Department(s):
Yet another go around for Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow in the last of Disney’s ever popular Pirates franchise. This time around he starts out stranded in Davy Jones’ locker and it’s up to Orlando Bloom (the six most terrifying words in the English language? Your life depends on Orlando Bloom), Keira Knightly, and (thankfully) Geoffrey Rush who reprises his role as Captain Barbosa. They, along with a smattering of other characters from the first two movies, liberate Jack and from there the movie takes a tumble down the rabbit hole.
I tried to hold on to all the different plot lines, tried to make out a coherent understanding, but it’s like trying to hold a wriggling fish. I finally let go and just appreciated the special effects and the goofy clichés at hand. As always, the romance between Bloom’s Will Turner and Knightly’s Elizabeth Swann was taxing at best, but even with a shaky plot and a wooden romance, the team seemed to pull it together this time in order to spit out a mostly enjoyable summer blockbuster. The addition of Chow Yun-Fat, along with Depp, the return of Rush and Bill Nighy as Davy Jones pretty much assured that this was going to be a halfway decent movie. Because as I’ve said before and I will say again, if you can’t make an enjoyable movie starring Geoffrey Rush, then you shouldn’t be making movies. The end is a bit over done and some of the plot lines left me scratching my head. But of course, director Gore Verbinski left the ending open so look forward to the Saturday morning cartoon spin off and (fingers crossed) the Disney themed line of rum.
Rated PG-13 for intense sequences of action/adventure violence and some frightening images. PR
“Buy On Sale” – Liked it, didn’t love it.
