Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End

Reviewed by:
Pete Hammond

At the end of last summer's Pirates sequel, Dead Man's Chest, it looked like we had seen the last of Captain Jack (Johnny Depp), but a billion dollars at the box office can make a big difference. In a loopy, hilarious reemergence, multipleJack clones start appearing as he sails the Black Pearl over sand dunes and back into the clutches of Will (Orlando Bloom), Elizabeth (Keira Knightley), and Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), who again team with him to fight the evil Davy Jones (Bill Nighy) and Lord Cutler Beckett. To do this, they also enlist the services of some of the world's greatest Pirate Lords, including the cagey Sao Feng (Chow Yun-Fat). This nearly three-hour edition of Disney's cash cow has so many merging plotlines and characters with competing agendas, it's hard keeping them all straight. But does it really matter when you have spectacular visuals and great character work from an outstanding cast? Indeed, the breathtaking action sequences will have you wanting more—including a 20-minute instant classic near the conclusion that, among all the nonstop swordplay and derring-do, is worth the price of admission alone. Depp and company have done it again; and this time it's more fun than ever. With state-of-the-art everything, this is the Pirates to top them all—a grand, sweeping adventure that defines why movies were invented in the first place. And be sure to stay through the entire end credits, because it ain't over till it's over.