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By Gregory Ellwood
Special to MSN Movies
Ahoy, me hearties! Before ye pass ahead, beware of major spoilers on the upcoming motion pict-YARr "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End."
A few Fridays ago, I was getting ready to head out for an afternoon run when I received a call from MSN Entertainment's resident Dish Diva, Taylor Johnson. She called to see if I'd gotten the update on the sneak peek of "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" that was occurring that afternoon. It was welcome news to me, so after a quick change, I soon found myself in an editing suite with uber producer Jerry Bruckheimer as he personally previewed more than 45 minutes of select scenes from the upcoming blockbuster.
| Bruckheimer gives sneak preview of 'At
World's End'
|
A Detour to Singapore
When we last left Captain Jack
Sparrow (Johnny Depp), he'd been seemingly eaten by the monstrous
Kraken. Obviously, there was no way the series could survive without Depp, so
the beginning of the film finds the newly resurrected Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) and Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) looking to enlist the help of Singapore's
resident pirate lord, Sao Feng (Chow Yun-Fat). It seems Jack is stuck in Davy Jones' Locker
and to rescue him the crew must travel to the literal end of the world. Feng
knows the way and might even provide them a ship to sail.
The Pirate Lords of the Brethren Court
Obviously, Jack
and crew are going to return to the "real" world (quite an upside-down
adventure) and that's when the real conflict of the movie begins. At the
end of "Dead Man's Chest," Lord Beckett (Tom Hollander) of the East India Trading Company is given
the heart of Davy Jones -- a power that allows him to control Jones and the
Kraken beast and therefore the ship-ferrying seas. Knowing that the sanctity and
freedom of the pirate life is at stake, Barbossa calls a meeting of the Pirate
Lords of the Brethren Court. Akin to a "pirate board," the group includes Feng,
Barbossa, Sparrow and five of their fiercest rivals from around the world. They
meet in a secret cove where a massive structure of old pirate ships stacked on
top of each other forms a man-made island (and yes, it would make a wonderful
addition to Disneyland).
Who Will Betray Them?
Meanwhile, it appears one of our
gallant heroes will betray the group to save someone close to him or her. This
dramatic scene takes place on yet another small sandy island (where do they find
them?) in the middle of the ocean. One word: pretty.
It's Keira's Movie
One of the big surprises is just how
prominent Keira Knightley's character, Elizabeth, is this time around. She's
shown her fighting chops in the first two films, but in this installment, she
proves to be an equal (in more ways than one) to Sparrow, Barbossa and her
estranged fiancé, Will Turner. Her true feelings for Sparrow and Will are also
revealed, and she even ends up bringing some women's lib to the era (in a
roundabout way).
Thank God Barbossa Is Back
The last picture, "Dead Man's
Chest," has its share of laughs, but there was an element missing without Rush's
Barbossa around to verbally spar with Depp's Sparrow. The two acclaimed actors
get to go at it in "At World's End," and the series is far better for it.
However, I had to wonder why Bruckheimer never showed us why Barbossa is
eager to help the crew and his old enemy, Sparrow. Is it possible Barbossa
hasn't changed his evil ways?
The Look Is Beyond Fantastic
At more than two hours, "At
World's End" is filled with one eye-popping scene after another, and the
trailers have only given a glimpse of what's to come. From the scenes we
previewed, 500 special-effects shots were missing, but it's clear this
installment's effects could top the Oscar-winning work that Industrial Light and
Magic conceived for "Dead Man's Chest" (not that Bruckheimer wanted to discuss
the Oscars in April).
A Fitting Climax
The movie's final act revolves around a
climactic battle between Davy Jones' Flying Dutchmen and the Black Pearl within
a massive whirlpool.The trailer only hints at the intensity of the climax, which
depicts Jones attempting to reclaim his heart from one of the two ships. When
all seems lost though, is it possible the pirates have one last secret weapon up
their sleeves?
Stick Around for the Very End
We weren't privy to it,
but Buckheimer says there is one additional scene at the end of the closing
credits. He also said "this trilogy" is over, but perhaps the extra scene is a
hint of more adventures to come.
After watching the footage, Bruckheimer stated the obvious when he recommended anyone seeing "At World's End" catch up by revisiting the first two "Pirates" movies on DVD. Director Gore Verbinski and screenwriters Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio have intentionally brought in numerous elements from the previous films to form an interconnected trilogy. And considering that most movie trilogies usually don't live up to the initial hype, a fantastic finish to "Pirates" would be very welcome indeed.
To hear from Bruckheimer himself, watch Dish Diva's exclusive interview conducted after our special sneak peek.
"Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End" opens nationwide May 25.
Gregory Ellwood resides in Los Angeles and has worked in the movie industry for over a decade. He writes the Hollywood Hitlist on MSN Movies and has contributed to Variety.
