Does “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” Stand the Test of Time?
Countless swashbucklers seek to catch Captain Jack Sparrow, but will father time be the one to claim they successfully caught him? Curiosity sparks Hundred Tomatoes to sail the high seas for an answer
Disclaimer: For those who prefer the destination over the journey (there will be spoilers in this), you can scroll down to the very bottom to find the answer to this question, along with a “TL;DR” synopsis as to how we reached our verdict.
“This is the taaaale, of captain Jack Sparrow,
pirate so brave on the seven seas
A mystical quest to the Isle of Tortuga,
raven locks sway on the ocean's breeze
From the day he was born, he yearned for adventure
Old captain Jack, giving them what for.
He's the pauper of the surf
The Jester of Tortuga
But in Davy Jones' locker what lies in store?”
These lyrics, sung by the legendary Michael Bolton (wishing him a speedy recovery) as part of a Lonely Island SNL digital short, continue to live in my head rent free every time anything pertaining to “Pirates of the Caribbean” comes up.
In a weird way, the song encapsulates how I feel when out with a group of friends at night. Often, topics I want to discuss do not necessarily jive with the flow of the conversation amongst everyone else. Because of that, when Andy Samberg and company go, “oh, yeah… Those are great” in a taken aback fashion after Michael Bolton says he just got done watching “Pirates of the Caribbean”, it funnily enough represents the reactions I typically get when I choose to bring up whatever randomly comes to mind. Of all the epic Lonely Island classics, this is the only one I can oddly relate to. Especially now that I find myself learning everything imaginable about the franchise.
Case in point: How many people still talk about “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” in casual conversations today? I legitimately forgot it existed until someone a few months ago told me a while back she had a childhood crush on Orlando Bloom as Will Turner. From what I vaguely remember, him and Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow were the “Team Edward vs. Team Jacob” feud before “Twilight” ever entered the mainstream.
The memorable characters in large part helped commandeer a ton of its success at the box office, with the sequel becoming the third highest grossing film of the 2000s and the third rendition not far behind. In fact, it became the first ever franchise to produce two or more movies that grossed over a billion dollars. In a sense, the initial film, “The Curse of the Black Pearl” walked, so the other two entries could run.
Today, aside from the insane Amber Heard dispute he recently found himself in, when people get asked to name something Johnny Depp is known for, “Jack Sparrow” almost instantly comes to mind due to the iconic look to the character, along with the one-of-a-kind mannerisms. After all, it’s not every day you see a fully grown man wearing what looks to be eyeliner, but is actually kohl, a black pigment he wore around his eyes to reduce sun glare, inspired by football players and nomadic cultures.
Interestingly enough though, they nearly chose someone else to play that role, which seems inconceivable when looking back on it. Other possibilities included Jim Carrey, who turned it down to star in “Bruce Almighty”, Robert de Niro, who was offered the role, but declined because he thought the movie would sink his career, and Hugh Jackman, who the studio considered, but opted not to cast because at the time they saw him as too unknown of an entity. It never ceases to amaze me how such casting decisions can make such massive impacts on the course of cinematic history.
Given that nearly nineteen years have passed since its initial release, here’s a summary of the film in case you need a refresher on par with a bottle of rum. Savvy?
When ghostly pirate Davy Jones (Bill Nighy) comes to collect a blood debt, Capt. Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) must find a way to avoid his fate lest his soul be damned for all time. Nevertheless, the wily ghost manages to interrupt the wedding plans of Jack's friends Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley).
After all this time, does Gore Verbinski’s “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” find the highly sought after buried treasure in Davy Jones’s locker, or does it fall victim to the evil kraken seeking to protect it? Once they finally escape their endless drunken stupor, I bet the wannabe pirates isolated on the Isle of Tortuga with not an internet connection in sight will be hankering to find the answer to this one.
Without further perspective, let’s get to this retrospective!
Inspiration can come to people at any time, and in any place, at any given moment. In the case of cinematic creation, the most common sources of content ideation come from sources of literature. In the case of “Star Wars”, George Lucas looked to Joseph Campbell and classical mythology. Almost every Marvel franchise initiated from comic books. “Harry Potter” films came from the novels written by JK Rowling (DUH). Lord of the Rings devolved from… Okay, you get the idea here, books often inspire movies. No need to go into the fifty-two other examples I have lined up.
In the case of the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise however, the initial idea for the inaugural movie, “The Curse of the Black Pearl” came from a Disneyland ride built in 1967. To this day, it remains as the only multi-billion-dollar franchise I can think of made off the whims of a group of people admiring in essence a physical object, as opposed to written prose. Little did they know at the time, that this one obscure afterthought of a theme park attraction would lead to an absolute treasure trove of popularity buried underneath the beaches of consumerism.
Due to the spontaneous, overnight success of the first installment, one which even Disney executives did not see coming, money hungry Hollywood types obviously wanted to cash in on this new sensation. Unlike other successful universes where a clear, coherent vision was baked into the cake with plans for multiple movies, this trilogy came on a whim, with a virtually non-existent literary lore to pull from internally within the existing franchise. The ham fisting of a fourth and fifth (possibly sixth coming up) film over a decade after the initial trilogy only adds to this point. Knowing this, how does the sequel, “Dead Man’s Chest” the one that ended up shattering the box office in a big way, fare?
Due to this lack of existing internal lore, you can tell that they go for style over substance big time in this one. The good news is that the action scenes do not disappoint in the slightest. So many of the battles are extremely well choreographed, especially the final sword fight between Jack Sparrow, Will Turner and disgraced Commodore Norrington as the three unveil their reasons they desire the contents of the Dead Man’s Chest.
All the fights leave me at the edge of my seat, consistently wanting more. They incorporate a ton of variety as well, making none of it seem repetitive in the slightest. The sound also adds to the excitement factor, as everything in that aspect comes across as not only authentic, but dynamic. The fictitious sounds they need to make to bring the kraken, and the Flying Dutchman crew to life, also draw me in, at no point making me wince or question their existence.
An underrated element that stuns me pertains to the CGI for swashbucklers aboard The Flying Dutchman such as the main villain, Davy Jones. Typically, when relying upon these types of effects, they eventually show their age, looking cheesy while revisiting them nearly two decades later. In this case, when looking at these characters, I legitimately thought that Disney made a re-mastered version of the film to bring everything up to date. After the credits started to roll, I looked it up, and it turns out that the effects in this were so ahead of their time, that when the studio re-examined it, they opted not to make any kind of remastered version, deeming it unnecessary. Take a look for yourself and be the judge:
Occasionally special effects do look cheesy, especially one encounter near the end against the dreaded kraken involving Jack Sparrow, but all in all, the crew behind this deserves some serious kudos, because I could not believe how well everything from this perspective stands.
Not only them, but the people behind the practical effects as well. The hairstyling and makeup in this wow me. Obviously, everyone knows about the work behind Captain Jack Sparrow, but the prosthetics work done on Bootstrap Bill Turner, making him look like someone left to rot under the sea for an eternity, helps bring him to life in a big way. Other noteworthy works comes from the unique styles of the members of the crazy tribe that capture the crew of the Black Pearl, Mystic Tia Dalma, along with all the blood, sweat and tears shown during combative moments.
The world building in this feels extraordinarily immersive. Between the elaborate pirate ship set pieces, to the beautiful islands they find themselves shipwrecked upon, to the mystic swamp, to the tribe village that captures them, to the grittiness of the Isle of Tortuga, the production design possesses so many unique nooks and crannies to admire.
The same goes for the costumes: each pirate contains their own unique look, the royal soldier uniforms shine brightly, and it truly feels like they examined every single individual inside and out to ensure they could maintain unique looks throughout the course of the film. You can pause the film at any time, survey the crowds in it, point someone out, and feel like you can tell a life story about them based upon their unique, intricate looks.
Obviously, everyone who knows about this franchise can likely recall on a dime the main riff composed by Klaus Badelt, later adapted by the industry titan Hans Zimmer. It evokes a sense of legendary adventure, making you want to sail the high seas with the pirates. In this one, the score still draws you in, but not in as memorable a fashion as “The Curse of the Black Pearl.”
The aesthetic world building entices, but what about the plot?
Before dissecting its flaws, I want to commend the writers, and Director for attempting to shoot for the stars with a bold, ambition vision on the plot. They try to fit in so many different characters, motives, and other creative components to top the first film.
However, the product of this swing for the fences appears tonally confused. At times, they make it seem like they want something gritty and grounded that makes you intensely fixated on the plot elements. Other times, they inject so much goofy behavior into scenes that I find it hard to take seriously in the slightest. Do they want this to be a serious action-thriller, or an unserious comedy-action flick? I could not tell.
Due to this confusing vision, you can tell the writing in this is far more “plot driven” as opposed to “character driven”. They envision the events of this movie from point A to point B, but neglect to build out the traits of the characters in an in-depth way, leaving them to serve mostly as vehicles to advance the events they wish to see unfold. They structure the story in a way that logically checks out but leaves little room for proper development for the individuals driving the plot along the way. Most of the dialogue feels like direct narrations of the plot, as opposed to actual exposition between people getting to know each other. Some clever lines and quips emerge, especially between Jack Sparrow and Elizabeth Swan about curiosity (a development I will get to in a bit), but overall, nothing too memorable stands out.
As a result of the decision, certain character arcs feel incomplete, whilst others contain scenes that undermine their credibility altogether. For example, Elizabeth Swan, for most of the film comes across as cunning and resourceful, whilst unafraid to get violent when needed. Then, in the final sword fight for the treasure, she sits there stupidly moping while the three men sword fight one another. These types of instances, where they build up a persona, then proceed to throw of it the window for “comedic effect” happens several times throughout, affecting multiple characters.
They try to add in some level of dynamic character arc to Jack Sparrow in this one, making him seem redeemable. To do so, they try to pigeonhole a love triangle between him, Elizabeth Swan, and Will Turner. The whole dynamic seems forced, almost as if the studio caved to the fan fiction writers who wanted to see something happen between the two. Nobody in this undergoes a particularly large scale transformation, but they at least attempt to incorporate arcs. Everyone seems to have at least some surface level motivation behind their actions as well, which I can appreciate.
Davy Jones as a villain gets the job done. He comes across as menacing and powerful. However, we do not see any of his underlying motivations as to why he wants to rule with such an iron fist over others.
The acting in this puts their best foot forward to try to cover up for these inherent flaws. Despite the ham-fisted nature of the Jack Sparrow, Elizabeth Swan romance, Keira Knightly and Johnny do exude at least some chemistry in an attempt to pass it off as compelling. Speaking of Keira Knightly, she gets a few small opportunities to exude some range throughout. Both Johnny Depp and Orlando bloom bring like able personas to my living room screen. The reality though is that due to the nature of the vision, we do not get to see a ton of opportunities for any performances to reach the next level.
The biggest problem of all, is that I cannot for the life of me figure out what to take away from this movie from a theme perspective. With masterpieces such as “The Dark Knight” and “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers”, I can recall on a dime the underlying philosophical explorations of society it contains in its fictional universe. It makes them appear “larger than life” in the way everything unfolds, giving an adrenaline rush that makes you think long after the end credits roll.
With “Dead Man’s Chest”, I am fishing for answers and…. I can’t seem to reel anything in. The motives all make sense as to why everyone seeks out the Dead Man’s Chest, so I don’t see any inherent contrivances thankfully like I do in some films. I just feel like nothing about this explores anything particularly deep about human nature or society. It’s more so fun, escapist entertainment. For the record, there is absolutely nothing wrong with popcorn flicks, but from a critical perspective, I want some food for thought to latch onto.
Of course, I need to address the ending in this, because they conclude it on a cliffhanger. I remember at the time of the release, I had no clue that the sequel would end like that, which made me feel blindsided. I knew going in this time, but it still feels incomplete because of the decision. Whereas with “The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers” you can garner a sense of emotional triumph due to certain successes, “Dead Man’s Chest” leaves so many loose ends untied that I cannot help but feel a touch empty inside. The move in this case to split this into two separate films paid off financially obviously, but to this day it leaves a bitter taste in my mouth.
In essence, “Dead Man’s Chest” reminds me of that person in your life who enthusiastically drops twenty grand on flashy, elaborate fireworks. When you go to their place to see the show, it turns into quite the thrilling spectacle that leaves you a touch awestruck. But the moment it officially ends, you turn to the others around you, and go, “oh, well that was cool”, then carry on with your night, not remembering much of it afterwards. The slight caveat here being that your friend only launches off half of their fireworks, so you need to come back another time to see the rest.
With this analogy in mind, let’s open the treasure chest of a question you all set out on this quest with me to find out:
Does “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” Stand the Test of Time?
Verdict: Aesthetically, absolutely. Plot/writing wise, no.
Hundred Tomatoes Score: 64/100
Tl;DR Verdict: An adrenaline pumping popcorn flick with compelling physical world building that contains a tonally confused story that gets stretched too thin and lacks deep purpose.
In case you were wondering, here are the Top 10 Highest Grossing Films of the 2000s, and where Hundred Tomatoes stands of them. “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest” is the fifth entry in this series.
10. Shrek 2 – Yes, it stands the test of time for the most part - 76/100
9. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers – Unequivocally yes it stands the test of time – 92/100
8. Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
7. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
6. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End
5. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone – Does not really stand the test of time – 51/100
4. The Dark Knight – 100% YES to standing the test of time – 94/100
3. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest – Aesthetically stands the test of time but not writing wise – 64/100
2. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
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