2003’s Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of
the Black Pearl may have been a sprawling motion
picture, but it never even came close to reaching the
level of incoherency maintained by its
two-and-a-half-hour sequel, Dead Man’s Chest. For
the most part, I liked the original film, whatever its
inconsistencies; it contained sweeping action scenes and
fresh, hilarious comedy from the outrageous funnyman
Johnny Depp. Its follow-up is just as all-over-the-place
but nowhere near as cohesive a movie; most of Dead
Man’s Chest’s clever material is either stretched
out into far too long a segment or simply a reiteration
of what made The Curse of the Black Pearl so
enjoyable. Not to mention, for at least half of its
duration, I didn’t have a clue what was going on in the
plot. To a certain extent, I was able to recognize
certain neat elements that this film has to offer,
mainly in the form of special effects, but never did my
admiration for its content extend beyond a thought to
myself saying “hey, that looks pretty cool.”
Speaking of the special
effects, it’s hard to deny that Pirates 2 is a
visual knock-out. From the CGI-tentacles on the infamous
character Davy Jones’ face to the grand appearance of a
giant sea-monster that the characters battle, each frame
of the film is a real treat for the eyes. However,
viewers’ amazement in the look of Dead Man’s Chest
will be countered by their frustration in its WTF-ridden
storyline. I’m not sure if it was screenwriters Ted
Elliot and Terry Rossio’s script that led to the general
incomprehensibleness of the film or if the real problem
lies in Gore Verbinski’s messy direction but, whatever
the reason, the events that occur in the story are
almost impossible to logically piece together into a
whole. Not that audiences will care enough about the
once-likeable characters to work to try to decipher what
actually happens in Dead Man’s Chest; all of the
identifiable originality that brought the cast to life
in The Curse of the Black Pearl seems stale and
tired this time around. Even the before-irresistible
antics of Depp’s Jack Sparrow seem dated.
Speaking as what I would call
a “casual fan” of the first Pirates of the Caribbean
film, I hope that this second-entry in the series merely
represents a rough patch in the tales of Depp’s Sparrow,
Orlando Bloom’s Will Turner, and Keira Knightley’s
Elizabeth Swann. While its refined look may be deserving
of several aesthetic-related Oscars come winter, its
overall entertainment-value doesn’t even rival some of
the most average of this summer’s other blockbusters.
Still, I haven’t lost faith in the previously-proven
talents of the cast and crew just yet. Perhaps the
now-signed Keith Richards will be able to boost their
morale and artistic-palettes playing Sparrow’s father
and, with any luck, bring some life back to the
franchise in its third installment. Dead Man’s Chest
may not be able to offer the soundest of voyages to
moviegoers, but due to its already-immense box-office
success, it is certain that the Pirates will surely have
many chances left to wail bigger, bolder, and more
interesting yo-hos.
-Danny, Bucket Reviews (7.17.2006)