Take the first Pirates of the Caribbean film, add a dash of 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and a lot more rum. Shake well and you'll have something resembling Dead Man's Chest, a bombastic sequel that's enjoyable as long as you don't think too hard about it. The film opens with the interrupted wedding of Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) and Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley), both of whom are arrested for aiding in the escape of Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) in the first film. Their freedom can only be obtained by getting Captain Jack's compass, which is linked to a key that's linked to a chest belonging to Davy Jones, an undead pirate with a tentacle face and in possession of a lot of people's souls. If you're already confused, don't worry--plot is definitely not the... Learn More
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I consider this film to be a prime example of how truly powerful an impact silent film can have on the viewer. This was the first noncomedic silent I can recall seeing--about 30 years ago on local TV--and I only caught the end of it, including the tremendous prison confrontation scene. In the intervening years, I never forgot that scene, and noticed when it was imitated in other romantic melodramas (e.g., 'The English Patient' and the saffron thimble bit).
When the upcoming DVD release was described, I realized that this probably was the movie that had haunted me all these years. And it was! I was thrilled to finally be able to see the whole thing--and it didn't disappoint, even though it had to compete with powerful old impressions.
