Yo Ho Ho: My Review of DMC
Jul. 9th, 2006 12:20 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jedibuttercupI saw PotC: Dead Man's Chest last night with ![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
maevebran and earcmacfithil.
My reactions were mixed.
Firstly, ooo, pretty; most of the sets were gorgeous, and I adored the costuming as well, particularly Will's wedding outfit. Davy Jones' crew were very well done, to the point where I could not tell by visual texture what was CGI and what was makeup; I was very impressed.
Secondly, I laughed a lot. I'd been told of the three-way swordfight before I went, and it proved just as fun to watch as I'd heard. (Norrington's role in the movie seemed a bit pastede on yay, as I didn't quite make out how whatever random hurricane he mentioned that we didn't see resulted in him resigning his commission and conveniently turning up in Tortuga, but if they had to put someone in the movie to fulfill the bit of plot he served, I'm glad it was him, if that makes any sense. I hope he gets a better deal in the 3rd movie).
Jack had some great one-liners, and they did back-reference a few of the good jokes from the first one. However, they carried the point a bit far in several cases, sacrificing logic for the sake of humor, which always grates on my nerves. The inclusion of the wooden-eyed pirate and his friend particularly baffled me; their appearance in that rowboat-- with the dog-- at just the right place, so shortly after Will also managed to land there, was just... *shaking head* And everyone just seemed to accept their presence, like they hadn't had anything to do with the prior mutiny and the Barbossa episode! Similarly the monkey; Jack repeatedly shooting it was a bit funny, but it seemed out of place. (Plus, I was WTF about the Isla de Muerta having gone AWOL to begin with, as it was terribly plot-convenient that they hadn't been able to redeem the non-cursed treasure, but it also means no-one is ever going to be able to disenchant the poor monkey).
Then there was Jack popping out of that coffin; the place he was escaping from was ripped straight out of "The Count of Monte Cristo", and is never explained in even the slightest detail. That whole scene was just bizarre, like it was included for sheer gross-factor. And even the cannibals Jack was made chief of-- I presume the Pearl landed there because it was the first land Jack found, but it was so utterly random for them to be in that kind of life-and-death situation just when Will found them.
Speaking of the first land-- when did Jack tell Gibbs about the Davy Jones thing? As they're sailing up the creek to the Voodoo lady, suddenly Will is being told all about it, but the last we saw of Jack talking to the crew about headings and such he was being deliberately and extremely evasive. Which he continued to be on many subjects throughout the movie. I guess it's finally been proven that Jack has no grand plan, he just reacts, and I find that disappointing. I prefer to see his turning Will over to Davy Jones, and the 100 souls deal, as both ways to stall for more time, but I still winced on Will's behalf. I still like Jack, but not as much as I did after the first movie, that's for sure, and I think Will feels the same way.
Also, I really wish they'd explained a few more details about the new things we found out about him, such as why he went to Tia Dalma for the special compass in the first place, why he made that original bargain with Davy Jones for the Pearl when he presumably could have got a ship that wasn't on the ocean bottom, and how he got so famous after only two years of being the Pearl's captain that his fame followed him through his next ten years of Pearl-less adventures. Also, I was distressed to find out that that red mark on Jack's chin is indicative of an open syphilis sore; makes sense with his proclivities, but threw a bucket of cold water on my fic preference for JWE OT3.
Anyway, things I did like: Will, first of all. He retained all of his excellent qualities from the first movie and improved on them; I was very impressed. (I'm trying to restrain myself here, as I am liable to gush on about him at the least encouragement!!) Bootstrap Bill was a good addition/complication to the story, and Will's reactions to him seemed perfectly in character. I also liked Elizabeth; she continued to defy the damsel-in-distress fairy-tale princess mold, which I still find really, really irritating in improperly researched fanfic OC's, but which I am really impressed to see in the heroine of a male-dominated action movie. (I keep seeing other reviewers refer to her as "a bit of a whore" &etc., and that really pisses me off). Her attempt to stop the boys from fighting by playing up the damsel image and "fainting", followed by her getting up and kicking ass to get the chest back, was great.
I even liked that Elizabeth was a bit attracted to the wild freedom that is Jack; it's only human to have the occasional wayward desire for things that aren't entirely good for you, and knowing that about herself will make her stronger in the future, especially since she has already demonstrated that she won't let it interfere with what must be done. It's going to take Will a bit to get over having seen that kiss, though. I hope they don't blow it up into a major rift between them in the third movie; I really hate it when characters I'm extremely fond of have this huge catastrophic romantic misunderstanding that could be solved so easily if they'd only talk to each other.
The East India Trading Company guy was pleasantly eeevil, though I kept having really odd disassociative moments wondering where I'd seen him before, especially in that scene where Elizabeth confronts him about the Letters of Marque. When I got home and looked him up, I was ROTFL for several minutes about it; turns out he's the actor who played Mr. Collins to Keira Knightley's Elizabeth Bennet in the 2005 adaption of Pride and Prejudice. (I'm still snickering over that). It should be interesting finding out how his having Davy Jones' heart will affect the third movie; there's still Will's vow to save Bootstrap to deal with, which requires the destruction of that heart to be fulfilled, and undoubtedly whatever they do at World's End to get Jack and the Pearl back will involve Davy Jones, too.
Speaking of getting them back, let me just say, that scene with Jack, sword drawn, standing on the Pearl's deck as the Kraken swallows him? Wish I had a screencap; that was the best of Jack, there, that and the fact that he'd rowed back in the first place. Almost redeemed all the moments I'd been disappointed in him earlier in the movie. ("It's only a ship," indeed!) I also wish it had been the movie's actual ending scene; I could have done without the last minute twist, as I can see no possible believable explanation for Barbossa's sudden reappearance, no matter how much it made the audience squeal.
So. Mixed reactions, as I said, much like with the 2nd Matrix movie. Let us hope the 3rd Pirates movie fulfills this trilogy ever so much better than the 3rd Matrix movie did!
~
maevebran and earcmacfithil.My reactions were mixed.
Firstly, ooo, pretty; most of the sets were gorgeous, and I adored the costuming as well, particularly Will's wedding outfit. Davy Jones' crew were very well done, to the point where I could not tell by visual texture what was CGI and what was makeup; I was very impressed.
Secondly, I laughed a lot. I'd been told of the three-way swordfight before I went, and it proved just as fun to watch as I'd heard. (Norrington's role in the movie seemed a bit pastede on yay, as I didn't quite make out how whatever random hurricane he mentioned that we didn't see resulted in him resigning his commission and conveniently turning up in Tortuga, but if they had to put someone in the movie to fulfill the bit of plot he served, I'm glad it was him, if that makes any sense. I hope he gets a better deal in the 3rd movie).
Jack had some great one-liners, and they did back-reference a few of the good jokes from the first one. However, they carried the point a bit far in several cases, sacrificing logic for the sake of humor, which always grates on my nerves. The inclusion of the wooden-eyed pirate and his friend particularly baffled me; their appearance in that rowboat-- with the dog-- at just the right place, so shortly after Will also managed to land there, was just... *shaking head* And everyone just seemed to accept their presence, like they hadn't had anything to do with the prior mutiny and the Barbossa episode! Similarly the monkey; Jack repeatedly shooting it was a bit funny, but it seemed out of place. (Plus, I was WTF about the Isla de Muerta having gone AWOL to begin with, as it was terribly plot-convenient that they hadn't been able to redeem the non-cursed treasure, but it also means no-one is ever going to be able to disenchant the poor monkey).
Then there was Jack popping out of that coffin; the place he was escaping from was ripped straight out of "The Count of Monte Cristo", and is never explained in even the slightest detail. That whole scene was just bizarre, like it was included for sheer gross-factor. And even the cannibals Jack was made chief of-- I presume the Pearl landed there because it was the first land Jack found, but it was so utterly random for them to be in that kind of life-and-death situation just when Will found them.
Speaking of the first land-- when did Jack tell Gibbs about the Davy Jones thing? As they're sailing up the creek to the Voodoo lady, suddenly Will is being told all about it, but the last we saw of Jack talking to the crew about headings and such he was being deliberately and extremely evasive. Which he continued to be on many subjects throughout the movie. I guess it's finally been proven that Jack has no grand plan, he just reacts, and I find that disappointing. I prefer to see his turning Will over to Davy Jones, and the 100 souls deal, as both ways to stall for more time, but I still winced on Will's behalf. I still like Jack, but not as much as I did after the first movie, that's for sure, and I think Will feels the same way.
Also, I really wish they'd explained a few more details about the new things we found out about him, such as why he went to Tia Dalma for the special compass in the first place, why he made that original bargain with Davy Jones for the Pearl when he presumably could have got a ship that wasn't on the ocean bottom, and how he got so famous after only two years of being the Pearl's captain that his fame followed him through his next ten years of Pearl-less adventures. Also, I was distressed to find out that that red mark on Jack's chin is indicative of an open syphilis sore; makes sense with his proclivities, but threw a bucket of cold water on my fic preference for JWE OT3.
Anyway, things I did like: Will, first of all. He retained all of his excellent qualities from the first movie and improved on them; I was very impressed. (I'm trying to restrain myself here, as I am liable to gush on about him at the least encouragement!!) Bootstrap Bill was a good addition/complication to the story, and Will's reactions to him seemed perfectly in character. I also liked Elizabeth; she continued to defy the damsel-in-distress fairy-tale princess mold, which I still find really, really irritating in improperly researched fanfic OC's, but which I am really impressed to see in the heroine of a male-dominated action movie. (I keep seeing other reviewers refer to her as "a bit of a whore" &etc., and that really pisses me off). Her attempt to stop the boys from fighting by playing up the damsel image and "fainting", followed by her getting up and kicking ass to get the chest back, was great.
I even liked that Elizabeth was a bit attracted to the wild freedom that is Jack; it's only human to have the occasional wayward desire for things that aren't entirely good for you, and knowing that about herself will make her stronger in the future, especially since she has already demonstrated that she won't let it interfere with what must be done. It's going to take Will a bit to get over having seen that kiss, though. I hope they don't blow it up into a major rift between them in the third movie; I really hate it when characters I'm extremely fond of have this huge catastrophic romantic misunderstanding that could be solved so easily if they'd only talk to each other.
The East India Trading Company guy was pleasantly eeevil, though I kept having really odd disassociative moments wondering where I'd seen him before, especially in that scene where Elizabeth confronts him about the Letters of Marque. When I got home and looked him up, I was ROTFL for several minutes about it; turns out he's the actor who played Mr. Collins to Keira Knightley's Elizabeth Bennet in the 2005 adaption of Pride and Prejudice. (I'm still snickering over that). It should be interesting finding out how his having Davy Jones' heart will affect the third movie; there's still Will's vow to save Bootstrap to deal with, which requires the destruction of that heart to be fulfilled, and undoubtedly whatever they do at World's End to get Jack and the Pearl back will involve Davy Jones, too.
Speaking of getting them back, let me just say, that scene with Jack, sword drawn, standing on the Pearl's deck as the Kraken swallows him? Wish I had a screencap; that was the best of Jack, there, that and the fact that he'd rowed back in the first place. Almost redeemed all the moments I'd been disappointed in him earlier in the movie. ("It's only a ship," indeed!) I also wish it had been the movie's actual ending scene; I could have done without the last minute twist, as I can see no possible believable explanation for Barbossa's sudden reappearance, no matter how much it made the audience squeal.
So. Mixed reactions, as I said, much like with the 2nd Matrix movie. Let us hope the 3rd Pirates movie fulfills this trilogy ever so much better than the 3rd Matrix movie did!
~
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no subject
Date: 2006-07-09 09:18 pm (UTC)There was at least one thing that you kinda forgot about. Sure Will made a vow to save his dad, but he also lost in the game to Davy Jones which means, technically, he's part of the crew for all eternity already.
I too also wanted to know more about the voodoo lady, but I also wanted to know more about how the guy from the EITC (East India Trading Company) knew about the compass, how it ended up in her hands, etc.
And finally, boy did u get it right that there is more to learn about Jack then we thought. There is definately a backstory there and hope they fill in the gaps in the 3.
But, your comparison to the Matrix is dead-on. In fact, I just did a whole trilogy rant on the subject here:
http://technomensch.livejournal.com/164241.html
no subject
Date: 2006-07-10 07:35 pm (UTC)Not exactly. Have you played that game before? It's one of my friends' favorites. The person who made the last bet is the one who ultimately wins or looses. So no, Will didn't loose or win. Davy won and Will's dad lost.
That's an actual game?
Date: 2006-07-11 07:03 am (UTC)Re: That's an actual game?
Date: 2006-07-11 07:52 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-07-10 07:38 pm (UTC)I've become quite disenchanted with movies all around. It's sad really. But while it was amusing to see I didn't really feel the need to see it the first weekend (only did that because my roomate wanted to and we don't get much of a chance to do things together).
no subject
Date: 2006-07-11 07:09 am (UTC)At least, that's the impression we're given. From the fact he showed up again, and that they mentioned early in DMC that something happened to the entire stash of treasure (not just the Aztec gold) that meant they couldn't go back for it, I'm kind of thinking maybe he wasn't really dead? Still, his showing up there in Tia Dalma's hut was really, really, really unnecessary, IMHO. The Kraken bit was the perfect ending.
(Except, of course, that we did get some interesting Will-Eliz angst in the hut; Will grew all kinds of dimensions in this movie. I just hope they don't go overboard with the jealousy angle in Part 3.)
> I've become quite disenchanted with movies all around. It's sad really.
Yeah, I have a really hard time suspending enough disbelief to really enjoy whatever I'm watching these days. Oh, for the days of the first Jurassic Park, when I actually screamed in the theater. *laughing* Still, DMC was still better than 80% of the popular drek out there these days, and since Nappy & wife paid for all the tickets, I sure didn't mind going!
no subject
Date: 2006-07-15 04:31 pm (UTC)The monkey is undead through his own fault. There's a scene at the end of the credits of PotC where he swims back to the island and takes a one of the coins, making him undead again.
The other thing is, the monkey stares at Barbosa in passing as it goes for the treasure, and then does not put the coin down. Presumably, he gave it back to Barbosa, and said pirate "woke" up. And that is how he is still alive. :)