Movie Review: Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
Now, the irony here is that the last review I posted was Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest - crazy to think it has been that long since I have posted a review. What's worse is that I actually have seen movies since last July, but didn't make the time to review them. Also, note my new rating system above.
First, let me start by telling you not to believe all the reviews for this movie so far. Those folks have clearly lost sight of the child inside of them because this movie was the perfect ending to a great trilogy!
Now, I will say that Jack Sparrow is not prominent in this movie (how could he be, since he has been trapped in Davy Jones' Locker all year), but honestly the movie was great without him being in every scene.
We picked up a short time after the end of Dead Man's Chest to find our reluctant heroes (Elizabeth, Will, Barbossa and the crew of the Black Pearl) in search of a map to get them to Jack and Davy Jones' Locker. Right off the bat there are some great action scenes, complete with explosions, sword fights and a little gun play. This is just what I was hoping for. Yun-Fat Chow was excellent as Captain Sao Feng, but he was barely in the movie - such a disappointment for me as I absolutely love watching this man on screen. He commanded the scenes he was in, but truly, it was not enough. However, the path of this character really seemed to be laid out to allow Keira Knightley to run away with her part this time around.
In the past, Elizabeth Swann has been a bit whiney and too much the damsel in need of rescuing – c'mon Hollywood, it's 2007 and we want to see women rescuing the men occasionally, no matter what era the movie is set in! Finally, Keira stepped up! She stole the show in a lot of scenes (how many weapons can that tiny girl hide on her person, really!). I was really impressed with her this time around.
Next up – Orlando Bloom. Thank goodness he is pretty! I will say that in this movie, I did not notice his lack of acting as much, but I think I was distracted by the sexual energy just jumping right off the screen from him. He was very much the Dread Pirate Roberts meets Dirk Pitt this time around…yum!
As for the rest of the cast, I think that Bill Nighy as Davy Jones and Geoffrey Rush as Captain Barbossa owned the entire film – not to mention all the action and mayhem.
There were twists and turns (some obvious, some not) and a lot of old time pirate history, a nod to the Disneyland ride that started it all, with some mythology thrown in for good measure. Sure, you had to use your brain while watching the movie, but that is what makes it SO great. This wasn't all mindless fighting and action scenes with a little comedy thrown in (hello, Keith Richards), it was a good, all-around, something-for-everyone movie!
So yes, this is a long movie (2 hours and 45 minutes) and is a little slow in parts. However, if you are looking for great action, excellent special effects and a little Jack Sparrow to round it out – this is the movie to see!
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