PIRATES 2: Depp's Bugaloo

[AndyDursin]

Well that's how a summer movie SHOULD be done.

It's not perfect -- still some pacing issues, and the Kraken only did too much of the same thing -- but FINALLY a summer movie delivers on its promise with several rousing set pieces (love the ending -- love it!) and plenty of fun. Yes, FUN -- as in an unpretentious, enjoy yourself, rollicking good time (something Bryan Singer might want to take note of -- this movie isn't perfect but I'll be damned if its personality and "vibe" for lack of a better word doesn't blow the Man of Steel out of the water).

Zerbinski and the writers did a very commendable job working everyone back in from the original -- not just the leads but most of the exact same supporting players who were so much fun as well. Maybe a bit too much of it, in fact, but still, this movie is so much more entertaining than Superman and The Omen (I didn't see X-Men so I can't compare) that it's like night and day.

Three things to note:

1. The music works better in the film than on the album, where it has a tendency to be too loud and too much. There's more orchestra in this score as opposed to the original, and while all the themes from the first one are reprised, they're even jauntier and more effective here....and I'm guessing Zimmer wrote them all since Klaus Badelt only receives a co-composer credit on ONE track (the techno remix) on the album. I'll be damned if I can't get that Sparrow motif out of my head!

2. If you're going to end with a cliffhanger, THIS is how to do it: use the opportunity to spring a last-minute surprise on the audience and in such a way that it promises something we haven't seen before. The audience flat out LOVED it, and so did I -- unlike, say, the LOTR movies and BACK TO THE FUTURE II, this is how you handle an open-ending! (and not that I minded how those ended either -- since you knew sequels were coming -- but dramatically this ends on a high note in a way those didn't).

3. I will be stunned if this movie doesn't open HUGE, as in easily the top grossing film of the summer (or the year). We heard the hype over Cruise, Da Vinci, Superman, etc. but this movie will be delivering audiences in a way those movies only were hoping to. Every one of the 4 shows between 6:30 and 8 were totally sold out, and the 9pm shows were likewise packed...people were left sitting at concession tables, literally waiting for another round of shows to see it. Obviously, this wasn't like SUPERMAN last week where the 7pm show was 2/3 empty. I have the feeling this will be the one summer movie that will make its money and leave the competition in the dust.

Anyway, despite its flaws, I enjoyed it heartily and am looking forward to the next round!

[Monterey Jack]

I found it disappointing, myself. Too long, too repetitive, too many sequences that don't propel the narrative forward (like the entire, 20+ minute sequence on the island with Capt. Jack being worshipped as a God by the King Kong-looking natives. WTF was up with that, aside from filler?)...even Depp seemed to be phoning it in (can you remember any good Jack Sparrow lines from this one?). Plus, I hated the cliffhanger (spoilers to follow.)...










Okay, Barbossa?! I can't wait to see how the writers try to explain this one away. Plus, if the entire movie consists of Will and Elizabeth sailing "to land's end" to find Jack, it'll be a POTC sequel sans Depp for a good chunk of running time (a la Neo and Trinity vanishing for a good hour's worth of running time in The Matrix Revolutions).










You know, I wasn't crazy about the irst one to begin with (which was equally overlong), but it grew on me upon a second viewing recently. Dead Man's Chest, however, is forgettable in the extreme, a handful of decent setpieces in search of a narrative pulse.

[AndyDursin]

Monty, I wouldn't worry about Sparrow being away too, too long. Han Solo got back in the saddle pretty fast in JEDI, remember. As far as the involvement of said character I loved it -- pirates switch allegiances pretty fast and have a way of coming back, as we've seen.

The island stuff -- sure, it's filler, but it was fun. I could argue that half of every Peter Jackson movie is filler too, but if it works, it works. Did the trick for me at least.

[AndyDursin]

PIRATES 2 apparently took in aprx. $55 million on Friday.......thereby besting EPISODE III's first day gross as THE top opening day of all-time. (That's also more than SUPERMAN RETURNS did all of last weekend, too).

[romelWF]

just saw it yesterday here in Sweden, where I have to work right now (hadnt much sleep as the sun almost didnt set... lol).

It was really really good.. don't know whether it has such a high replay-factor, as it cant really exist on its own and in the end I thought it was fairly unspectacular, having only 2 actionscenes really... but still... the story was hilarious, loved the cannibal-escape, the acting top notch, bill nighy was great and his makeup/CGI beyond belief... how did they do that??? the karken was kinda unimpressive,but I guess it really kicks into gear in part 3 or will just be killed off right in the beginning...

the cliffhangers were fantastic! that part 3 comes next summer is way too long to wait for!!!!

i didnt understand however why the monkey was still undead??? did he steal a coin at the end of part 3????

great movie, a bit too long, but still, that's the savior of the summer blockbuster, that's for sure. and it shows that when you make a high quality movie people actually DO go to the movies! so don't blame DVDs and the internet for the disappointments at the BO... make good movies and the people will come!

[Paul MacLean]

Andy...did we see the same film?

I'm afraid I have to side with Monterey Jack...

I thought it was a poorly written, blandly acted, dull and passionless. The screenplay had no form to it, no dramatic arc, and it didn't build to any kind of satisfying climax. The whole kraken sequence didn't have any climactic feel to it. It felt like just another one of the film's over-the-top action sequences -- which looked great, had nimble cutting and adroit stuntwork, but were all stupifyingly dull. Still, the art-direction was excellent (tho that "MTV" style of photography is now a tired novelty).

The other thing is, I got a strong sense that it was made for people who have seen the first Pirates numerous times (on video or cable) since its release. I only saw Pirates once, when it first came-out, and did not recall all the details. The film did nothing to refresh the memory of folks like me, and it was a bit of a chore to try and pick-up where I'd left of three years ago.

Hans Zimmer's music was better than Batman Returns, but the Pirates score was little more than a collection of drones which had little dramatic conenction to what was on screen. It mostly detracted, and rarely enhanced the visuals.

I can point to what I consider the film's copious flaws, but for me it really came down to this -- it was simply boring. Ten minutes into the film I was bored already. And no kidding, I actually fell asleep in the middle of the film, it was so tedious and uninvolving. And I never cared about any of the characters, never felt any suspense or thrill even once during the film. I almost wondered if "Gore Verbinski" was a psuedonym for Peter Jackson!

Oh well, at least there's Scoop to look forward to this weekend.


Paul

[AndyDursin]

Andy...did we see the same film?

I'm afraid I have to side with Monterey Jack...

I thought it was a poorly written, blandly acted, dull and passionless. The screenplay had no form to it, no dramatic arc, and it didn't build to any kind of satisfying climax. The whole kraken sequence didn't have any climactic feel to it. It felt like just another one of the film's over-the-top action sequences -- which looked great, had nimble cutting and adroit stuntwork, but were all stupifyingly dull. Still, the art-direction was excellent (tho that "MTV" style of photography is now a tired novelty).

The other thing is, I got a strong sense that it was made for people who have seen the first Pirates numerous times (on video or cable) since its release. I only saw Pirates once, when it first came-out, and did not recall all the details. The film did nothing to refresh the memory of folks like me, and it was a bit of a chore to try and pick-up where I'd left of three years ago.

Hans Zimmer's music was better than Batman Returns, but the Pirates score was little more than a collection of drones which had little dramatic conenction to what was on screen. It mostly detracted, and rarely enhanced the visuals.

I can point to what I consider the film's copious flaws, but for me it really came down to this -- it was simply boring. Ten minutes into the film I was bored already. And no kidding, I actually fell asleep in the middle of the film, it was so tedious and uninvolving. And I never cared about any of the characters, never felt any suspense or thrill even once during the film. I almost wondered if "Gore Verbinski" was a psuedonym for Peter Jackson!

Oh well, at least there's Scoop to look forward to this weekend.


Paul

Paul as memory serves you disliked the first movie, too, so I think it's a no-brainer this movie as well will not appeal to you.

Obviously we can agree to disagree on the specifics (I liked the performances and the score), I think you have to keep in mind what kind of a movie this is. It's a blast of summer escapism -- it's not aiming to be some grand dramatic gesture, it's basically a rollercoaster. As such, I loved it (and indeed most audiences seem to be as well), and it's probably going to end up the highest grossing movie of the last couple of years -- despite its flaws.

Did the movies of Ray Harryhausen have lots of suspense and grand drama in them? This movie has better acting than any of those genre films but is built, in heart and spirit, right along the lines of JASON & THE ARGONAUTS and such. That's the type of movie it is. It's not MASTER AND COMMANDER, it's not LORD OF THE RINGS -- it's old-fashioned Saturday Matinee stuff, and yes, in theory it IS meant for kids.

And are you now a Woody Allen fan? I had no idea what SCOOP is until I looked it up, though something tells me now that Scarlett Johannson is Woody's new plaything his movies are suddenly more appealing!

[mkaroly]

Let's hope Woody Allen doesn't make the moves on Scarlett.

I saw the trailer for SCOOP and laughed. You know, every time an Allen movie comes out I have hopes that he'll have that one last good film before he stops making films. His comedies have all been average at best, and MATCH POINT was a recycled CRIMES AND MISDEMEANORS which, BTW, is one of my all-time Allen favorites). So here's hoping that SCOOP is a return to form. I like what I see in the trailer- let's hope the film as a whole is funny. Since MANHATTAN MURDER MYSTERY (which had me laughing so hard my mid-section hurt walking to the car), the last comedy of his I "liked" (even though it was average) was CURSE OF THE JADE SCORPION. His two worst films since MMM were DECONSTRUCTING HARRY and CELEBRITY....I don't like when someone else plays the Woody Allen persona.

I have yet to see POTC 2- maybe this weekend.

[Paul MacLean]

Paul as memory serves you disliked the first movie, too, so I think it's a no-brainer this movie as well will not appeal to you.

I don't really remember the first film too well. I don't remember being especially wowed by it, tho at the time I chalked it up to my going to a midnight screening.

In any case I definitely liked the first better than the second.

That's the type of movie it is. It's not MASTER AND COMMANDER, it's not LORD OF THE RINGS -- it's old-fashioned Saturday Matinee stuff, and yes, in theory it IS meant for kids.

I have loved other summer popcorn movies, like Revenge of the Sith, and kids films like Narnia. They weren't perfect, but they had heart. Something was missing in Pirates for me (and I don't mean Davy Jones' heart!). I can't point to a single moment in the film which appealed to me. Even summer films I hated, like War of the Worlds, at least had moments I had to admit were effective.

Well, its finally happened Andy -- a film on which we have the polar opposite opinion! Do you think we can still be friends?:lol:

And are you now a Woody Allen fan?

I've been redisovering his work. I took advantage of Deep Discount DVD's sale to get those MGM DVDs of some of his films, plus I was very impressed with Match Point. I'm looking forward to Scoop, seeing as I was always a big Lovejoy fan, and its great to see Ian McShane doing comedy again. But the thing which hooked me was the image of Allen struggling to drive a SmartCar on the left side of the road!


Paul