, his character wasn't pursued. Jack, Elizabeth, and a third character were dynamic and changing, and therefore interesting. Will was not. This third character arrived, and at first, I wasn't sure why he was in this movie, but it was a very good choice.
The story takes this Pirates far beyond the scope of the first. It is much more epic, but at the same time it is more focused on the characters and their fights and inner turmoil. Perhaps that is why it seems so epic.
The music, though not done by the original composer, is very much a credit to this movie. It still has some of the recognizable themes from the first movie, but takes it further.
This movie has some funny parts and very well done scenes. Several of the fights are very memorable, as are the characters faces during those fights. Johnny Depp stated that he purposefully took Jack Sparrow in a funnier direction. Despite all of this, however, it is a much heavier movie. The last hour of the movie is a continual desperate life or death fight.
I'm sure you've heard that this movie ends on a cliffhanger. I tend to disagree. This movie ends with all its loose ends wrapped up nicely. It had closure, but opened the door for the third movie. Go into the movie thinking this, that Pirates of the Caribbean is a series. You've watched the first episode, and now you're going to see the second episode. Don't take it as a standalone movie, because it's not, and it wasn't made to be.
In conclusion, this movie did everything a sequel should do. It is not the first movie, and that is a good thing. If you go into it wanting it to be like the first one, well, just go watch the first one again. You most likely won't like this movie. I prefer a sequel to be new and interesting, not old and predictable. This movie did build upon the first, but expanded the storyline and made it more epic. It took (most) of the characters into new and uncharted territories, delving into their humanity. It nicely answered most of the questions, but left a few unanswered until the third. And lastly, the final scene makes you excited to go see the third. I wholeheartedly recommend going to see this movie