Jerry Bruckheimer (him of obscenely expensive movies) & Gore Verbinski return with the second installment in the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy (a la The Matrix). So you can imagine my apprehension as I sat “me” back down on “de” cineplex seat (sequels are normally obligatory projects).

Going by the effort in Pirates 2, I am defintely waiting for the third with abated breath. Jerry “Blockbuster” Bruckheimer has spared no expense whatsoever in the production department, and at certain times feels like Pirates 2 is thumbing down other blockbusters (one with a big ape comes to mind).

Majority of the cast from the first outing are back again to indulge in some major swashbuckling. Johnny Depp is deliciously in form as buccanneer-bar-scruples Capt. Jack Sparrow. So is the babe-licious Keira Knightley as Elizabeth. Olando Bloom shares less screen time than his earlier excursion as Will (what a success-graph does to major players, huh?). But it’s all good - we also have a new villain - Davy Jones. Now don’t let that Dickensian name fool you - this one’s a SFX-laden octupus-on-a-human-head thingy, and it’s got crab-claws for hands. Played by Bill Nighy (whose eyes & voice are the only give-aways), it’s absolutely a gross thing to behold.

The plot as such deals with Elizabeth being held hostage, and Will being asked to seek out Sparrow to obtain his compass. Sparrow, on the other hand is already on his way to seeking out a key that opens a chest, and that key dangles on Davy Jones neck, who commandeers a ship with an equally SFX-laden crew, and is in control of a gigantic creature called the Kraken (crikey!) that annihilates any offending sea-vessel…also, he doesn’t like Jack Sparrow (something about a blood debt). And then of course, you have cannibals, a creepy black magic woman of the marshes (Sparrow’s ex - he didn’t call her back), and plenty of adventures to make this 2-plus hour epic pass off easily. Of course, it all ends on a cliffhanger since it paves the way for the third instalment. 
If you liked Curse of the Black Pearl, you are gonna equally love Dead Man’s Chest. Now - where’s that rum!

Duration: 145 mins.

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for intense sequences of adventure violence, including frightening images.

Cast: Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightley

Director: Gore Verbinski