Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

"Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" is the third installment of the wildly successful Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. These movies have even been compared to Star Wars in regards to the story, characters and fan base.

I enjoyed this movie, but I must admit I didn't fully begin to enjoy it until well into the film. The first scenes with the introduction of Captain Sao Feng, and the meeting that follows and the hanging of accused pirates starts the film off very nicely by setting a tone for the current circumstances that will follow. Then I got lost in "Davy Jones's Locker" and the multiple character angles; the overall story got very convoluted and incoherent. I got reeled back in with the action mid-way and highly impressive special effects.

The story gets very over involved with a chaotic mix of open ended events and character dilemmas and rivalries. Some of the earlier scenes feature a glimpse into the "afterlife" and display Captain Jack Sparrow in a Barron world of ice and nothing more than a ship wrecked delusion of multiple Jacks taunting the real Jack in a very surreal and kind of creepy fantasy illusion that left me confused. There are also crabs that transform into rocks and back again... by the way I will be reviewing the new Transformers movie soon as well.

Don't get me wrong there is enough eye candy in this film to keep you entertained with elaborate sets from Asia to the beautiful tropical seas of the Caribbean. Also the ships and special effects are dazzling. The overall acting is good, as in all of the films, and most of the characters are convincing and captivating... well most of them.

I found Johnny Depp's character fell a little flat in this one. I didn't feel as if Captain Jack Sparrow was having as much fun in this film as he had in the previous two. I mean in the last film he was running from cannibals and balancing for his life on a large water wheel while roaming the dense jungle... that's pretty fun.

Then there was this somewhat weird aspect of Tia Dalma (Calypso) as the most powerful being in the world which came out of nowhere. I mean it was obvious she had witch-like tendencies and powers, and it was obvious there was a definite connection and love story between her and Davy Jones... but the fact that she was the Queen of the Sea just seemed a little too far-fetched. And even so, when she is finally "released" from her human form she simply turns into hundreds of crabs and falls into the sea to eventually cause a big storm and a large whirlpool.

The big battle at the end, which I had anticipated from the trailer earlier this year, turned out to be nothing big at all. There is no battle, only a fight between three ships in the mist of a giant whirlpool. These scenes where fantastic, I admit... but I was still a little disappointed. My favorite scene in the movie takes place during this battle when one of the British ships is blasted with cannon balls from both the Flying Dutchman and the Black Pearl in a very "Matrixesque" slow motion scene surrounding Lord Cutler Becket with splinters and broken wood. "Shiver me Timbers!"

So what I am trying to say is that unfortunately this story was a little too lackluster for my tastes, although it was fun to watch just for the action alone. And I enjoyed the characters such as Davy Jones and Captain Balbosa. Overall I would recommend seeing it in the theatre, but don't get too wrapped up in the very intertwined and convoluted story. Just enjoy the visuals.