Pirates

I'm on something of a cinematic roll, now having viewed three movies in 10 days' time. Alas, I have yet to see Cars (sorry, Tara) and Brick seems now to be out of the local theaters. But I did catch the new Pirates movie almost on opening weekend.

MOVIE REVIEW
I went in with a headache, I came out with the same, but during The Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest I was unaware of any internal pounding. There was plenty external, as the movie is full of swashbuckling fights, each carefully staged to elicit laughter and some suspense. In this the second movie we find Will Turner and his beloved Elizabeth Swann again separated and caught up in dangerous adventures that take them into the world of pirates and the undead. Captain Jack Sparrow seems to be off his game in the beginning but soon is up to his old amusing tricks. Sparrow's main concern is a rather large debt owed to one Davy Jones, someone who both he and Will would like to see gone. (As an aside, why was this not called "Davy Jones' Locker"?) There's an island of cannibals, a boat full of aqualife-sailors, and the Kracken to deal with along the way.

Dead Man's Chest is a fun tropical summer flick and pretty well plotted out. (Not that there aren't some head scratching moments. Sparrow's story was strangely disjointed and I am hoping it comes around in the third film.) Though you could have seen the first movie without moving forward with the second, there is no point seeing this second if you haven't seen the first and are not planning on seeing the third (Got all that?). The movie brings back old favorites in the form of characters, scenery, and action, and introduces some new players for part 3.

Though plenty of fun, the movie is a tad long at moments. How much can really be resolved in a middle story, which is about building up the problems? There's even an unsurprisingly dramatic "end" and a bit of a love triangle. It's like in Empire--will Han Solo come out of the deep freeze? Will love and family conquer all? I think we all know the answers. So this movie is not about the suspense, it's about the ride. And don't forget, these movies were based on a ride.