Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End

2007  PG-13  ADVENTURE  2h 48min

CAST— Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley, Stellan Skarsgård, Bill Nighy, Chow-Yun Fat, Geoffrey Rush, Jack Davenport, Kevin R. McNally, Jonathan Pryce

MUSIC— Hans Zimmer  DIRECTOR— Gore Verbinski  BASED ON— Walt Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean (Disneyworld attraction)

     Now here’s a real head scratcher. One of the most confused and convoluted films in a decade comes along and get this: it’s a hit. Johnny Depp and Geoffrey Rush return as captains Jack Sparrow and Barbossa, respectively, the saltiest scalawags of the briny seas. They, along with Elizabeth Swann, conspire against Davy Jones and the entire East India Trading Company. But they must be careful; thanks to Sparrow’s trickery Will Turner has joined the opposing team. All of this character drama carries into a plot containing conspiracy within conspiracy, Davy Jones’ heart, a pirate counsel, the sea goddess Calypso, etc., etc. This of course is secondary to the action; cannons blazing, swords clashing, ships being blown to smithereens. This time around, though, the action seems stale, almost monotonous. And the storyline? Come on. Only the nerdiest of them all will understand their constant blather over conspiracies and allegiances. Oh well, whatever floats your boat. Arr. Yeah, whatever.

OUR RATING— **

PRECEDED BY— Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003), Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006)

FOLLOWED BY— Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011), Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017)