Review of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest (2006) by Thomas D — 24 May 2017

There was a time when Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest was my favorite Pirates of the Caribbean movie. That's probably because I used to watch the first one way too much and because this movie boasts my two favorite sequences in the entire franchise: the cannibal island escape and the final fight on Isla Cruces, in which Jack, Will, and Norrington have a somewhat rotational swordfight.

The rest of the movie just doesn't stand up to the pure joy that is the first one, but that's not to say that I don't love this film. It is my second favorite Pirates of the Caribbean after all.

The first film bests Dead Man's Chest in that it has a much less convoluted plot and it's overall more fun. And Dead Man's Chest falls into the usual sequel trap of turning everything up to 11 except the character's depth.

It is still great to see the last movie's characters return though. Jack continues to be loveable, even if he's turned the crazy up to 11 as well. And Will and Elizabeth are still just as adorably in love, but there's something else about them that bothers me in this one.

It seems like since the last one both of them have made the full transition to acting like pirates, even having the skills of pirates. Since when did Elizabeth learn how to swordfight? But it really isn't a big deal as they kinda need to know those skills especially as they go into the next movie.

Dead Man's Chest also introduces us to some new characters, most notably the new villains: Lord Beckett and Davy Jones. They both provide some well needed foils for the other characters in the film, but they don't really get any depth until the next installment.

There are a couple ways in which Chest is better than Black Pearl. Firstly, the action gets a lot cooler and more ridiculous. As I said, everything in this movie is amped up to 11, including the action.

The special effects are also vastly improved over the last one. Davy Jones and his fish crew still look real and this movie came out in 2006. Another thing that I haven't heard anybody talk about is the music's improvement.

While the first movie has a great score, it wasn't till Dead Man's Chest that Hans Zimmer came on as composer and he adds some fantastic and classic Pirates tracks, including Jack Sparrow's very own theme and others.

Seriously, if you pay attention as you watch the first two movies, you'll notice the music change. In the end, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest provides more of the charm, thrills, and action that audiences loved from the first one.

And you can't deny that the Kraken is bloody awesome...