Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End is a giant movie, a spectacle, and the purest example of a summer popcorn film out there. But you’ll be hearing the chirps about this one for the next few months…
It’s too long.
I didn’t like it as much as the first one.
The romance angle was annoying!
Okay, that last chirp was from me so I’m not entirely blameless. Sure, Pirates 3 has its flaws, but at its best it also provides a higher level of entertainment than we have any right to hope for, and it’s certainly worth your six to ten dollars.
So what’s this rollicking tale all about? Well, the film is the fictional story of a pirate named Jack Sparrow. He’s played by one of Hollywood’s finest actors, a fellow named John Depp. Okay, okay, I give, I’ll let you in on a little secret: the Disney folks told us not to spoil any plot points. I hate talking about the specific story items anyway so I’m going to assume you’ve seen a trailer or the first two movies and don’t need me to tell you what this is about. The title alone should give you a pretty good indication, and the truth is I had a hard time tracking exactly what was going myself, so I probably wouldn’t be a ton of help.
Let’s get those aforementioned problems out of the way so we can end this deal on a joyous note. The movie is too long, without a doubt. You will notice that 15 to 20 minutes could have been cut. For me this isn’t a huge issue because I wanted to see the movie, I was fine with investing the time. If ten percent of it is a not amazing then I’m okay with that. Next up, how does it stack up against the previous two? Well, I’ve had an staggering amount of people tell me they absolutely hated the second one. I loved it, so I never know what to do with these people, and if you’re one of those I have no idea how you’ll get enjoyment out of this version. I liked this one better than the first, but not as much as the second. One more quick problem, The movie needed more Jack Sparrow! But as he’s one of the most compelling recurring movie characters of the last decade I’m not sure how they could have possibly had enough Jack to quench everyone’s thirst. Finally, the romantic emphasis was annoying. This was my main issue with the movie as it’s the only point where some of the dialogue breaks down from traditional Pirates zany to shmaltzy city. This issue, and the lack of development on certain plot points is the reason this one is getting the grade it is.
Now for the good. Pirates is a beautiful movie, it looks awesome. I also think Gore V. hasn’t gotten nearly enough credit for his art direction. He throws in these little symbolic moments – a wedding dress floating in the water, children quietly singing – moments that might seem like time passers to some but which make the movie something special to me. The comedy is also highly underrated. You don’t realize it until you see a ton of bad comedy but this level of laughs isn’t easy. Pirates delivers at least a few dozen funny moments that make the first part of the movie fly by. It’s also very eerie at times, mixing death with mythology in a way that you would have thought Disney was incapable of. It’s crazy what these three Pirates movies have accomplished actually, creating a mythology straight out of thin air, fusing truth and legend seamlessly. The writers (Terry Rossio and and Ted Elliot) somehow made a tale based upon an amusement park ride into something quite immersive.
Go out and see this unless you didn’t like the first two. I can’t help you if you’re that person, we don’t have much in common on the movie front. But if you get a kick out of how giant this series is, if you’ve relished in watching Depp flawlessly play a crazy person, and if you’ve loved all the effects of the first two then this is an easy choice. The movie is a prime example of why movies are great in the first place. Occasionally, if only for a few seconds, the best ones can take you to a place far away from the movie theater and the trivialities of your daily life. In these moments your focus shifts solely to the story being told; everything else fades away into a dull background hum. I salute Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End for mining that precious balance between oblivion and awareness, between art and spectacle, between dark comedy and high adventure. To fixate on the tiny problems presented here completely misses the vibe of Captain Jack. My advice to you would be to sit back, take a sip of rum, and soak in some summer movie rays. Savvy?
