Written by Ted Elliott, Terry Rossio, and Stuart Beattie
Directed by Gore Verbinski

Trilogies are strange things. Never knowing if the story will truly take hold, the first movie is often self-contained and can stand on its own. The second film usually spends most of its time setting up major storylines that will have a payoff in the final film. Depending on how it’s handled, the final film wraps up the stories from the second film and may have a few good secondary stories of its own.

This can work, or it can not work. Sometimes you get three great films. More often than not, I’ve seen great first and third films with a weak middle. On a few occasions, the first film is great, and the next two are let-downs.

I loved Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. The second film, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest wasn’t as good, but had the promise of big payoffs in the final film. The question is whether Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End lives up to that promise.

The film opens with the clearing out of many of the residents who are believed to have any association with pirates at the order of Lord Beckett (portrayed by Tom Hollander). This includes women and children. All of this is truly at the behest of the East India Trading Company, which now rules the oceans since Norrington (portrayed by Jack Davenport) delivered Davy Jones’ heart to Beckett in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.

Meanwhile, the search is on for Captain Jack Sparrow (portrayed by Johnny Depp). Elizabeth Swann (portrayed by Kiera Knightley) is feeling guilty over sending him to what she believes was his death at the end of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. However, she hasn’t confessed what she did to her love interest, Will Turner (portrayed by Orlando Bloom). Will believes Elizabeth has feelings for Jack, and although he is along for the ride, he has his own way of dealing with things.

Tia Dalma (portrayed by Naomie Harris), the voodoo mistress, had brought back Captain Barbosa (portrayed by Geoffrey Rush) to lead them on their way. The first stop for this band of pirates is Singapore. There, they meet Captain Sao Feng (portrayed by Chow Yun-Fat). Just as they are negotiating with the Asian pirate, British troops, as agents of the East India Trading Company, appear on the scene.

This brings in most of the major characters who appear in Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End. What happens next is rather convoluted and involved. A pirate council is convened to deal with issues surrounding Lord Beckett and the East India Trading Companies. Conspiracies and betrayals abound. Love is found and lost.

One thing I can definitely say is that Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End is long. It’s very long. It’s 168 minutes long, and you do have to see the end of the credits (hint, hint). I found myself checking the time as I couldn’t believe the film was still going. It feels long, and that’s not a good thing for a film.

The stories are terribly convoluted and, at times, hard to follow. I have seen it about three times, and I still don’t think I’ve gotten a handle on all of it. It carries a PG-13 rating, and although it might be intriguing for some younger viewers to see the pirate scenes, I don’t believe they are going to be able to follow most of the ins and outs and meaning behind much of the story taking place. There are some images that might be bothersome as well, such as watching people being hanged on the gallows, and some of the more graphic violence.

On the plus side, there are great action sequences. There are some fantastic action sequences. If you want lots of swashbuckling action, this will definitely provide it. There are also some terrific special effects, as well as make-up effects. The problem is, what links it all together isn’t always that good.

That’s not the fault of the actors. Knighlty shines here as Swann. She really comes into her own and finds herself. Knightley portrays that fine and her evolution from a pampered governor’s daughter in the first film to who she is at the end of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End is believable and fulfilling.

Geoffrey Rush really comes on nicely as Barbosa. He was easy to hate in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, but he ends up on the other side here, and although he doesn’t quite become as endearing as the other characters, he’s quite a bit of fun, and his screen-time is enjoyable.

Johnny Depp is the same here as he was in the other films, which is both good and bad. In many ways, he’s got one note he’s playing, and it starts to get tired. Some of the best scenes involve multiple Jack Sparrows, and he plays those quite well. One of his best scenes involves the keeper of the pirate code, Captain Teague, who is portrayed by Keith Richards. The idea is that Teague is Jack’s father, and that is sort of established without one of those “I am your father” scenes. What takes place between the two of them and their expressions during this time are excellent.

Orlando Bloom is hit and miss. He has perhaps the most difficult and convoluted plot of the film and handles it well, although compared to his performance in the first film, he too seems confused. Perhaps his best scenes are near the end.

I could go on and on with the performances, and that’s part of the problem. There are so many characters vying for screen time that it becomes impossible to appreciate all that they give to the film. Secondary characters such as Pintel and Ragetti (portrayed by Lee Arenberg and Mackenzie Crook) are back and fine as comic relief in their roles, as are Mullroy and Cotton (portrayed by Angus Barnett and David Bailie). Gore Verbinski and the writers seemed to feel the need to include every character who’s appeared in the first two films, plus several new ones, and the result is confusion and underuse of talent.

The DVD release is loaded with extras. If nothing else, it’s worth it for the scenes with Keith Richards, which are so out there. There’s also a special short film on the two-disc set that was enjoyable and added to the lore without being too much. So much was deleted from this already-long film, but I found the Deleted Scenes to be quite enjoyable, as are the Bloopers of the Caribbean. There are also a number of Easter Eggs to be found.

It’s a shame the series started so well, and this third film was a somewhat weak note. It wasn’t horrible by any means, but it didn’t dazzle me the way Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl did.


DVD SPECIAL FEATURES:

• All-new short film: “Tales of the Code: Wedlocked”
• Crew Confidential
• Anatomy of a Scene: The Maelstrom
• Keith & the Captain
• Inside the Brethren Court
• Tale of Many Jacks
• Hoist the Colors
• Masters of Design
• Pirate Code: Revealed
• World of Chow Yun Fat
• A Producer’s Diary
• Pirate Maestro: The Music of Hans Zimmer