Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End (2007)

PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END

The year of the trilogies continues. 2007 (so far) is a little bit better than 2006. This constant (yet very, very slow) progression in storytelling and quality cinema began after the mostly horrendous takings of 2004 (Van Helsing, Catwoman, SuperBabies: Baby Geniuses 2, etc.). As such, Hollywood is still learning how to combine their desire to make money and create effective films. This perversely slow trend reveals itself well in Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. At World's End, at first glance, could be conversely mirrored to Spider-Man 3. That is: a bad film with a lot of good portions inside of it. Do not make that mistake, readers. The trailers and clips do not reveal everything, and do not merit one film by the previous two films' successes or failures. That is a treacherous mistake. At World's End is a very good (but not great) film—a few large steps higher than your average "summer popcorn flick." It is worth seeing, and probably worth seeing twice… for positive and negative reasons.

Direction: Gore Verbinski is much like the 2006 Jacksonville Jaguars in the NFL. I quote Chris Berman of ESPN: "Yeah, but…" He has made good films, but he makes some very stupid mistakes. Some of which come from the inevitable bias of blockbuster sequels—they rest on the laurels of the predecessor. Others lie in the horrendous and awful disease of directors. The disease? The Stephen Sommers Syndrome. No, there is no cure (though Christopher Nolan seems to have endowed himself with an anti-toxin). I coined the term, just now. Give me my fifty cents. The proper definition of The S.S.S. is "the overwhelming tendency to take what was once a very enlightened original concept or idea and muddle it to low-tier mediocrity or nonsense with grandiose special effects and ridiculous plot points or one-liners." Keep that in mind. And if you're going to use my quotes, then please… give credit where credit is due. Score: 5.

Production: Another aspect of The S.S.S. is a somewhat original (and very expensive) production schedule. Filming back to back with Dead Man's Chest was probably a good idea. The sets are much improved, and will bring a smile to even the most hardened of malcontents. Score: 9.

Cinematography: Mostly, Dariusz Wolski sets a very beautiful and engaging frame. Yet, the picture quality seems to shift from wondrous to poor… as if he were rushed. Perhaps this is a setback of filming sequels in rapid succession. Still, the visuals are stunning. Score: 8.

Editing: Above average sums it up. Score: 6.

Costuming/Art Direction: The costumes and art have also improved. They do not detract from the story. They do, however, convey a sense of atmosphere and mood that sometimes gets lost when a bout of The S.S.S. comes around. Liz Dann and Penny Rose…well done, ladies. Score: 9.

Script/Story: At World's End isn't one of those films where one can just sit in one film without watching the first two. This is intentional, for better or worse. The beginning of the story is instantly engaging. The middle is Shrek the Third—a bad version of organized chaos. The writers have jammed too many aspects and characters in the midst of middle portion of the film. They attempted to make it something from a Sir Arthur Conan Doyle novel. But, that doesn't work with this film. The latter portion of the film? Good. The script itself is full of silly lines and overtly placed audibles that scream "I want to be mysterious. Pay attention to me." Score: 6.

Special Effects: The effects mirror the cinematography. At times, the effects are hurried. Overall, they are skilled and enjoyable. Score: 8.

Score/Soundtrack: Hans Zimmer rules. Do we really need to go on? The music is moody and like a whirlwind. Score: 10.

Primary Cast: Johnny Depp avoids the film's portion of The S.S.S. and evolves further. How can you evolve such a masterful character as Captain Sparrow further? By taking one emotion or aspect of the character, and driving it to an entirely different place... you receive a surprise. As such, Sparrow is different here. This is exceptional work. As for Orlando and Keira? See my comments on the script. Score: 7.5.

Supporting Cast: Sao Feng (Chow Yun-Fat) is quite valuable, but not on screen enough to register. That is unfortunate. Bill Nighy is exceptional. The crew of the Black Pearl grates on the nerves. The East India Trading Company is not at all menacing. Tia Dalma is engaging, though some of her lines are force-fed. Keith Richards? He should have been with the franchise since The Curse of the Black Pearl. Richards is intimidating and exudes an aura of confidence without forcing it. He was, by far, the greatest surprise of the film. Score: 7.5.

Total Points: 76.

At World's End is without question, the best of the trilogies of 2007. Again, it's very good without being great. Super-charged music and art direction do a lot to cover up many of the aforementioned mistakes. With a different director and script… who knows? Go see it, but think twice about taking children under 13.

Final Score: 8. Grade: B