Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End Review

In the third and latest installment to the Pirates of the Caribbean film series, we come to the conclusion of many character story arcs with Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End.

Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) is dead and piracy is on the verge of extinction from the reluctant alliance of the tyrannical Lord Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander) and the devilish Davey Jones (Bill Nighy). Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) no choice but to sail with the newly resurrected Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) to the unknown reaches of Davey Jones’ Locker to rescue their lost sparrow. Enemies must unite, loyalties will be crossed and not everyone will emerge alive when the smoke clears.

Surprisingly for a film series with the Caribbean as its supposed locale, the third film embraces pirate lore in all of its national tastes, with the Orient as a particular focus. From its subtitle, you can also guess that pirates decide to sail off the map. Elements of the Disneyland ride and the traditional mythology are brought to the screen, some cliché but most of them tolerable.

Because the story carries on mostly from the second film, its plot only really grows in scale and to finish the other half of the character arcs. New characters are introduced, but almost all of them are either minor or lightly seen.

Take for example the newest pirate, Sao Feng (Chow Yun Fat). While the film shows the pirates of the Orient involved in much of the story, Feng feels like he’s barely moving on with the story and only appears for about half the film. The performance of the character is both strong and colourful, which makes it seem even more of a shame to be almost wasted in the story.

Hans Zimmer’s adventurous soundtrack also provides an emotional and eerie side. It flows beautifully over the action, which generally stays on the same level as Dead Man’s Chest. Much that the movie implies in its build up never comes to fruition.

Loyalty is the prominent theme of At World’s End, with a dash of loyalty among thieves shade to it. Where characters would at times feel to be morally grey compared to the dark hearted Davey Jones or the chivalrous Will Turner, here everyone is forced to choose a side.

Whether or not the plans for Pirates 4 ever leave the production levels, At World’s End is an appropriate end for many of these characters. Not all of them receive the stereotype Disney finish everyone will be expecting, but it will still leave many viewers satisfied of how far the story has come.

-Braydon K