Pirates of the Caribbean, at world's end

There are three maybe four movies that I've looked forward to seeing this summer. First Pirates of the Caribbean, At world's End, Ocean's 13, The Bourne Ultimatum, with Harry Potter 5 bringing up the rear. I'm counting Casino Royale as a spring release.

Ocean's 13 was great, loved it. I can't wait for The Bourne Ultimatum, and as for Harry Potter, I've already purchased my ticket for Wednesday night July 11th at 7:30.

Which leaves us Pirates of the Caribbean. I absolutely loved the first two movies, saw them multiple times in the theaters and bought them both on DVD as soon as they were out. Swashbuckling adventure, comedy, and a little romance mixed in. What more could you ask for? Awesome tech toys, yes, but they didn't make them back in those days. Fancy compasses and unsinkable ships, yes, but electronic gizmos, no.

I looked forward to Pirates of the Caribbean, At World's End so much that I counted down the days until I could see it, then ran down to purchase a ticket on my lunch break a couple days in advance. My coworkers and I talked about it at least twice a day, and we googled it online. We played around on the Pirates website, and talked about how soon we all would see it. Okay, well, scratch the we on that last part. I harassed everyone to see it ASAP.

Which brings me to a comment that Lanie, of my coworkers, made to me late last week. She couldn't believe that I hadn't blogged about it yet.

"I haven't?" flittered across my brain before I responded, "Oh." I don't remember my exact response, but the conclusion was that I would correct the situation as soon as possible. So here it is, my thoughts on Pirates of the Caribbean, At Worlds End.

It was FABULOUS.



It was so fabulous in fact that I saw it five times in the space of four days. It would have been perhaps as much as seven times,-- shhhh don't tell anyone, people might think I'm weird,-- but the shows were sold out and I couldn't get tickets. I even traveled down to Times Square because one of the theaters down there was showing it non-stop.

It was Friday night when I saw it the first time. I got off work a few minutes late, ran down to Lincoln Center, but made it just in time to slip in to catch one of the first showings of the night. The place was packed. But since I came alone, I was able to find a place up front, but not too close. Just how I like it.

The theater lights dimmed and everyone cheered and clapped. Excitement and energy hummed through the hall, and I smiled in anticipation. I swear, there is something about crowds that go to movies on opening night. It was great. After the previews and a little more cheering, everyone quieted down and the movie began.

Many critics didn't like this film, I think they're idiots. The trick with the third installment of Pirates is that you actually have to pay attention during the show. I think they were probably lazy.

Before you see At World's End, I know you want to, make sure to watch the first and second movies, or you'll miss a lot of the sub-plots. Boy, are there sub-plots. All the story threads weaving in and out were one of the main reasons why I saw it so many times in a row. I am a savvy watcher, but I still picked up new things on the fifth time through.

Have you ever read a book more than once, and on the second time through picked up foreshadowing and clues that you'd missed before? Well At World's End, is exactly like that. Once I knew how it ended, it was fascinating to watch each character and how they interacted with the others.

I was riveted from the first moment until the last. I laughed, I cried, I was shocked and completely blindsided twice (which rarely happens to me), and I felt sad. There were poignant moments and thrilling scenes, epic battles and wry twists on words.

Geoffrey Rush gave an excellent performance as Captain Barbosa, a few of my very favorite moments in the movie are of him calling out orders while at the helm and while swaggering through the hold of his ship.

Orlando Bloom gave a great performance as Will Turner, in what I would say was a challenging roll, this time around Will's character is more behind the scenes. It's a crucial role, but the first time through I wasn't quite sure what he was up to. Most of the fun I had while re-watching the movie, happened while I tried to figure out exactly what Will was up to, what he knew, and when.

It's too bad Orlando Bloom isn't a pirate in real life, even though he's single. I think I could fall quite hard for a guy like Will Turner, along with pretty much every other female in the world...actually now that I think of it, it's probably a good thing he's not a pirate.

And Bill Nighy, once more shows that it doesn't matter how much make-up you have on. A convincing emotional performance is possible, even when your face is underneath thick layers of latex.

The rest of the crew gave brilliant performances in all! I just wanted to highlight a couple favorites.

There's not too much more I can say about At World's End without giving away any spoilers, so I'll wrap up now by saying, make sure to stay until the end of the credits. There's a thing at the end. It's a long wait, but worth it. Of course, I'm one of those people who sit through the credits anyway, so take it for what it's worth, about 2 cents.

Report back after you've seen it.
-Bitter

Here are a few Youtube clips I found, Harry Potter Style, Star Wars style, and a cartoon.

Potter Style #1


Potter Style #2


Star Wars Style


Regular w/ Light Sabers


Cartoon Style