I’m going to be lazy here and just say that what I said about the first “Pirates Of the Caribbean” movie applies to this sequel, “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” which heretofore will be referred to “Dead Man’s Chest” for the sake of brevity.
To paraphrase:
“Dead Man’s Chest” is fun! And what makes it fun? The three basic ingredients of any good movie: the writing, the acting, and the direction. I shall assume the movie’s great set design and special effects are subject to the approval of the director who theoretically chooses what we see and hear.
The same writers, Terry Elliott and Terry Rossi, who scripted the first “Pirates” bring the same zest with this sequel. Both “Pirates” movies have the adventurous spirit as their rethinking of the classic “Zorro” movies with “The Mask of Zorro.”
Jack Sparrow is still the same swaggering hero whose ego is only exceeded by the stupidity of his adversaries. Elliot and Rossi mined the traditional swashbucklers of yore for the first “Pirates” but “Dead Man’s Chest” takes a different direction with some extended energetic pieces of physical comedy that owe more to the Keystone Cops than pirate movies. The water wheel rolling through the jungle with Jack Sparrow trying to grab a key that will open a treasure chest while tumbling with former Commodore Norrington stands out. I couldn’t tell the special effects from the staged shots. An entire Cannibal scene could have been cut without anyone missing it, but just to see Jack Sparrow’s eyelids painted with eyes above another column of painted eyes that matched his real eyes was a priceless piece of invention.
The beginning: It’s Will
Turner’s wedding day. He’s to marry Elizabeth Swann. Cutler Beckett shows
up on the island with a warrant for their arrest for aiding and abetting
the escape of Jack Sparrow (in the first “Pirates” movie). Will escapes
to look for Jack. Then
In one of the movie’s most inventive gags, Jack has the compass that will point in the direction of the thing one wants most - Depends on who’s holding it. When Jack holds it, the compass goes off in several directions, therefore he doesn’t know what direction to go in. It shows the conflict in his mind. In Will’s hand, it points in the direction of the key. And where is the key? Needless to say the compass leads Jack and company in all kinds of directions and adventures. They have their run in with Davy Jones, his crew, the cannibals, and a sea dragon that crushes ships with its tentacles.
Jones commands a ghost ship, the Flying Dutchman, with a crew of lost souls bound to him in servitude. Each crew member looks like a different species of sea life from a hammerhead shark to a crab. They may all be doomed to their own personal hell but for the audience it’s CGI heaven.
“Dead Men’s Chest” walks a fine line between adult entertainment and children’s fare. But a lot of it can be scary for younger kids. The only drawback: like the first “Pirates” I got antsy after two hours. In between the high energy antics, the screenplay called for the movie to reveal some exposition so the story could catch up to the action. After a while I began to think of a song called “Stranded in the Jungle” where a rock song stops abruptly, the lead singer of the group - called the Cadets - abruptly interrupts and says “,,Meanwhile Back in the Jungle” and the song switches tempo ever so briefly.
The Actors
Again: to paraphrase: Johnny Depp still lets the words roll off his tongue as if each syllable were an afterthought. Always off kilter he still manages to keep his wits about him. Think Jackie Chan in “Drunken Master.” Orlando Bloom is still dashing and Keira Knightley is still fetching as Will Turner and Elizabeth Swann, the two love struck love birds whose wedding is cut short. They still have wanderlust in their hearts. Their relationship is much like Errol Flynn’s and Olivia de Havilland’s in the eight movies they did together between 1935 and 1941.
Bill Nighy is totally unrecognizable as the tentacle faced Davy Jones. That he can create a totally believable character underneath the makeup and the digital effects is truly amazing. It’s all in the eyes. It’s hard to believe this is the say guy who played the aging rock star in “Love Actually” or the stuffy bureaucrat of some Masterpiece Theater productions. Likewise for Stellan Skaarsgard from “Good Will Hunting” as Bootstrap Bill who gets to clinch the final scene of the movie. Tom Hollander who played the parson in “Pride and Prejudice,” also starring Keira Knightley, turned Cutler Beckett into a little Napoleon you’d like to smack across the head. He exerts his power through intimidation. Jonathan Pryce returns as Elizabeth’s father.
The Director
Gore Verbinski blends the comedy and action of “Dead Men’s Chest” as seamlessly as he did in the first “Pirates” movie as seamlessly as he balanced horror and suspense in “The Ring” (2002). Gore intrigues us with an escape from an island prison right out of The Count of Monte Cristo, a ship that plows under the sea in full mast only to rise again to raid another ship for souls, and a sea monster reminiscent of Ray Harryhausen’s “It Came from Beneath the Sea.” Like the first “Pirates,” mystery segues into swashbuckling, tongue in cheek adventure, secrets are revealed, and special effects reign supreme. Jack needs to find a pirate chest that will help him free his indebted soul. Will Turner and Elizabeth need the chest to convince Jack to return to help free Elizabeth’s father. Norrington (Jack Davenport) needs the secret of the chest to help him restore his rank in the Royal British Navy. And Cutler wants the chest to control Davy Jones so he can control the seas for the East India Trading Company. Verbinski mixes all the heavy plotting with some heady humor, great swordplay, and daring escapes at sea and on land. He never dwells on one scene too long, moving on once a plot point has been made. As I said, you may feel antsy by the last reel but you never lose interest. The ending is open ended in much the same way “The Empire Strikes Back” was, but much like that film, it whets the appetite for the sequel.
Copyright 2006
“Treasure Island” (1950) - The Disney one with Robert Newton as the rascally Long John Silver in this first class adaptation of the Robert Louis Stevenson adventure classic. Bobby Driscoll is equally as good as Jim Hawkins who may be too friendly with Long John for his own good. See Newton in this and compare to Geoffrey Rush’s Barbosa. Newton repeated the role in Cinemascope, in “Long John Silver” in 1954.
“Treasure Island” (1934) - Just as good as the Disney film with a more cantankerous Wallace Beery as Long John and Jackie Cooper as Jim Hawkins.
“Captain Blood” (1935) - This is the one that made Errol Flynn a star. He’s Peter Blood, an Irish doctor unjustly convicted of aiding and abetting an enemy of the English crown. He escapes from his island prison to become a pirate. Olivia de Havilland is the love interest. With Basil Rathbone.
“The Black Swan” (1942) - Tyrone Power is the scourge of the Seven Seas who would give it all up for redheaded beauty Maureen O’Hara. If only he could get rid of the dastardly George Sanders and get a pardon from the King!
“Anne of the Indies” (1954) - Jean Peters plays the legendary female pirate that is long on action and short on drama. With Louis Jourdan who would later make “Gigi.”