The Written Podcast: In Defense of Pirates of the Caribbean - At World's End

I will admit the trailer for this film did set up something spectacular. All the pirates from all corners of the seven seas coming together, fighting as one. At the time it was the most expensive movie ever made at £300M, and after two incredible pirate movies, with the second leaving us on a completely unexpected cliff-hanger, it's safe to say we were all excited when we walked into the cinema. Except for me. I never saw the film in the cinema nor did I see the trailer. In fact, I never saw the previous two film's trailers before watching, because I was young enough not to pay attention to what was being advertised, just watched the films when I was either they were recommended to me, or I saw them as interesting.

The first film, Curse of the Black Pearl reinvented live-action films for Disney as it was the first film they ever released with a 12 rating, and it proved a massive hit. The second - Dead Man's Chest, upped the visuals slightly by making it a hard 12 rating. The third, At World's End, made sure there was no doubting that it was a 12 rating. With audiences being ok with a Disney film being a 12, and having £300M in the bank, it was clear they saw the opportunity to flex their muscles and go all in with the action, the comedy, the suspense, pretty much everything. It was an ending of not just a trilogy, but a two-part story. When At World's End came out in 2007, I was 13, so old enough to watch it, but at the time I wasn't an avid film viewer so it took me a couple more years before I saw it, but I was still in high school when I did and still not an avid film viewer. Having not seen the trailer and the first two films, At World's End was a truly epic film.

I didn't analyse the film, just watched it. I was immersed with the world building, the practical effects, the computer animation, but at the ager I was when I watched it, I didn't see any of that specifically, just watched the film for what it was. As I grew up and evolved into an avid film viewer, I naturally started to develop an analytical side. The more films I saw the more patterns I spotted, the more cliches I noticed, the more one-liners that were repeated. I'm not saying films can't do anything original anymore but are just a repackaged formula over and over again, because that would be highly incorrect. As I my analytical side developed, I was able to distinguish the good from the bad, and began to justify why I saw each film as such, even ones that I had mixed feelings over. The Pirates of the Caribbean series started out as an epic adventure movie with stunning visualisations and unparalleled music, to what I've labelled as, a popcorn movie. Grab your freshly cooked popcorn, stick any one of the now five strong franchise and enjoy. There's no need to study or analyse what's going on, just enjoy your evening in before going back to work.

I have no seen the trailer for At World's End and I will admit it did build up something it didn't deliver. Even the film itself builds up something it never delivers, hence why the trailer did, too. Imagine how epic that would be if every pirate ship fought in the war between the English, with the main two ships encircling the whirlpool created by a literal Goddess of the sea, with Captain Jack Harkness fighting one on one with Davy Jones. Or it would be too convoluted, there would be too much going on at once, and there wouldn't be enough time to focus on everyone and everything to give a proper telling of the story, or make the film seven hours long, which would be far too long for even a super fan to care for.

So, many have wondered if it was necessary to include all those other pirates if the film wasn't going to bother including them in the final battle. It does seem that way. They brought so many characters together only to bench them, but that's what the question focuses on only. If you study the film through and through, including that of the previous film, the question morphs into one with a different context. The very reason why all the pirates across the seven seas gathered together to fight against the British is because the British fleet, lead by Beckett, who had Davy Jones and the Kraken in the palm of his hands, if left unattended, would take over the seven seas, and they had to be stopped. Beckett was an incredibly powerful force on the waters and had to be defeated. The main story saw an impending fight between Captain Jack Sparrow and Davy Jones and that's exactly what we got. Davy Jones had the intention of stopping Jack from stabbing his heart, and Beckett had the intention of defeating Jack as it would prove him to be an even more powerful force on the waters. The two ships were first to fight, and it depended on who won for the other pirates to intervene or not. When Beckett's ship was destroyed, the British saw this as an absolute loss, saw that the pirates are not to be messed with and decided to best option was not to fight them, so turned around.

The trailer gave us the impression that every pirate would be involved in the fight, but the film justifies everyone's involvement. Because I didn't see the trailer before watching the movie, as my mind developed that analytical side, I was able to see the film's intention. I couldn't be disappointed by what the film gave me as oppose to the trailer as I saw the film first before the trailer. However, I do understand how the trailer does cause deception.

That's my defense on Pirates of the Caribbean - At World's End. Don't watch it knowing what the trailer wants to give you, watch it knowing what the film series as whole wants to give you, it changes that question. You won't be asking if it was necessary for them to be there if they didn't participate, but instead be asking why would the film be worse off if they did.

Thanks for reading

Antony Hudson

(TonyHadNouns)