Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

I also got to see "Dead Man's Chest" this past week. This one is a tough one. Let me start off by saying that yes, I did enjoy the movie. However, compared to the first one, it was a let down. I don't know if my expectations were too high for this one, but for me, it seemed like it was missing whatever element the first one had.

For starters, I think it was just too long. There were several spots during the movie where I found myself a bit bored and wondering why the current scene was included in the movie. I've seen other movies that approach the same running time as this one that kept my attention the entire way through.

I did enjoy Depp's portrayal of Jack as much as I did in the first one. I also enjoyed Bloom as Will and Knightley as Elizabeth as much as I did in the first one. I did, however, find myself a bit irritated at Elizabeth's apparent sudden interest in Jack (and based on the reactions of the audience I wasn't the only one to feel this way). I'm hoping it plays into some important aspect of the third movie, but I didn't feel that it had any importance to the story line in this one (other than to irritated me). I'd have rather seen Elizabeth loyal to Will, which is what I would have expected based on her attitude at the end of the first movie and the beginning of this one. Maybe it was just me, but I didn't forsee any possibility of a love triangle based on my impression of the character of Elizabeth from the first flick and this new interpretation of her character didn't really sit well with me.

Other than those specifics mentioned above, I can't really put my finger on why I was so dissapointed with this one. I did enjoy it and it was a fun watch, but compared to the first one, not nearly as good. It is most definately a "bridge" movie between the first and third (how could it not be with that ending?) so I am hoping that with the release of the third it will all come together and stand as a great trilogy, but with high hopes for the third, I'm guessing that "Dead Man's Chest" is going to be the weakest of the three.