| For
truth in advertising, this film should be referred
to as PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN 3-and-a-Half, because
it would be two-thirds of any other trilogy in
cinema history. Captains sail far beyond
the known regions of the map, Pirate Lords gather
nine pieces of eight, and let's just say there's
more Jack Sparrow in this film than the first
two combined. Nearly every aspect of PIRATES
OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END is one-plussed,
super-sized and larger than life — a trait
which is either a delightful benefit or a distracting
drawback, depending on the moment at hand.
Avast, mates,
for there are a world of moments to choose from,
too: amendments to the definition of epic
will be forthcoming. This third installment
of the plunderingly profitable PIRATES series
— Neptune only knows if this will truly
be the final chapter — certainly spans every
inch of the globe to tie up the plot threads,
though it doesn't always weave story magic while
doing so. Undoubtedly bigger, often better,
always Bruckheimer-er in scale and creative intent,
PIRATES: AT WORLD'S END sails into the sunset
as a daringly bold spectacle which occasionally
struggles to fulfill all its own promises and
potential, but never once shies away from the
attempt.
In an uncanny
way that's hard to describe even after two
screenings of the film, WORLD'S END manages to
live larger and run nearly 20 minutes longer than
DEAD MAN'S CHEST, yet inexplicably feels less
bloated than its predecessor. This utterly
flies in the face of cinema logic, but there you
have it in a peanut shell! Were writers
Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio, director Gore Verbinski
and producer Jerry Bruckheimer able (or willing)
to trim those extra 20 minutes of embellishment
from scenes which didn't require it, WORLD'S END
would be a sleeker, more powerful film.
The 168-minute theatrical version you'll see starting
Friday (or Thursday night if you're lucky) is
a fine DVD extended Director's Cut of the tale,
but there are several instances where less would
be very much more.
On the positive
side of that flipped doubloon: WORLD'S END boasts
many enjoyable and a few truly amazing set pieces
which embody the best that PIRATES has to offer
in theme and adventure. Huzzahs to Verbinski,
Rossio and Elliott for immediately returning their
tale to the darker, more serious tones underscoring
the first film in the trilogy. The opening
sequence instantly raises the dramatic stakes
of this chapter, stirring together mood, emotion
and music as doomed pirate sympathizers, row upon
row, face the gallows. The resulting tune,
Hoist the Colors, is at once a mournful
dirge and a rallying cry for all buccaneers-at-heart,
and one of Hans Zimmer's best contributions to
the score (with FilmEdge's soundtrack review to
follow separately).
The Singapore
sequence ensues, setting Elizabeth Swann, Will
Turner and Barbossa on a collision course with
Sao Feng, the newest pirate captain on deck courtesy
of Chow Yun-Fat, a welcome addition to the cast.
The main plot fuse of WORLD'S END is lit:
nine Pirate Lords from around the globe must set
aside their mutual treachery and join forces in
union against Beckett and his ship-sinking armada
of the East India Trading Company. Herein
we learn of Sao Feng's mysterious map which could
lead Elizabeth and Barbossa to the unearthly void
of Davy Jones' Locker, where Jack Sparrow (last
scene charging into the gaping maw of the Kraken)
is now lost in his own personal purgatory.
Alas, Beckett's
influence reaches all the way to Singapore, having
taken possession of the Dead Man's Chest containing
the heart of Davy Jones: he who commands this
pulsating prize commands Davy Jones himself, and
thus rules the seven seas. An ocean-spanning
race ensues to rescue Jack Sparrow and return
him to Shipwreck Cove, where the Pirate Lords
will meet to form a tenuous truce and repel the
East India Tracing Company's encroachment.
Nothing less than the survival of the pirates'
way of life is at stake.
While this opening
gambit plays out well with solid action and touches
of character intrigue, it also lacks one important
element: Jack himself. Quite some time elapses
before Johnny Depp returns on screen as Captain
Jack, but once he arrives it's in full force and
then some. I refuse to spoil the surprise,
but our first glimpse into the bizarre netherworld
of Davy Jones' Locker is an imaginative, highly
unexpected trip. Suffice it to say the audience
won't be the only one beside themselves in bewilderment,
but as usual Depp pulls off such moments of fantastic
whimsy with charming skill.
The action proper
begins once Jack is returned aboard the Black
Pearl, and the Pearl is returned to the realm
of the living amid a clever puzzle which bends
logic as it celebrates the mythological power
of the sea. From here the bulk of the plot
proceeds, yet it keeps adding subplots of Davy
Jones' ancient betrayals, now-Admiral Norrington's
resurrection to dignity if not duty, plus Tia
Dalma's ulterior motives in it all.
An hour into WORLD'S END and the story line is
still expanding — though better that than
collapsing like so many third-part films before
it.
Can Masters Elliott,
Rossio and Captain Verbinski possibly extend the
horizons of PIRATES so far in one movie and make
sense of it all in under three hours?
To quote Barbossa as he sails his crew off the
edge of the world: "For certain you have
to be lost to find a place that can't be found,
elseways everyone would know where it was."
Take that message to heart, mates, for it also
appears to be the creative credo behind the story
as well.
The plot structures
of all three PIRATES films have been disjointed
and confusing at times, with the third entry being
no exception, just the largest example.
Yet just as Sao Feng's circular map with
sliding rings is less accurate but leads you to
more places, audiences should prepare to ride
the shifting story tides and do their best to
mentally track the course, for indeed the captains
(Verbinski and Jack Sparrow) will somehow bring
ye safely home to port again.
Johnny Depp makes
the most of his role AT WORLD'S END for sure,
running the deck from piratical plotter to whimsical
madman, all in his inimitable Sparrow style.
This script certainly challenges him to push the
limits of his part, and Depp staggers headlong
into the feat gleefully. Captain Jack is
and will always be the pilot of PIRATES, and Depp
manages to hold this huge ship on course despite
numerous locations and character subplots which
tug to lead it astray. Watch him for any ten minutes
of the film and you can see why Depp is reluctant
to let go of the role, since he clearly has so
much fun playing Sparrow. Gladly, the script
returns Sparrow more to his film one form, once
he recovers from his tour in Davy Jones' Locker.
WORLD'S END also
reunites and resolves (quite unexpectedly) the
adventurous amour between Will and Elizabeth,
albeit with intended difficulty. This
third chapter sees welcome character development
for Keira Knightley to apply on screen, as her
Elizabeth has evolved from coquettish affluence
to full-fledged pirate on her own terms.
Elizabeth Swann can now handle any obstacle except
explaining the betrayal of Sparrow to her intended,
Will Turner. Likewise Will's own mission
to save his father from the Flying Dutchman at
any cost also conflicts with his interrupted love
for Elizabeth. Orlando Bloom is less successful
rising to the challenges set in front of Will,
but in fairness the script also gives his character
less to work with in that task. Will's vow
to save Bootstrap Bill was established in DEAD
MAN'S CHEST last summer, but the end game of it
can't play out fully until act three of WORLD'S
END — that's a long span for Turner or Bloom
to strike the same story notes again and again
dramatically.
Davy Jones returns
more bitter and vengeful than ever, yet actor
Bill Nighy (a golden treasure in the series) invests
his tentacled demon of the deep with surprising
humanity when the story calls for it. Credit
once again to John Knolls and his ILM team of
CG wizards for letting Nighy act so expressively
through his digital mask of slimy suckers, preventing
the character from ever turning to caricature.
Kudos also to Tom Hollander who dons little more
than a powdered wig to become Lord Beckett, but
plays the villain with steely stillness which
energizes his gentlemanly threats into deadly
action. I can't describe little of Naomie
Harris' return as Tia Dalma without spoiling the
plot, but while she enjoyed more screen time in
the second film, her character figures more prominently
(if abstractly) in this finale.
As Sao Feng,
the Pirate Lord of South China Sea, actor Chow
Yun-Fat steps into the trilogy adeptly as if he'd
been pirating just off-screen through the first
two films. Yun-Fat's command of English
has improved substantially over previous American
films, and he glides through dialogue of backstory
and intrigue with the same grace he expresses
in his martial arts roles. His Sao Feng
may be the one instance in WORLD'S END where more
would have been more, and welcome as such.
Feng is also but one of countless fine examples
of craft by makeup artist Ve Neill and costumer
Penny Rose, whose work through three epic films
deserves high praise.
Our trio of original,
always supportive players — Jack Davenport,
Lee Arenberg and Mackenzie Crook — return
again with better treatment than they received
in DEAD MAN'S CHEST, and all three fulfill their
roles skillfully. Davenport's deal with
Beckett in DEAD MAN'S CHEST has now vaulted Norrington
into Navy service, this time as a newly decorated
Admiral. Yet he quickly learns that this
is no position of honor with Beckett turning cutthroat
as any pirate thief, despite surrounding his deeds
with aristocratic trappings and courtly manner.
Norrington's true redemption plays out much more
in the spirit of the first film, and salutations
to Davenport for enacting this finale appearance
so deftly. Likewise Arenberg and Crook's
Pintel and Ragetti aren't relegated to such silly
comic relief bits as they were last summer, though
both earn laughs readily through their implacable
teamwork. In lesser hands, Pintel and Ragetti
might have been throwaway parts in a globe-hopping
trilogy, but Arenberg and Crook truly individualized
their roles and merit good roles and all success
they enjoy post-PIRATES.
What else can
one say about the gargantuan efforts of director
Gore Verbinski and writers Ted Elliott and Terry
Rossio except to congratulate them on surviving
this adventure at all. Add Dariusz
Wolski to that survivor's club as well for his
rich and lush, dark and demonic cinematography
which gave a glorious visual stamp to this cinematic
piece o' three. Creating two of the largest
movies ever made, then producing them simultaneously
over 250 days, must be one of the most dizzying
feats imaginable, and occasionally the on-screen
results reflect that mind boggling challenge.
The entire epic journey all makes crazy sense
in the end, which prompts the one main criticism
I can offer: the film is so audaciously crammed
with sinuous subplots and stunning ILM spectacle
that it's nigh on impossible for an audience to
absorb (let alone) appreciate it all in one viewing.
Applaud their
ambition, even if their editorial discipline leaves
a little to be desired: WORLD'S END is so chock-full
of goodies that at times one's senses can't help
but reach overload and take a breather to rest
then catch up again. Even when these
master jugglers drop a ball during the act, they
somehow manage to scoop it up again with a foot
kick and throw it back into the mix. As
noted before, mates: prepare to get lost along
the journey AT WORLD'S END to find yourselves
home again — your captain and navigators
know the way, surprising as it may seem.
Whether a film
that nearly requires a second viewing to make
sense of it all is a badge of bravery or a sign
of weakness depends on your cinematic tastes.
This isn't just a fun roller coaster ride
through summer film fare, it's a front-of-the-line
pass to every ride in the park, often exhilarating
and sometimes exhausting. PIRATES OF THE
CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END may push you to your
wit's end, but in the end Johnny Depp's iconic
creation makes it all worthwhile. Even
if the PIRATES saga ends here, the immortal Captain
Jack Sparrow has inimitably made the ride worth
the price of your ticket every time.
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