Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End is the third Pirates film, and the last one Gore Verbinski directed. Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio wrote it. It runs 169 minutes and opened in the United States on May 25, 2007.
Trailer, via Rotten Tomatoes Classic Trailers.
Jack Sparrow in Davy Jones’ Locker
The story picks up where Dead Man’s Chest left off. Jack Sparrow, played by Johnny Depp, is stuck on a sea of sand inside Davy Jones’ Locker. Will Turner, Elizabeth Swann, and Hector Barbossa lead a crew out to save him and get the Black Pearl back. They sail against Lord Cutler Beckett, who holds Davy Jones and the Flying Dutchman.
The Cast
Most of the series’ regulars return.
- Johnny Depp as Jack Sparrow
- Geoffrey Rush as Barbossa
- Orlando Bloom as Will Turner
- Keira Knightley as Elizabeth Swann
- Bill Nighy as Davy Jones
- Stellan Skarsgård as Bootstrap Bill
One Release Date
| Date | Event |
|---|---|
| May 25, 2007 | United States theatrical release |
Two Sequels, One Arc
Elliott and Rossio mapped out a story arc covering two films, conceived in 2004. The two were shot during 2005 and 2006; the first became Dead Man’s Chest. Verbinski’s run on the series ends here.
Will Turner and His Father
Will is a blacksmith who turned pirate, and the son of Bootstrap Bill Turner. After the ritual is performed, he takes command of the Flying Dutchman. Skarsgård plays his father, doomed to serve aboard Davy Jones’ ship. Bill loses his grip on his own mind as the film goes on, and by the second half he barely knows his son.
Geoffrey Rush as Barbossa
Geoffrey Rush is the best thing here. Rush plays Barbossa straight, and the part suits him. Bill Nighy’s Davy Jones remains a strong creation.
Where the 169 Minutes Go
The running time is the problem. At 169 minutes, the film stacks plot on plot. It has the cast and the ambition, and it spends both on a story that needed a harder edit. Not a bad film so much as a swollen one.
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