Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007) Review

“We must fight, to run away”

THE FOLLOWING REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS OF THE DISCUSSED FILM. READERS DISCRETION IS ADVISED.

When it feels like the end of an era, make sure you go out with a bang.


PLOT


Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End follows Lord Cutler Beckett of the East India Trading Company have control of the Flying Dutchman after gaining access to Davy Jones’ literal heart. With his newfound power, he not only hangs as much pirates and sympathizers, but demands Jones to slay the Kraken to avoid it being used against him. When Jones chooses to keep killing prisoners, Beckett reminds him of dominance by having his soldiers guard the heart on the Dutchman to make sure he keeps prisoners alive. In Singapore, Elizabeth Swann & William Turner have aligned with the resurrected Hector Barbossa to meet pirate lord Sao Feng over navigational charts that’ll direct them to World’s End, where Jones’ Locker imprisons Captain Jack Sparrow and the Black Pearl. With pirate sympathizers singing ‘Hoist the Colors’, it means a call of action for all nine pirate lords to assemble at Shipwreck Cove to decide what to do in the war against Beckett. Sao Feng is hesitant to surrender the charts since he dislikes Sparrow over past insult, but comes around when Sparrow’s motley crew, that includes the likes of Joshamee Gibbs and Tia Dalma, has their back against an ambush from Mercer (David Schofield) and Will makes a side deal with him to have Sparrow for himself in exchange of keeping the Pearl so he can still save his father Bootstrap Bill (Stellan Skarsgard) with it. With the charts and a crew to sail to World’s End, he makes haste with his group. They pass through a frozen ocean of dead souls that sadly included Elizabeth’s father, Governor Weatherby (Jonathan Pryce) who was slain by Beckett after he found no more use of him. As they sail, Tia Dalma explains to Pintel & Ragetti explain that Sparrow’s resurrection is different from Barbossa’s because he lost his body and soul, whereas the latter only lost the soul. She would also share that Jones made a deal with his long lost love, the sea goddess Calypso, to guide souls that died at sea, in exchange for seeing her on land every 10 years. Because she never showed, he has since corrupted his duty and the mantle of captaining the Dutchman can only surpass to whoever destroys his heart. The crew do reach the Locker and rescue Jack from it, but he is hesitant to help as well since he knows they don’t have a choice in needing his help. He goes along in being a helping hand anyway since he’d rather not stay in the Locker. They’re able to return to the land of the living after he deciphers a chart to tip the ship over just as the sun sets in the Locker. Shortly after does the Pearl get intercepted by Sao Feng as planned, but has revealed to make his own deal with Becket who arrives via HMS Endeavor. When meeting Beckett, he makes a new deal to get out of his debt with Jones: In exchange of withdrawing it, he offers to lure all pirate lords out of Shipwreck Cove rather than face all their armies at once. Once that deal is set, Sparrow escapes back to the Pearl. At the same time however, Barbossa convinces Sao Feng to stay on their side due to Beckett refusing to let him have the Pearl for himself. He pushes for it since they know the pirate lords can summon Calypso to defeat Beckett. When suspecting the goddess to be Elizabeth, he and Barbossa convince her to board his ship the Empress, much to Will’s dismay since it’d be difficult to trust him. As proof to be on the same side, the Empress attacks Endeavor for Jack to escape but Sparrow pushes Will overboard as part of the deal. Overnight, Sao Feng explains to Elizabeth that Calypso was bounded in human form by the first Brethren Court after Jones berated her. Just when he makes advances on her, he dies from an attack of the Dutchman and ultimately passes Swann to be his pirate lord successor. As she and her new crew are imprisoned in the Dutchman’s brig, she meets Bootstrap Bill for the first time but sees him lose his mind as a result of the ship’s curse. When Admiral James Norrington finds out Beckett lied to him of what happened to Weatherby, he shows remorse by letting the new pirate lord escape with her crew, but a maddened Bootstrap kills him for his betrayal. These actions do impress Jones, but the key to his heart is now in the hands of Mercer. Will does get picked up by Beckett and converse with Jones about Calypso; not only does he admit that he helped the Brethren Court bind her, but is revealed to be Tia Dalma which Barbossa is able to deduce on his own, worrying what could happen if he fails to free her. Will makes a new deal of his own that for Elizabeth and Bootstrap Bill to be freed in exchange of leading Beckett to Shipwreck Cove. At said island, Elizabeth does meet up with the other pirate lords to discuss how to confront Beckett. During the meeting, all pirate lords surrender all nine pieces of eight, various items used to bind and unleash Calypso. Elizabeth prefers straight up fighting his army, whereas Barbossa is firm with releasing Calypso. Everyone then votes for a new pirate king to make a final decision, which sounds tricky since every lord votes for themselves. That changes for the first time because Sparrow votes Elizabeth as she votes for herself, making the first unanimous vote. With that happening, During the vote, Jones sees Calypso for the first time in decades and confesses while still angry over her betrayal, he still loves her. The following day at a sand bar, a trade is made with Will for Jack and Elizabeth vows to defeat Beckett for murdering her father. When Barbossa releases Calypso by burning the nine pieces of eight, she tauntily vanishes and summons a maelstrom, a powerful vortex of a whirlpool within the ocean, to prove she will not take either side. As that happens, Elizabeth rallies all of the Pearl to stand up to the Dutchman, which is exactly what happens in intense fashion. In the midst of this, Will marries Elizabeth to solidify their love for each other. Shortly after Barbossa weds them as ordered by the pirate king, Jones kills Mercer to claim back his heart, but spots Sparrow (having escaped from the Dutchman’s brig) trying to take it to ensure staying out of past debt. They duel for it long enough for the newly wedded couple boards the Dutchman as the ships crash into each other between the maelstrom. Will gets fatally stabbed by Jones and rather than coping with the duty of ruling the Dutchman, Jack opens the dead man’s chest & uses Turner’s hand to stab the heart, knowing he’ll be resurrected as the new captain. Jack then returns to the Pearl with Elizabeth just as the maelstrom stops. With Will as the new captain, the  wrath of both the Dutchman & Pearl are what defeat Endeavor with ease, killing Beckett in the process while what’s left of his armada abandons ship. All the pirate lords celebrate this victory, but Will is still cursed as the Dutchman’s captain. He does free Bootstrap Bill as he vowed, but his dad prefers to stay with him on the ship willingly. Elizabeth would stay in an island guarding her husband’s heart while he gets use to his new pirate life. At Tortuga, Barbossa ditches Jack & Gibbs with the Pearl again, but Sparrow has the last laugh by stealing a piece of Sao Feng’s charts. The film ends with Sparrow departing on a small boat in search for the Fountain of Youth.


THOUGHTS


2007 was my introduction to what an end of an era feels like because besides Sam Raimi having an abrupt conclusion to his Spider-Man trilogy, Disney and director Gore Verbinski pulled out all the stops into what many thought would wrap up a legit conclusion until the box office success said otherwise. About everything you get to see here lives up to being pretty damn epic. I don’t want to sound stupid when I compare the hype to Avengers: Endgame because although the quality differs between both films, it doesn’t change the fact it’s very entertaining. From Hans Zimmer’s score gives me chills, the cinematography by Dariusz Wolski is breathtaking and as usual, the combo of production design & visual effects hit like crack due to being so lifelike. Simple landscape shots like seeing locations Shipwreck Cove or 1720s Singapore is outstanding, but everything is worthwhile once you make it to the maelstrom battle. Like Star Wars, it’s a very compelling plot to see rebels go against the government. This set of conflict is so different as we see East India Trading Company become everything they’re meant to neutralize, corruption. We root for pirates in this case because they are self aware that power is short term but as actor Tom Hollander shows off as Cutler Beckett, he doesn’t see it that way and feels it can go on longer than he needs it to be until he finds out the hard way. He had all the cards in his hand, but didn’t know when to throw it all in because he thought one way was enough for him to keep it all. He was most arrogant thinking he’d win either way until figuring out he was played. That is where the story goes full circle in saying there is a cost to ambition and there must be a balance between individual desires & needs of a community. The pirates again feel more humane here because everyone knows each other while you would keep it at a first name basis when working with East India. In his defiance that led to his demise, Jack Davenport’s Norrington proves that some sides aren’t worth taking within the first task, but the rest of the ensemble remind us there’s no shame in having second thoughts. You can rightfully say Jack Sparrow much of a caricature here due to the hallucinations that carried on with him after escaping the Locker. No one expected him to be laying an egg, licking his brain or having a crush on a goat. Nevertheless, Johnny Depp still defines the character in more ways than one. We still love his eccentricity because that is what helps him think as ahead as he can. He may say he wants to fight to run away, but luring Beckett to Shipwreck Cove was his answer to trap him and simultaneously be free of Jones' debt. Even when passing the Dutchman's curse to Will wasn't what he had in mind, he did it to save him rather than let him die and gave them needed advantage. Without such a creative mind, it is hard to see the other characters go as far as they have without him. Plus, it's pretty cool that his father, Keeper of the Pirate Code Captain Teague, was played by Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards. Having said that, it doesn't take away how interesting they are on their own. Will & Elizabeth had a rough patch at this point in their relationship due to choosing to be secretive, but come around in accepting they got to live the pirate's life and they still love each other for their equal will they bring to the fight. Orlando Bloom keeps the selfless determination on point with Turner because all he wants is his dad to be free. He doesn't tell Elizabeth his plans to get there because he was rightfully confused with her decision to kill Jack. He ends up forgiving her by marrying her during conflict because he knew it was better to live to the fullest and accept who he loves. As for Swann, Keira Knightley shined bright like a god damn diamond for the most growth this character has had throughout. She has zero damsel energy at this point and is a full on leader like the pirate lords before her because she knows waiting for others to take action does nothing to solve the problems. It was also fitting to see her give up both sides of royal life, before a post credits scene confirms her to bare Will's son, because despite fitting right in to adventure, she was all about peace and she got just that. It does suck that her husband's curse would separate them, but the fact he'll always come back for her is what makes the pair so special to this day. The same cannot be said with what was revealed between Calypso and Davy Jones. Naomie Harris didn't hesitate peeling the true colors of the sea goddess being an untamable figure who was far too playful with those around her. Bill Nighy would then continue portraying Jones as one who lives with conflict because with all the hate, he has unexplainable love for someone who wronged him. They were more of a match made in Hell and they knew it when she laughed as the emerging storm that caused the maelstrom. He’s more human than monster because after all this time, he lets his bitterness get the best of him. Some would say Jones was finally put out of misery when being officially killed, but even he knew his freedom will never be regained after all the pain he caused in the sea. While I still enjoyed Kevin McNally continuing to make Gibbs a loyal ally that knew pirate lore better than anyone, Lee Arenberg’s Pintel & Mackenzie Crook’s Ragetti were still a treat. Whether they were contemplating on taking the credit of a fallen Kraken, hanging upside down for the fun of it, shooting monkey Jack out of a cannon or easily accepting East India soldiers Murtogg & Mullroy, since they come off as polar opposites, each moment was a treat with them. The biggest thing that bought my attention was the return of Barbossa and Geoffrey Rush did not disappoint. This bait and switch was special because he actually tried expressing humanity in this case. He knew there won’t be any pirates left if East India get their way and wasn’t gonna tolerate extinction of his own kind. Does he still have his own greed like many pirates? Yes because he still shares entitlement over the Pearl and debates of its ownership with Sparrow at every given opportunity. The difference between them is that Hector thinks only of the now, whereas Sparrow is deeply ahead of the curve. That alone proves the point on who ruled the Pearl first and having an ongoing rivalry as the franchise progressed. I don’t blame either of them for pursuing the Fountain of Youth because it’s hard to not pass up on such a journey. I wish it was worth it for us the audience. Last but not least, Chow Yun Fat was the only new cast member yet made his own impact as Sao Feng. He’s got his own pragmatism to the playing field because he’s sure that things can go his way until being screwed over. He had such certainty Elizabeth would be Calypso solely off of the rarity of women being part of a pirate’s ship. And in his eyes, she stuck out more than Tia Dalma which is what she would want. When he dies, it’s a surprise because it almost felt like the odds are against the pirates. He chooses to make Swann his successor out of respect to her being the only lady to stand up to him. And that would be end up being the final ingredient to even thee odds. While I respect a lot of what this movie is going for, there are still a few things that don't make much sense upon re-watching. Like why did Will try getting the charts on his own? He knows damn well Sao Feng could've killed him if he wanted to and is lucky Elizabeth bought him enough time before Mercer's ambush. Moving on, how is Sao Feng the only one with the charts to World's End/Jones' Locker? Every pirate knows who Jones and if they wanted to try bringing back all they've lost, there has to be more copies. I mean there really should be since whoever those charts had to have been lost before mapping it out. So when it came figuring out how to get out of the Locker, it's a miracle Jack figured it out. Also, I know Elizabeth is guilty about killing Jack, but it's kinda absurd she doesn't talk about it to Barbossa if not Will. They're not friends and had their reasons to go against him at the time, so it would've been a bit easier to relate. And imagine how awkward it'd be if no one knew the curse of ruling the Dutchman after killing Jones if Weatherby's soul did not pass through. If he didn't die let alone be spotted by the Pearl, it would've been a whole other can of worms for everyone like Jack who would've dared to do it without second thought. And why does Huang even try to hold Jack at gunpoint? They just tilted the Pearl upside down to get out of the Locker, so he too would've had wet gun powder if he pulled the trigger and I don't think enough time passed for it to dry if possible. It even feels weird to see Will drop a trail for Beckett to follow which happens to be bodies tied to barrels. Did he kill those guys or were they already dead as a result of Sao Feng buying them time earlier? It bothers me more this never gets answered. And why does it even work for Ragetti to summon Calypso just because he said it correctly unlike Barbossa? He's a pirate lord, so he should've just told him how. It is even cool when Jack duels with Jones for the chest, but since Will finds out stabbing Jones doesn't do anything if ain't the heart, I'm surprised Jones didn't use this fact against Sparrow. Ignore these things, then you'll still have as much of a blast like before. In conclusion, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End is a solid conclusion for an intended trilogy of an epic adventure franchise that leaves you wanting more for the right reason, whether or not the following results would be called worthwhile. If you enjoy Disney's trend of adapting theme park attractions, see this now.