Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

Last night I went to the midnight showing of Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. I did not go to the 8:00pm showing because, of course, sincerely devoted fans stay up until 3:00am to see their movie (including the 10 minutes of credits). Just kidding; there was another commitment that kept me from seeing the earlier showing.

Despite the lukewarm reviews, I greatly enjoyed this movie, more than the second one though not quite as much as the first one. Though some people found the many plot twists in this movie confusing, I found it very easy to follow once deciding that everyone was out for themselves, and on the side of the highest bidder. This was definitely the most piratey of the films, full of back-stabbing and treachery, and more serious about the theme than the first film. There was still quite a bit of fun and many great one-liners, but it was not the simplified light fare of the first movie. The character development and acting improved from the last film with one or two exceptions, and several moments that had me very emotionally involved. I was especially impressed by how much better Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley's performances were compared to the first two movies. All the loose ends were wrapped up in ways that almost never felt contrived, so though there were certainly some cheesy lines and logic-defying stunts, you were caught up along the ride and didn't feel cheated at the end.

I found some similarities with this trilogy and the original Star Wars trilogy: the first movie was self-contained and wrapped up everything, meaning that the second movie had to stretch things for a plot and then meandered with it, ending with a cliff hanger, and setting it up for the third movie where things move more quickly and there is more character development and emotion.

There was very little objectionable—a few innuendos and general violence with one slightly disturbing bit—and overall a fun and enjoyable flick (and make sure to stay till the end of the credits). My first reaction was groaning when I heard that there was consideration of more Pirates movies after this one, but after seeing the movie, I'd say the franchise still has some possibilities, and I'd happily see more.