POTC 2: Dead Man's Chest

[lyricality]

This probably won't be particularly eloquent, as it is now four o'clock in the morning. I'll do my best, anyway.

Overall, I would say that there will probably be some disappointment. For the sake of spoilers, the rest shall go


The movie isn't necessarily weak, but it could have used a much tighter edit, especially in the ending scenes. The action scenes have lost some of their spontaneity, but maybe I'm remembering Curse of the Black Pearl too kindly in hindsight--everything leading up to the most fabulous swordwork scenes, where Jack and Will and Norrington are fighting on the mill wheel, slowed the pace when the conclusion was pretty well evident. A lot of the very early jokes are rehashes of the funny bits of the first film (breaking the candlestick, the dog with the keys, the monkey stealing the eye), but they're still worth a laugh the second time around, and most of them end up being part of the plot in one way or another.

Jack's attraction to Elizabeth is heavily played up, in comparison to the original. I understood the tactic, but I also felt it was overdone, especially on the note of Elizabeth's increasing fascination with Jack. Chaining him to the mast seemed particularly over the top by the end, and I definitely question her underlying motivation. The plot itself is complicated, and I won't even try to detail it here. Hopefully the secondary villain will play a far greater part in the third movie, because his presence in this one was so faint that I actually can't remember his name as I write this. The two entwining plots could probably have been combined into one for clarity, at least so far as this installment is concerned, but the third film may shed some light on that.

I hope ILM isn't responsible for the incredibly poor greenscreening job done on the scenes with Jack facing the Kraken. Really, the film seemed reasonably strong to me until the last fifteen minutes or so, when everything simply started to unravel. Things became needlessly complicated, even the cinematography didn't mesh as well, and the scenes simply weren't conveying the proper emotions. I was more distressed to see the Pearl sink than to see Jack go into the Kraken (then again, we all know Jack will be coming back).

Despite all the problems large and small, they did a number of things right--the movie is funny enough to keep the audience completely engaged and entertained, and I was thrilled to see Will develop more soundly through a number of very solid scenes, proving his ability both as a pirate and as a man in his own right. The way he takes command of the situation when Jack falters so badly is truly beautifully played, and I consider the film worth seeing just for those scenes alone, as well as the scenes between him and Bootstrap Bill on the Flying Dutchman. I now badly regret not picking Will up at the_blank_slate, although his mun is doing quite a good job with him. Just my own jealousy, no doubt. ^^;

Enough from me, anyway. Go see it, enjoy it for what it is, and look forward to the third one for (hopefully) a satisfying conclusion and a little more synthesis.

Comments

[alchemy]

You've not seen SR yet, correct? I'm interested to see what you think in comparison. Not that they have anything at all in common aside from being Summer blockbusters, but I think people are bound to compare them and in spite of your affinity for PotC, I know you'll give a fair assessment.

Dead Man's Chest

[andersenmom.livejournal.com]

I have to agree with you; the bad guy... Bennet? was virtually invisible.

Oh, we laughed all through this movie; my favorite line was "Elizabeth!" Aside to Gibb "Hide the rum."

There was just enough of the stuff from the first movie to remind us how fun it was, without being over the top.

But I really thought that last three way fight was a little long.

I did like the movie - I love the music, both on this one and the first, and have serious hopes the third one is up to par (right now, Curse of the Black Pearl is my favorite CD and favorite soundtrack). Please, don't change composers in the middle, like they did with HP!

And, Hi, lyric!

Jill

[hippediva.livejournal.com]

AMEN about the editing! smutcutter was grinding her teeth halfway through it and itching to get all the raw footage and recut it.

On the whole, I felt that the screenwriters got really lazy and just cooked up a seafearing Empire Strikes Back instead of using the characters they had created as deftly as they did in the first movie. They didn't let Depp work his magic on a 'straight' script. They forced a lot of the comedy and that was a real shame.

Will is such a putz. And Elizabeth? Oy! That Jack, the pickpocket, wouldn't have felt her chaining him to the mast was just pushing the boundaries of disbelief entirely. And I'm sure we'll ALL have to suffer through reams of teenybopper Sparrabeth now. :::violent retching noises:::

I truly felt that they should have eliminated the audience 'seeing' the Kraken in action until that final scene with Jack. It really spoiled the effect. And ILM should be ashamed of themselves for the giant toothed anus. Definitely showed signs of rushed post production.

[justperverted.livejournal.com]

I was finally able to see the movie myself tonight, and I was entertained, which is about all I expect from movies these days. I agree with you on many points, but I felt like one section of the movie stood out as the most entertaining, which was the parts involving the native islanders and the escape. I felt it really captured the fun of the first movie.