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After much waiting, I finally had the opportunity to catch Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. There was of course alot of hype about the newest installment of PotC following the runaway success of its predecessor, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. WL and I were likewise taken in and very much looking forward to the movie since seeing its trailer some months back.

We wound up catching it with a bunch of friends at Lotus Five Star Cineplex in PJ State (New Town). Being my first time to the reopened cinema, I didn’t know what to expect. When purchasing the tickets, I was quite surprised to find that there were only a handful of seats taken and we had a choice of the best seats in the house. Tickets are a flat rate of RM10.00 regardless of the day, time, or movie. Before going into the movie, allow me a moment to comment on the cineplex. The image and sound were so so. On the plus side, there was ample leg room for me to stretch out my legs. On the other hand, the seats felt a little weird, perhaps a little too much cushion making them feel lumpy. For some reason, the patrons sitting behind us kept on kicking our seats like bloody jackhammers while the person in front of me decided to sit straight backed and flick her hair every so often. Inspite of my requests for them to be a little more considerate, they kept right at it. As such, it wasn’t exactly a very enjoyable movie experience. For the record, Lotus Five Star is not a great place to catch a movie at. And on to the movie.

The Story

Picking up where the story left off, Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) is set to marry Will Turner (Orlando Bloom). However, their marriage plans are interupted by Lord Beckett (Tom Hollander), who arrives with orders to arrest them both for aiding the escape of Captain Jack Sparrow (Johny Depp). It is later revealed that this is just a ruse to blackmail Will into retrieving a certain magic compass that the good Captain keeps with his person at all times. The compass will point to whatever it is that the holder’s heart desires. With little choice left to him, Will accepts the bargain and goes off in search of the pirate.

Meanwhile, Jack Sparrow has his own problems to deal with. He is visited by Will’s father, Bootstrap Turner, who informs him that Captain Davey Jones (Bill Nighy) is coming to collect on his debt. A bargain struck thirteen years ago raised the Black Pearl from the depths of the ocean and made Jack Sparrow a Captain of the high seas in exchange for 100 years of servitude on the cursed ship, the Flying Dutchman. But of course, Jack being the pirate that he is has no intent on paying the debt.

The circumstances throws the movie’s protagonists together as they set out in search of Davey Jones’ locker and the key to open it with. Legend holds it that the dead man’s chest holds the still beating heart of the legendary pirate. We follow the misadventures of Capt. Jack, Turner, and Elizabeth as they travel the seas, escape from cannibals, raid the Flying Dutchman, battle the dreaded Kraken, and eventually unlock the coveted treasure chest.on the same treasure.

My Say
The movie falls short of my expectations. While it boasted twice the action and adventure of the first, it was only half as fun. Sure, it was a fun ride with some slapstick comedy, a good serving of swashbuckling, and a chest full of piracy, but it wasn’t quite there in terms of plot and development. As the show drew on, I kept asking myself where it was heading and when it was going to end. For two and a half hours we were treated with good action but it seemed directionless. At the end, Dead Man’s Chest (DMC) was more of a prep for the next movie than a movie on its own. And for that reason, I felt cheated.

The first hour of the movie was fun, as you get to watch the characters go through some funny sequences. Jack Sparrow is a very likeable character and Johny Depp portrays him to perfection. As usual, Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom make for good eye-candy and their characters do have some depth to them. But once the novelty wears off, the movie begins to feel dreadfully long. It’s deja vu all over again as we go through the fight scenes and the ship boarding and the cursed ship routine. Even the reappearance of the Kraken seemed repetitive. At some point, I suspect it was when Elizabeth almost kisses Jack, I just stopped caring what happens to them.

Probably the worse sin of all was that the movie did not have an ending. Unlike the first movie which was self contained and had a proper ending to match and a sense of closure, DMC does not. In essense, it was similar to Matrix Reloaded which was a setup for the final installment. Unlike the Matrix franchise, the final installment is still a long way off (even though they have already begun filming for it). For all practical purposes, I would be better off watching the movie on HBO just before the final installment is released. At least then, I would have the story still fresh in my mind. In other words, they’ve turned the movie into something akin to a Hallmark mini-series.

We’re left with a cliff hanger sequence which you’ll have to watch for yourself, a brief cameo and reappearance of Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) at the voodoo witch (Naomie Harris)’s hut, and a promise of more to come in the next installment. Yes, it piqued my interest in part three, but it also left a bad taste in my mouth. They better make the last installment a good one.

Conclussion
A strong performance by the cast offset by a weak story and development. Some of the action sequences were overkill and awefully long.Take my advice, wait for the movie to come out on HBO and watch it just before catching the final installment in the theatre. You’ll thank me for it. But if you’re a true die-hard fan of the series (in which case, you should already have watched it), then by all means go catch it in the cinema.

Pirates’ Trivia
Apparently, Stephen Chow is cast to be in the next movie. I wonder what he’ll make of it. WL has her doubts, saying that it may spoil the essense of the franchise. Personally, I’m not too concerned. It can’t be any worse than DMC… can it?!

Corrections. It’s the other Chow who will be in the movie (Pirates of the Caribbean 3). Chow Yun Fat to be exact. I suppose we’ll just have to wait and see. Part three is scheduled for May 2007.