  Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest
MPAA Rating:
 for intense sequences of adventure violence, including frightening imagesReviewed by: Lori Souder Very Offensive
Moviemaking Quality:
 ½Primary Audience:
Teen, Adults
Genre:
Action, Adventure, Sequel
Length:
2 hrs. 30 min.
Year of Release:
2006
USA Release:
July 7, 2006 (wide)
          Relevant Issues
Review: PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: The Curse of the Black Pearl THE OCCULT - What does the Bible say about it? Answer What is the Occult? Answer About Satan Is there an actual place called “Hell”? Answer Why was Hell made? Answer Is there anyone in Hell today? Answer Will there literally be a burning fire in Hell? Answer What should you be willing to do to stay out of Hell? Answer How can a God of love send anybody to Hell? Answer What if I don’t believe in Hell? Answer The Good News - How to be saved from Hell. Answer
As a huge fan of the first movie, I could not wait for the next installment. I was surprised to see a large amount of merchandising for the movie including chocolate and marshmallow breakfast cereal, white chocolate and other limited edition M&Ms, and fruit snacks. Most of the merchandising that I saw was aimed at smaller children. Disney even decided to, under a shroud of secrecy, update the venerable Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disney World park, despite grave misgivings of many faithful Disneyites. Regretfully, I am here to report, all is not well. The Curse of the Black Pearl, the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie, centers around a tattered but magnificent ship of legend that is the fastest on the seven seas. This ghostly ship is powered by a cursed wind of ill-gotten treasure and peopled by some pretty unsavory undead buccaneers. The doomed pirates are, despite their brutality and greed, somehow made at times to be endearing and comic. We feel some sympathy for them, because they are painted as still very human. The first movie manages to seamlessly combine gorgeous cinematography, humor, both dry and broad, fantastic special effects, magnetic actors, an exciting and riveting plot, lush locations, and a perfect soundtrack. Most impressively, it is all kept in the Disney tradition of “a fun time was had by all.” It was, however, rated PG-13 and was certainly too scary for very young or sensitive children. Disney even managed to get in some excellent moral lessons, which are: Ill-gotten gains will never satisfy and will become an anchor around the neck, and—don’t judge someone by other people’s prejudices, decide a person’s merits by his or her actions. As one would expect, the actual conduct of real pirates had to be whitewashed for the first movie. Pirates were well known for their raping and debauching habits, but while The Curse of the Black Pearl hints at these, most of the scenes are elegant and finely-crafted sword fighting and general plundering. Bloodletting is kept to a minimum, and the camera cuts away from showing blood and graphic death. One would anticipate that the second movie in the franchise would be similar, since it did so very well at the box office. The second movie, Dead Man’s Chest, is a pathetic, illegitimate stepchild that should have never been conceived. The movie starts out dark, gets darker, dives eagerly into the realm of Hades and ends up with nowhere lower to go. While The Curse of the Black Pearl was light-hearted, Dead Man’s Chest has a Heart of Malevolence. In Dead Man’s Chest, all debts previously incurred in the first movie must be paid. Wrongs must be atoned for, promises must be kept. Or so it seems. The movie opens with a forlorn and spoiled wedding for Elizabeth (Keira Knightley) and Will (Orlando Bloom). We then learn that these two are to stand trial for helping a pirate escape and that their demise looks very likely. The whole colony is in chaos, and a new authority is disposing the old. The world is changing, and pirates as well as colonist must find their place in the new order of things. We soon find Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) is still a free-wheeling pirate and now is on a quest for a key that will open a cursed little treasure chest that holds the secret to controlling Davy Jones, his enemy. Jack escapes from a prison with the help of a dead body. We quickly discover that gruesome and decayed human body parts and graphic images of stomach-turning monstrosities of semi-humanity rain down constantly in this movie like manna from heaven. What could be inside the chest that is so powerful as to hold sway over the devilish ancient mariner? Trust me, you really don’t want to know, let alone see it… could it possibly be another grisly and disembodied human body part? BINGO! Just keep in mind that the fine studios at Disney have worked very hard to make every disgusting abomination in the movie as real looking as possible for your cinematic enjoyment. The heaviest hand imaginable was used on the “in your face” violence and horrifically-ugly special effects. The first movie was very beautiful and/or amazing in every scene, where Dead Man’s chest is so hideous, many viewers may find it difficult to watch. Each character has to be constantly corrupted with filth, slime, blood, disease or deformity — with the exception of Elizabeth. In her case, the cleavage on her wedding dress has to be literally “over the top.” And later in the movie, she goes completely out of character to give Jack Sparrow a nearly pornographic kiss, for supposedly a good reason. In the plot, a chaste kiss would have done the trick and been less suspicious, but Disney thought that they had to take every opportunity to “sex up” a movie with so very few female characters. Tia, the voodoo woman, of course, has to be lecherous. This movie could not possibly be intended for women and children?! People of color or African decent did not fare well at all in the film. I was heartsick and angry at the portrayal of the tribe of cannibals that made them all one-dimensional, evil sub-humans. However, the good news is that a great deal of time was spent to individualize their bodily mutilations and tribal face and body painting! I was disgusted that while great lengths had gone into humanizing the (enlightened, yet horribly evil) pirates in both movies, the tribal people were used just for effects sake. The rest of the people of color in this sequel were mostly used as half-submerged, zombie light fixtures. Tia, (played by Naomie Harris) the voodoo witch of great power is one of the very, very, rare female characters and newly introduced in the Dead Man’s Chest. Because she is obviously an adorable and charming-looking person, she was given black teeth to make her so repulsive that we could barely stand to look at her to appreciate her fine performance. This is in stark contrast to the first film where there is an attractive and intelligent female pirate captain of color that commands her own ship! I have seen culturally cannibalistic tribal people portrayed in a much more realistic way that has been both humorous and intelligent. There is no excuse for this type of blatant racism. These human beings are just like everyone else, not less human or less worthy. I think this type of one-dimensional and shallow portrayal does not benefit anyone. Although there may not be an understanding in the US of this, there are still many peoples in the world that are either recently or more remotely descended from such tribal peoples in India, Africa, and various islands. The fighting scenes were so chopped up and fast that they were perceived as just an endless blur of violence. Most of the time I could not even see who was fighting who, and it got worse and more ridiculous as the movie progressed. Each violent scene went on for so long that it became boring and seemed just a time filler. Most of the stunts did not seem to add anything to the story, and some were just ridiculous to try to get a cheap laugh. The main sea monster had no personality at all, it was just a convenient vehicle for more special effects. Anyone can make a big scary monster with no face or originality. I saw the movie with a crowd was attending a special showing of the film. They, like me, were excited, and many wore pirate costumes. When the movie first started, a huge applause wave roared through the theater. But soon, the audience was “treated” to many extravagantly repulsive visions of human body parts used variously for: jewelry, an oar, and giant, round, rolling cages. The packed theater became strangely quiet. The laughs were sparse and half-hearted, and the shock started setting in. There were many children and women in the audience. After the movie was over, there were a few isolated claps that quickly silenced. I saw the crowd as I peered around me, and many had disgusted or repulsed looks on their faces and seemed rather disoriented and disturbed. The ending of the second movie could not have been more different than the ending of the prequel. The feeling I got after watching it was to go home quickly and take a couple of hot baths to rid myself of the stench and filth that I had just been tricked into subjecting myself to. In my opinion, this movie was not at all a PG-13 movie; it should have been rated R. Jack Sparrow (played by Johnny Deep) repeatedly said British slang for the f-word. Violence, suffering, death, cannibalism, killing, drunkenness, high stakes gambling, and betrayal is the focus of the movie. The visuals were sometimes so revolting that it was very, very hard for me to look at the screen. It is constantly gruesome, gory, grimy, and gross—with barely an instant of anything else to serve as relief. There is no justice served in the movie. When laws are broken, instead of trying to work within the system, Will, Elizabeth, and Jack all endeavor to get out of their situation by running away, or making immoral and illegal deals. All the characters think that they are above the law and their word of honor. One character “wins” by putting a gun to an authority’s head to get the job done. Another refuses to honor his promise by offering to kill 99 innocents in his stead! Another makes a deal to get his own freedom and leaves someone else to rot in jail. Elizabeth’s father, formally an important official, illegally releases her from prison. The one person who meters out justice is completely corrupt. All the character and ethics that were developed in The Curse of the Black Pearl’s lead actors are assassinated in the second movie. Will retains some of his ethics in regards to his father, Bootstrap Bill, but the perverted movie plot involves his father being forced to graphically whip Will’s back into a bloody mess. This is not what most people expect from a Disney movie! On the plus-side—and there isn’t much on the plus side, the Davy Jones character was very interesting, and the face and body seemed most likely developed before the movie visually and ethically ran aground. The face of the creature is very intriguing and expressive and one of the few that I wanted to (or could stand to) look at for a any period of time. The eyes were full of expression, and even though he is supposed to be pure evil, the performance was very subtle and multifaceted. It was the only new character that was of the quality that one would expect after enjoying the first movie. On the down-side, all the effects and violence and digital enhancing of everyone else is so in your face that it was just painful to watch. There was no suspense, no mystery to care about. The plot was very good and workable, but it played out poorly. There was some sloppy editing here and there that made parts of the story line seem inconsistent. Characters who I thought we knew and liked did so many things that seemed merely for effect only. It made caring about the characters harder and harder. By the end, I did not like any of them. To make the first movie’s spunky and lovable main cast so completely unappealing took quite some doing! A tremendous opportunity was lost by the decision to portray the Davy Jones crew as merely cartoons instead of interestingly real and supernatural at the same time. In the first movie the pirates appeared human and had personalities until the moonlight revealed them as they truly were, undead. But the crew of the Flying Dutchmen had almost no humanity to them. We never heard about their individual stories and struggles or why they ended up making the damnation deal they did, so the audience had no feeling or sympathy for them. There were just talking digital figurines that were as repulsive as a horribly gone wrong gene spicing experiment between humans and crustaceans. After the initial shock, I just wanted not to have to look at them anymore. If the movie had progressed like the first one, the waterlogged crew (and the ship) could have appeared more lifelike and mysterious while above the water line and then when they went below the surface later, they could have been revealed in a real “ah ha!” moment and the special effects could have been metered out more judiciously. It would have added a connection and believability to the once human characters that was sadly lacking. What a waste. The notion of religion is touched upon a few times, once as a joke about an illiterate person trying to read the bible, and another as someone holds a cross on Davy Jones’ ship. But basically the movie is silent about using the goodness of God being the only way to fight all the evil. None of the characters needed God or his help, they were “fine” without it. The movie is really about using evil to get what you want. There are only bad moral lessons in this movie, and it has no redeeming values or good entertainment. This is the opposite of the first movie, The Curse of the Black Pearl which I have only good things to say about. Apparently, Disney, the movie director, producer, and financiers of the first Pirate of the Caribbean movie all made a deal with the Devil. They somehow sold their soul for the success of The Curse of the Black Pearl and now the bill has come due. So they made the second movie and billed and advertised it as a good-time family movie. They are now doing their best to desensitize viewers to cannibalism, body mutilation, violence, killing of animals, gambling, drunkenness, situational ethics, and the use of both fresh and decayed human corpses for adornment and construction material. And amazingly, the movie actually ends with a similar deal with the Dark Side by our once beloved main characters. They state to Tia while in her heinous lair, they will do anything, and I do mean anything, to bring about the third movie. Matey, you can’t say you haven’t been warned. Personally, I will never trust the Disney-brand again. After the extremely repulsive and racist first few minutes of the movie, I was right in thinking that it would be nearly impossible for the movie to dig itself out of the offensive and disgusting slimy hole it had made. I will not be buying the DVD of the Dead Man’s Chest to put next to The Black Pearl, and I feel like throwing out all the Pirates of the Caribbean fruit snacks and cereal we have in the pantry. If this is what Disney movies have come to, where do we turn for decent family entertainment? I hope that reviewers and the public are honest about this complete sell-out of a once worthy franchise. And I dare to hope that Disney will perhaps listen honestly and once again return to the values and quality that made me idolize Mr. Walt Disney and admire his vision for a better future and meaningful family values. Violence: Extreme / Profanity: Moderate / Sex/Nudity: Mild See reviews of the prequel and sequel to this film: “The Curse of the Black Pearl” (2003) and “At Worlds End” (2007)  Neutral
Neutral - With the reviewer, I was sorely disappointed in this movie. I loved the original but the sequel is a dark, violent, and unpleasant romp which should have been rated - Arrrrrgh (R). In the opening moments, a dead man’s eyes are plucked out by a crow and later in the movie our “hero” is seen gnawing on human flesh, which is played for laughs. I am not politically correct and did not mind the depiction of cannibals per se, but the idea that eating human flesh is a source of amusement is a subject matter for Quinten Tarantino, not Walt Disney. Neutral - Dead Man’s Chest is a much darker movie than The Curse of the Black Pearl, in look and in theme. It is NOT a movie for young children as it provides much more gore, and is just plain scarier than the original Pirates of the Caribbean movie. The action is outstanding, however the character development is greatly lacking. The comic relief is much more subtle in this movie than in the first. There are two big surprises at the end, but it takes a long time to get there. Neutral - I think it was entertaining. Although I was disappointed that Captain Jack was not held accountable for his deceitful and conniving ways. I think it sent the message that it is alright to do whatever you can to get yourself out of trouble, even if someone else pays for it. Neutral - My husband and I enjoyed the first Pirates of the Caribbean, and were really looking forward to the second. …While there were portions we enjoyed, overall we were disappointed. On the positive side there were a few humorous scenes and lines. There was nothing overtly offensive, a couple of curse words, a couple of passionate kisses, a little cleavage, but nothing shocking in that sense. The area of concern that we had was regarding the overall darkness of the movie. Definitely see it before showing it to children, as some children might be troubled and have nightmares as a result. The evil character scenes seem to have way more screen time than the positive scenes. There is a “spiritist” advisor of sorts that they seek counsel from. She uses chicken bones (that’s what they looked like) to give them advice, and the scenes including her seemed satanic in nature. Some rough scenes include some body parts shown during a cannibalism scene, and a crow picking an eyeball off a live person in prison. Regarding religious references, there is a man with a crucifix that doesn’t want to give way to the bad side, but it doesn’t seem to help him. Also a pirate that is attempting to read the Bible (although he can’t read) to improve himself, but his character stays the same. In hindsight, I would have preferred not to have seen the movie because of the overall darkness. Neutral - …a great continuation of the first one. …lots of adventure and humorous scenes… Personally I enjoyed the movie and got lost in it. I have to admit the plot is somewhat confusing even until the end. Children may not understand the plot of the movie, but the action will entertain them. In this movie Jack Sparrow’s attitude has shifted from wanting to become the captain of the Black Pearl to saving his soul from eternal servitude to Captain Davy Jones of the Flying Dutchman. There are some parts that may be hard for children to see such as the whipping of Will Turner Jr. One small aspect of the movie that I liked was concern for the soul. Sparrow wanted to save his own soul from Jones by finding the key to unlock the chest. One scene Jones asks survivors of a ship to join him and delay judgment of God but one man carried a crucifix and was killed because he refused. The ending is a great surprise and wait till the end of the credits. Neutral - I was a bit disappointed in this movie, especially as I enjoyed the first one so much. This seemed to drag in parts and some things were obviously added in just for the “eww” factor and not at all in furthering the plot one bit. The twists in the characters were good though and the ending is quite good. I am looking forward to the third movie, however, I think this one pales in comparison to the first Pirates of the Caribbean. There wasn’t anything highly offensive in this. Only two kisses that I remember. There is a very good examination of self in this—what makes a person “good” or a “pirate.” And some surprises as to what comes out in each character, morally. Neutral - …Pirates is a Disney film - bear this in mind. As such, the bad language is infrequent and the sensuality mild next to nonexistent. The violence, however, is a step up from the first film. I wager that X3 is less violent than Pirates 2. Besides crewman dying by the throngs, there are a few throats slit, but the camera cuts away, of course. Neutral - I just saw this movie with my younger brother and sister. I absolutely *do NOT recommend* young children seeing this movie! We came home and told our little brother and sister that they weren’t going to be able to watch it. It is a very dark and sinister movie. Not to mention it is rather repulsive in parts, especially in the opening scenes where we are shown men in various stated of demise, being plucked at and eaten by crows. In my opinion the worst thing about the entire film is the selfishness of *every single character*, which left me greatly disappointed. In the first movie there is a strong feeling of camaraderie among the different sets of characters, and they are all more or less looking out for one another in pursuit of their various treasures. However, in this movie they are *all* self-centered (except perhaps Will’s father). This is in direct opposition to Christ’s command for us as Christians to love God first, then to unconditionally love others, putting them before ourselves. The characters all break laws, in even greater measure than the last film, only in the case of the “heroes” they try to pass it off as the end justifies the means. Neutral - Yes, it is dark and gruesome, but what disappointed me even more was the lack of everything that made the first movie great—surprising plot twists, intriguing characters, wit, comedy, romance, and scenes that made you cheer or laugh out loud. All were sacrificed in this sequel for more action and gore. My vote is neutral because I can’t say I was bored, but it doesn’t begin to compare to the original. Neutral - I selected Neutral as my rating because I’m still not sure what I think about this film. **SPOILER ALERT** Most of my uncertainty has to do with the way the movie ends. It is unfinished, and leaves everything of importance unresolved. In other words, it’s only half of a movie, even though the movie is 2 ½ hours long. The rest of the story still hasn’t been told. Neutral - I will admit that I am somewhat disappointed in this film, but mostly because of a weak and disjointed plot that is hard to follow, as well as a lack of character development and interpersonal relationships compared to the first. This film was more about variety of locations and big-budget special effects. But let me say up front that, in my opinion, this is not a “horror” film at all, as some suggest. In fact, in some ways it is no more scary than the first movie, and it actually contains a lot more outright humor, even to the point of slapstick. (My 14 yr old daughter agrees.) I was actually reluctant to watch or take my family to the first movie until I was told by others that the ghostly pirates were not bad, and they weren’t. This film is somewhat darker at times, but the music and sound effects don’t convey the feelings of a horror film. And remember that mystical tales of sea monsters were common stories in the days of pirates and before. In addition, real pirates were evil men. (This movie does not, of course, attempt to portray pirates realistically.) Neutral - …The movie begins with a man in chains being dragged off. You see crows pecking at flesh; it appeared to me to have pecked his eye out. This scene is followed soon by a coffin being tossed into the sea. We are then re-introduced to one of the movie’s main characters, Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) breaking out of the coffin and using the deceased’s leg and foot bone to row the coffin as one would row a boat. The visual effects of the movie were dull; there was a darkness throughout the movie much as you’d expect from a film of decades long past. Even scenes shot in the sunlight on the water were very dark. This may have been the effect they were aiming for because of the nature of this film—after all, it is a pirate film. There is drinking in the movie; Jack turns up a bottle and comments about the rum being all gone. Negative
Negative - I was surprised by this movie, and I mean by how awful it was! I loved the first movie and was counting the days until this film was released. I knew that it would be a little bit darker, but I was wrong; it was MUCH darker. The one aspect that really offended me was how the film portrays the voodoo woman as someone who provides answers (I was also disappointed in how the lead characters search her out for wisdom and guidance)! The lady next to us in the theatre was also offended by this demonic practice being presented to children as a worthy path. Negative - I wish we had walked out. Parts of this movie were so gruesome I couldn’t stand to watch. We kept waiting for something good to come out of it. They took a good movie (Pirates I), a family friendly movie, and stripped the characters of dignity, honor, and humor—plunging them into darkness for two and a half VERY long hours. Our entire family was disappointed. Negative - Our children (ages 13 and 11) wanted to see this movie, so my wife and I joined them for an evening out. I have mixed feelings about this film. First off, let me say we were pleasantly surprised to find a movie without foul language or sexual content. Our kids loved it. We, however, found ourselves ready for it to end after an hour or so. The plot wandered, and some of the scenes were way to long, not to mention the movie itself. I guess the “hype” of the promotional advertisements didn’t match the movie itself. I love adventure movies but it was lacking in many ways. My wife and I wished we had sent the children by themselves. I would not sit through it again. If you are checking reviews for your older kids, they’ll be fine. Negative - I had a feeling that the second Pirates of the Caribbean wouldn’t match the first. What I didn’t know was how much evil they’d throw at me once I was in my seat. Opening with the sight of a man’s battered and bloody feet, the movie immediately reveals itself to lack the fun side of the first. We move in unrelenting darkness from scene to scene and the movie does not give Jack Sparrow enough lines to lighten the mood. This dark mood is sustained as Jack is visited by a dead seaman who appears encrusted with barnacles and has sea lice running in his hair. Before we know it, we visit a voodoo lady who oozes lasciviousness. When the undead crew, complete in demonic metamorphosis, attacks Orlando Bloom, I began to wonder why I was still in my seat. I leaned over to my husband and said, “I can’t watch this anymore.” He said, “Let’s go.” We didn’t even ask for money back. It was good enough to get out of there. To be honest, I had misgivings before we purchased our tickets. But sometimes we overcome the guidance God quietly gives us. I believe this is how the enemy lures us in. “Come on, this is a fun thing… you’re not a prude, are you? Look on these things and enjoy.” The enemy would have us become inured to the sight of evil.… Negative - Very poor movie making. A cheap attempt to cash in on the success of the Black Pearl.
The darkness of this film should not be taken lightly. Save your money, time, and above all else “guard your heart” from this dark, Disney pillaging. Negative - My son and I were really looking forward to seeing this film. We do not go to movies very often, choosing to wait for the DVD. However, we purchased our tickets a head of time, and saw it the first night it came out. From the beginning, I could feel the let down as if sharing the let down Will Turner and his wife-to-be were experiencing from the demise of their wedding. Perhaps because the first Pirates film was so great and my families’ all-time favorite, we had our hopes set to high on the second one. But being objective, I can’t really say that is the reason why I am so disappointed in this sequel. It definitely is much darker, much darker than the first. And that is from the moment it starts. It’s something I am glad my two daughters didn’t attend. Negative - I was extremely disappointed with this movie. I’m a big fan of the first movie and enjoyed the light, fun feel of it. So I was looking forward to seeing the second. But only a few minutes into it I was struck by the difference in the feel of the movie. The first movie was bright and fun, this movie was dark and oppressive. The violence and gruesome imagery was at times too much to handle and many of the scenes went on for far too long and were repeated too many times throughout a very long movie. I was uncomfortable with many occultish themes that were far more emphasized in this movie than the first. It was just overall a depressing and dark movie that doesn’t leave you feeling nice. Negative - We thought this second Pirates was not as entertaining as the first, and we were glad when the film finally ended. The movie had a witch in it that Jack Sparrow sought advise from, and it had plenty of selling one’s soul to the devil in it, too. Keira Knightley’s performance was weak, and Johnny Depp seemed bored in his. Orlando Bloom’s performance was very good as usual. Overall, I was surprised by the positive reviews on this movie. Negative - …Regarding the quality of how the movie was made:
I think the beginning was really to hard to follow and took about five minutes or so to understand what was going on. Why they didn’t just continue the movie from the first one I don’t know. I want you to understand this is NOT your typical sequel movie; the ending was more like someone pressed pause on your DVD player and told you had to pay another I think that was truly a disappointment! Negative - There’s not much to say that hasn’t already been said—not nearly as good as the original, and much darker. I highly recommend the wonderful sword fight, and little else. Let us hope the the third can go back to the lightheartedness of the original, although the way it ends leaves little option for that. Watch this movie only if you were already determined to, otherwise you might as well leave it alone. Negative - Sorry to say that we spent our hard earned money to go see this movie. Don’t make the same mistake we did! Negative - I read that this film did not have any cussing so my husband and I watched it. We were very disappointed, the first Pirates of the Caribbean was clean and wholesome. The first one showed that good conquers evil, always, and that it is worth being the good guy. This Pirates movie not only has 3 cuss words (1 a-word and 2 d-words) see www.screenit.com for more details, but was not a wholesome good-guy-wins movie. Nothing was resolved and it left you feeling heavy-hearted. I was very disappointed. We will definitely wait a good while before we see the 3rd one to make sure it is not a dud. Negative - When I walked out of the auditorium, I wasn’t very impressed by this film. It does have its strong points, but not really enough to impress me. This movie was a complete let down. All that hype and it did not live up to it, not in the slightest, let alone come even close to the first movie in quality. Positive
Positive - I wanted to love this movie. I cannot begin to explain to you how much I WANTED to absolutely fall in love with this film. I am still trying to like Dead Man’s Chest, and that’s why I put “Positive” on my opinion. We arrived at the theatre two hours early and stood in a line. I brought my eight year old brother along thinking this would be an awesome sequel to the swashbuckling Curse of the Black Pearl. But alas, it was not meant to be. The first few minutes are what set the stage for any movie and for Dead Man’s Chest; it was a particularly disturbing setup: Prisoners being dragged by their chains, wailing with pain, and others caged and bound where crows pecked their eyes out. Positive - This film is rated PG-13 for a reason. I saw many children under the age of 13 leave the theatre with their parents before the movie was half finished, because it was frightening and gory. The gore although not realistic to adults and teens is too much for children. The film contained a few damn’s and 1 ass combined with another word I couldn’t quite catch. This movie contained a lot of humor pertaining to the first movie and was hilarious. The characters from the first movie were well built upon by this movie, and the ending leaves you anticipating the third. Great adventure. Great romance. Great humor. Lots of fun. Positive - …I enjoyed the film. However, it seemed a lot longer than the first. The acting was good, but it wasn’t as funny as I thought it would have been. …clean for the most part. Positive - I found this movie entertaining, with more laughs than the review above suggests. Yes, the subject matter was creepy. Davy Jones and his crew are hard to look at. It’s sort of a horror movie, actually. Keira Knightley’s character was not as likeable this time around. Johnny Depp played Jack Sparrow again in that unique characterization which I think only he could do. This is not for children, but it is really quite an amazing movie in terms of special effects and the preposterous story line — and fine for adult entertainment. I am glad I saw it and will probably see the sequel, which the ending so obviously set up. Positive - I really enjoyed this movie! Johnny Depp, Kiera Knightly, and Orlando Bloom acted really well and I think the storyline was great. I have more pro’s than con’s, I will discuss my con’s first: Positive - Overall, I thought that this movie was very entertaining - the plot line was complex enough to keep my attention pretty well, it was funny, had non-stop action, and was well acted. I definitely think that the PG-13 rating should be taken seriously. The monsters were, in fact, very gross. Much more disturbing than the undead pirates in the first movie. There was a disgusting scene near the beginning of ravens picking someone’s eye out, plenty of violence (of course) but I’d say more than the first movie because of the scene where Will Turner is whipped. There’s also heavy content, you know, scary dead monsters who tear apart ships and are after people’s souls, someone about to be burned alive, etc. Positive - This movie is perfect if you want to spend a fun afternoon at the theater. Johnny Depp and the rest of the cast deliver another extremely entertaining performance as Captain Jack Sparrow and his crew. One of the great things about this movie is that it shows the true ugly side of evil in Davy Jones and his minions. Yes, their images might be disturbing, especially for a younger audience; so, please heed the PG-13 rating. However, this movie also depicts a good and honest man, Will Turner, who again finds himself entering a world in which he is not comfortable to fight for the people he loves. Perhaps there is a lesson there for all of us who are Christians. And of course, there is Jack Sparrow who struggles to find his identity as a pirate and a good man. I found nothing that attacked my faith in this movie and often found myself laughing out loud with the rest of the audience. I would recommend it to anyone who is ready for a great movie! Positive - As everyone has, I eagerly anticipated the opening day of this film. The first film, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl, was excellent, and sometimes doing a sequel to such a successful blockbuster can be dangerous. However, I am very pleased to say that this film deserved every bit of early praise that it received. It’s absolutely excellent. The cinematography is wonderful and the scenery breathtaking, with much more emphasis on the untamed, tropical climate of the Caribbean than in the first film. Positive - This movie was a great sequel to the first. Yes, it was dark and supernatural, but it isn’t meant to be serious. There were a load of jokes (mostly involving Captain Jack Sparrow) and some unexpected parts that will keep you entertained. Johnny Depp was brilliant as the eccentric Jack Sparrow, and Bill Nighy as the bad Davy Jones. The storyline was fast-paced and will entertain you from start to finish. There were some great battle scenes (which included the sword battle between Will, Jack and Norrington) some outrageous scenes, and some great one-liners. It is obvious that the whole cast (and the production crew) had a load of fun making this movie, and you will have fun watching it. And the ending itself had a certain twist to it. Positive - I saw this movie yesterday with my parents. We loved the first movie and couldn’t wait for Dead Man’s Chest to come out. I thought over all the movie had a darker feeling than the first movie. It starts out with a man getting his eyes pecked out! I think that was the worst part of the whole film. Some smaller kids might have been scared by some of the men on the crew, but in general they just looked like fish. The only other objectionable part would be with the voodoo lady. …The special effects were awesome!!! I absolutely loved them. It was a bit long, and it left on a cliff hanger at the end, but I can’t wait for the third and final Pirates to come out!!! Positive - Very fun film. The costuming and makeup were amazing. Lots of laughter. My family was very engaged through the entire film. I found nothing that was offensive. This film, however, would be a bit scary for children under the age of 8 simply because of the costuming of some of the Davy Jones crew. Positive - I’m a little surprised at how negative the main reviewer is about this film. I saw it just yesterday, and although it has it’s gruesome moments, it’s not the racist, gruesome bloodbath that has been proclaimed. The film does have a number of people of African descent portrayed as cannibals or witchdoctors. That is a negative aspect, for sure. However, the numerous Caucasians in the film are treacherous, deceiving, conniving pirates. No one is portrayed as better or worse than anyone else. The film definitely is different from the first one, and there is more action, violence, and a bit more of a dark quality to it. However, for a Hollywood film, it is still milder than about 90% of the movies out there. I wouldn’t take anyone under the age of thirteen to see it, for the scarier moments that do exist. The cursing is almost nonexistent, no sex scenes, only a few kissing scenes (one is a little dragged out and unnecessary, but is in no way “pornographic” as the reviewer described it) and God isn’t disrespected in any way, not that I recall. There is a scene with the Bible and a character that some may find offensive, but it doesn’t make fun of the Scriptures in any way. And yes, the film is not as lighthearted as the first. The plot is thickening. Bad stuff will happen. The characters are getting caught up in treachery and deceit. If anyone can’t separate these characters and their ploy from real life, then they shouldn’t be seeing the movie. If anything, learn from their mistakes. We can all see where it will get them. Positive - This movie was the best movie that I’ve seen this year!!!… It is so awesome. It’s very funny and has lots of surprises.… Positive - I loved this movie!! I just wanted to say that I have a hard time with the site reviewer’s comments about this movie. I’ve seen it twice so far and plan on going back. This movie is not the nasty, gross, bloodbath that its portrayed to be. It does have its share of images that might bother people with weak stomachs, and some children (especially those who scare easily) shouldn’t view it, but the movie is called Pirates of The Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest. It’s about Davy Jones, who took drastic measures to make sure he wouldn’t be heartbroken anymore. That alone should clue people into what the movie is about and what to expect. …Jack and Elizabeth do kiss, but it is in NO way pornographic, and the majority of the scenes are played up as jokes. Yes, this movie is dark, and there are mentions of superstitions and witchcraft, but people, this movie is about PIRATES. …Pirates were not nice people, they didn’t do nice things all the time. And while this movie has its moments, it is in no way any more morally wrong than the first one. All in all, this movie is wonderful, and in no way offended my faith at all. It gave me everything I expected, and I can’t wait until next year to see the next one!… Positive - I am a 42 year old mother of 2 teenagers. …it’s a movie about pirates, therefore, it will have all the things in it that pirates do. You shouldn’t be surprised! Hollywood (yes, even Disney) is always pushing the button when it comes to content. With a title that includes “Dead Man’s Chest,” I went in to it assuming it would be more scary than the first. …What do you expect? A movie like this is bound to be scary to kids.… Positive - This sequel provides a great deal more situations of peril for our favorite characters. The whole movie is really a sea bearing tale of good against evil—with Davy Jones playing the part of Satan himself. Several times God was not only mentioned, but with great respect, in my opinion. Davy Jones truly plays the part of satan collecting souls to be damned, but never being able to overrule man’s freewill. For example, at one point Davy attempts to strike a deal with several dying men for their souls. One man clutching to his rosary refuses and says that he is prepared for death. His throat is slashed and his soul never belonging to Davy Jones. Mostly this movie has a lot of scary moments and gruesome creatures. The only occult reference I saw was when the crew paid a visit to a woman who looked to practice hoo doo. No animals were killed at all. A dog was chased by a bunch of cannibal,s but he shows up after the credits as alive and well. The monkey was shot at but he couldn’t be killed no matter how they tried. Body parts (toes really) were used for jewelry but there was no blood or gore. If you have a child that may be upset by exciting perilous situations, then I wouldn’t let them see it. If you think they may be able to handle it, but not sure, I suggest waiting till its out on DVD and you can turn it off if needed. There is also no conclusion to this movie as it is continued in the next movie so if they may be upset not knowing the outcome of their favorite characters then you might want to hold off as well. Otherwise it is a great movie with lessons on the consequences of where one puts their loyalties. Positive - Let me defend DEAD MAN’S CHEST: The movie is REALLY fun, adventurous, exciting, thrilling, scary, and such a great movie to see in the summer. …But this one is not as good as the first one, but only by a tiny bit. The action is great and not boring. The characters evolve and never stay the same, which keeps things interesting. And the humor is nonstop. And parents need to know HEED THE PG-13 rating. Last time I checked, PG-13 doesn’t mean KID-FRIENDLY. It means the film is for kids over 13. And last time I also checked, parents should be able to READ and RESEARCH the movie and be aware of this rating and why it’s rated PG-13. Positive - I took my 12 year old daughter, and a friend of her’s (the same age) to the movie. My daughter was scared in it by Davey Jones and his crew. The friend was fine. I though the movie was very well done, and the special effects were excellent—typical of a Bruckheimer movie. There are a lot of supernatural things in the movie, grotesque ghosts, and some are too scary and intense for children. There is no profanity in it, and the movie is hilarious at different points. I thought it was good overall, but may be too scary for children. That’s why it’s PG-13. Positive - WOW! My husband and I went to see this film, and we were not disappointed! The humor was still there, and they had a great story line. We were BIG fans of the first one, and this one was just as good and keeps you wanting more (hint - part 3)! Glad they took the time to make a good 2nd movie. I recommend this movie to anyone who is a FAN of the first one. Keep in mind, these movies are fantasy - not reality! Not biblical - just good fun! 2 Thumbs up - way up! Positive - Terrific special effects. My favorite part of the movie is the soundtrack, the “swash-buckling” theme music is just fabulous. This long-awaited sequel does not disappoint. Fans of Depp’s Jack Sparrow character will be pleased as he is in fine form in this movie. Parents, I would not have taken my daughter when she was little, because there are many “gross” images in this film, and she may have bad dreams about the Davey Jones character who seems to have an octopus for a head. Of course, there are many instances of drinking - “why is the rum always gone?” And, there is a voodoo-like witch woman who is visited and dispenses weird wisdom. Other than that, I do not recall bad language or other objectionable content. I could see little boys playing “sword-fight” after viewing this film, so parents be warned — there is a LOT of sword-fighting and fighting in general in this movie. Positive - This review clearly explains all of the reasons Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest was rated PG-13. Frankly, don’t take your children to the movie theater to see this. Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom and Keira Knightley acted well. I laughed out loud at moments of humor. The “danger” theme song was brilliant and added to the action. Positive - I was surprised at the extremely negative review(s) this film gathered on this site. While it is true that the “humiliation” of favorite characters from the first film rather knocked me off my chair in the first hour of the movie, I found it an extremely fun blockbuster in the grand old tradition of the original. Things only hinted at the first installment (Elizabeth and her fascination with pirates, Norrington’s desperation to be accepted, and Jack Sparrow’s willingness to do anything to save his own skin) were fleshed out and given a grand renovation in Dead Man’s Chest. (Not to mention Will Turner transforming from a confused and often pathetic hero into a man of courage and intelligence.) Positive - I liked the movie, but I hated it when they talked about the Bible as if it was just a moral guide. I didn’t like the lewdness or sexuality. Some parts were very funny. …This movie is not at all for young kids or some teens. Very gory and depressing. If you watch this, keep an Christian view on everything you see. Positive - …a very good movie. The language is calm (considering it is a Pirate movie). Visual effects are incomparable. Small children WILL be scared with several of the characters make up. There is a scene on cannibalism (Depp’s character has toes as a necklace), and the crew are captured in a “bone cage.” References are made that the rest of the crew did not “make it.” I would not recommend this movie for any child under 10, as the story line and characters I feel would intimidate.
For adults and teens, this movie is amazing. The story line is an incredible follow up to the initial movie. Look for several surprises and an ending that opens up for a third movie without question.
It is a long ride (over 2 ½ hours), but worth every bit of it. Positive - …although it has it’s gruesome moments, it’s not the racist, gruesome bloodbath that has been proclaimed. The film does have a number of people of African descent portrayed as cannibals or witchdoctors. That is a negative aspect, for sure. However, the numerous Caucasians in the film are treacherous, deceiving, conniving pirates. No one is portrayed as better or worse than anyone else.
The film definitely is different from the first one, and there is more action, violence, and a bit more of a dark quality to it. However, for a Hollywood film, it is still milder than about 90% of the movies out there. I wouldn’t take anyone under the age of thirteen to see it, for the scarier moments that do exist. Positive - This movie was excellent. I believe the reviewer of this movie was quite extreme in her comments on the cannibals having a racist effect on the film, and unknowledgeable with regards to the plot, characterization, and morals of the story. She couldn’t get past the “disgusting de-humanized shipmates” of Davy Jones’ crew, and so, she could not fully appreciate the depth and further involvement this story presented. Yes, the characters got darker. What could one expect from a pirate movie? I believe that it is a greater threat to show the piracy white-washed as it was in the first movie than to show it in a greater, more sadistic nature as it was in Dead Man’s Chest. Desensitization comes from a misconceived perception on reality. This movie was more realistic in the depiction of pirates and how they lived. Comments from young people
Negative - To begin with, I very much enjoyed the first movie. I just saw Dead Man’s Chest today and this one was not nearly as good as the first one! I walked into the theater expecting a fun and exciting movie with little objectionable content. That was not what I got at all! First of all, the story was much more complex than the first one. And much of it didn’t make any sense at all! Also, they didn’t explain parts of the movie enough and some parts seemed to be thrown in there for no reason at all. The movie was MUCH too long! I kept wondering when it was going to end. It was very tedious. It really was just not an extremely well-thought out or well-edited movie. As for the content, it was MUCH darker than the first one! The bad guys are much scarier and truly evil. Also there is a voodoo priestess that has a rather large part in the movie that, to me, was completely unnecessary. I didn’t hear any language that I can recall. Positive - My friends and I dressed up like pirates and went to the midnight showing of this movie. We were really excited because we loved the first one, but this one was a letdown in comparison. I think the problem was that there was a new director. On its own, it’s an okay movie, but the first one is much better. I would not advise letting any young children see this movie. The bad guys aren’t as creepy as they were on the first one, but they are much grosser. There’s barnacles and whatnot growing out of people’s faces. There’s also a scene at the beginning where a bird pecks out someone’s eyes, just to give you a little idea of the violence. Overall, it’s an okay movie. I would see this before you let your kids see it. Neutral - Dead Man’s Chest was not nearly as good as I had been anticipating, but I can’t help but like it. It was gory, and I am glad my 8-year-old brother didn’t come to see it, though I think it’s ok for kids 12 and up. What I’m most concerned about, however, is if this is what the second one was like, how bad will the third be? Positive - Let me start by saying that the Pirates of the Caribbean series is most certainly targeted at teens and adults. Thus, it is rated PG-13. Thus, only teens and adults should watch it. Now, on to the review. Dead Man’s Chest is certainly a second chapter in a trilogy. It starts with little introduction, and ends with little resolution. You may want to watch the first movie before you go to this. The movie features excellent acting, effects, and music. It’s an entertaining time, provided, of course, you are old enough to handle some mildly disgusting bad guys. The film falls short, however, in the storytelling. The first hour or so was intensely dark and serious, with little comic relief. Just when the audience is adjusting itself to the new tone, the movie switches, and becomes light and silly, with slapstick humor all around. Finally, it evens out towards the end, but I was left thinking that it could have been improved greatly if there was more comic relief in the beginning and more serious scenes in the middle. Still, it was good fun, and I can’t wait for the next movie. Neutral - As with many others, I have been anticipating this film for months. The first movie had a great message of redemption, but this sorely disappointing flick had witchcraft, gory violence, and a very misplaced kiss. At one point I saw a mother taking her daughter out of the theater because she was crying. The only reason I am giving this a neutral rating is because cinematography is excellent and the few funny and clever parts. Positive - Don’t think that just because you let your young kids see the first one that you have to let them see this movie. I really liked it myself, but I would not recommend it to anyone under the age of 13. Take the PG-13 rating seriously. In the first few minutes, you see crows picking at decaying people’s skin, and it’s pretty gross. This one seemed to be more gross than the first one. It had it’s funny moments, though, and had a really good plot! I think that anyone 13 and above would really like this movie. **You should stay after the credits, they have a little clip at the end like they did at the end of the first.** Negative - Not a good movie. In fact, its the first I ever walked out of, with 45 minutes left. To start with the mild issues, the characters don’t really have the same personalities, especially Jack who is less crazy and more bored and serious, Elizabeth is more sexual, etc. There is witchcraft, Jack eating a human toe, a crow graphically picking someone’s eyes out while it shows corpses, and this last thing was at the beginning of the movie and quite a shocker. But the thing I really hated was inhabitants of Davy Jones ship. I mean, it was like they were in hell. There was algae and sea creatures growing off them, and some guy was part of the wall of the ship and you could see his brain sticking to it as he moved forward. The villains in the first movie were all mostly caricatures with a good sized portion of necessary depth of character some times, but these things were just gross. But the very worst part was when Davy Jones asked the one pirate is he was afraid to die, and the pirate held up a cross and said he’d take his chancing and then got pushed into the water. I think its necessary to verbally rebuke demons, but I still thought that was kind of like mocking God, saying he’s powerless like most movies do nowadays. Anyway, if you’re still not discouraged enough from seeing this terrible movie, I have one more thing to say. Its boring. Neutral - My friends and I were all very excited to come and see this movie. They are avid fans of the first movie, while I am not quite as avid a fan, I did enjoy the first movie and was extremely excited to see this one. As the last preview played I prepared myself for a light hearted opening that would pick up where the last one left off. No such luck. The movie begins gloomily, and keeps getting darker from there. 15 minutes into the movie I felt a rush of evil just bursting out of the screen. Thankfully that feeling passed, but the movie didn’t get any better. It continued to go off on to tangents that didn’t seem important to the story at all. The fights were annoying, and scenes were drawn out so much that I almost fell asleep. Some scenes were very confusing, and left me asking my friends around me to explain what happened. The graphics were disturbing, and I really would not recommend this movie for someone that has a weak stomach. Positive - I just got back from viewing this film. I loved it! I thought it was hilarious, had awesome special effects, and some great fight sequences. My family (4 people, not including me) did not find it so amusing. As a matter of fact, many of them completely disliked it. I thought it was just a step below the first one, but very good. The objectionable content included about 4 minor swear words. In the beginning, Elizabeth’s dress showed quite a bit of cleavage, but she got into more modest clothes later on. There were also some other parts where women wear very low-cut dresses. Thankfully, these parts are not high in quantity or lengthy. There were also a couple of passionate kisses. Younger children will find Davy Jones’s crew to be quite frightening. There was also a witch doctor type person, and parts with her included talk of magic and such, but I found it very fairy-tale like rather than realistic. The violence was worse than the first one, but not as bad as Lord of the Rings by any means, especially since much of it is played for laughs. Overall, I wouldn’t watch this in theaters more than once, but I did enjoy it quite a bit. It did, however, have some puzzling plot twists and the characters were hard to figure out some times, but all in all I liked the movie. Positive - I just saw this movie today! I thought that it was a great sequel to the first one! There was nothing sexual in it, only a few kisses. I, personally would not recommend this to anyone under ten, or anyone else that gets scared easily; it was not scary to me, but it probably would be for younger children! Davy Jones was scary, but his crew was more frightening! Over all this movie was very harmless and was a great sequel to the first; I loved it! Neutral - My recommendation is to not, for the life of you, take anyone under 8. I was really scared myself. It has good humor and is really entertaining. I am big fans of Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightly, and kind of a fan for Johnny Depp. It has no cuss words or any other stuff—just violence and creepy things. All together I’d say it’s a pretty good movie. Positive - I went to see this movie today [opening day] at midnight, and it was not disappointing (it also kept me awake). I loved the action and the comedy relief provided by Captain Jack Sparrow as well. Overall, I would not not recommend this movie to children 12 and under thanks in part to Davey Jones and his crew which would definitely scare them. The action is very well done and also fun to watch along with the music which was excellent. Another thing is there was no cussing, that I was aware of, except for when Elizabeth said Oh, G**, and there is also a lot of gross scenes that are definitely not necessary for children to watch (they didn’t bother me though). The movie was one of the best I’ve seen, and I can’t wait for the 3rd one to come out next year. Positive - THIS MOVIE WAS SWEEEET!!!! It’s an awesome action-adventure that has a great cliff-hanger ending. However, the use of some witchcraft and some rather disturbing images (such as a man getting eaten alive by crows and someone else getting snapped in half by a sea monster) may not be appropriate for smaller children. There is also some inappropriate language in this otherwise great movie. I recommend this movie for ages 12+. Positive - I was so excited to see the second movie of the Pirates of the Caribbean, and when I went to the movies to see it, I was glad I did. This movie was really exciting and entertaining, action packed and the graphics were totally believable. The only thing that I did not agree with was the relationship between Jack Sparrow and Elizabeth. They held against each other the idea that at one point they will each become the complete opposite people that they are: Jack will become a good guy and Elizabeth will become a dishonorable pirate, because of curiosity to explore what they don’t have (this does happen at one point in the movie). But besides that the movie showed to be really good. It went to show that a father will do anything for his children, which was expressed between Will and his father. This movie is a must see!! Positive - …It was great! First of all, Elizabeth’s father was very good when he illegally took Elizabeth out of prison! He cared about her! He was spying and heard a horrible threat that was going to be done to her and he wanted her to be safe! A lot of characters in there also intent to give up their lives for one another. Also, Jack considered the safety of his crew when he said Abandon Ship! Even though it was The Black Pearl, the ship he loved. …Don’t get me wrong. It is scary for younger children, but it is not bad movie!… Positive - This movie was awesome! Rock on William Turner. Just like the first movie, this one was positive. Language |
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