PotC: At World's End (reactions, spoilers!)

[Thanee]

Oh, and I'm tired of having to sit through boring credits...

Credits are cool... all sorts of ideas for roleplaying character names!

Bye
Thanee

 

[Relique du Madde]

Credits are cool... all sorts of ideas for roleplaying character names!

Bye
Thanee

It also gives you a nice list of people to blame for ruining a good franchise movie

 

[paradox42]

Sao Feng talking to Elizabeth as if she is Calypso, and her reacting as if she was. Someone had to explain to me that he assumed she was Calypso by the way everyone was treating her and because she was the only woman around (Tia Dalma didn't interact with Sao Feng, IIRC). BUT, as one of the nine Pirate Lords, he must have been there when they bound her in the first place. And I can understand Elizabeth being canny enough to go along with the misunderstanding in order to get one over on Feng, but there should have been some kind of initial reaction on her part to communicate this. Something like "what are you talking about? I'm not--oh! I mean, uhh...." Funny and effective, and certainly fitting with the tone of these movies.

After seeing the movie for the second time with my friends last week, I can answer this one. The key is the interaction during the "quadruple-cross" betrayal-upon-betrayal scene where Sao Feng wants the Pearl and doesn't get it. Barbossa explains to him in that scene that he intends to get the Brethren Court together to release Calypso- and when he says that, he aims a glance at Elizabeth. Sao Feng follows said glance and clearly (to judge from his reactions later) comes to the conclusion that Elizabeth is in fact Calypso. But Barbossa knows perfectly well that Tia Dalma is- in other words, he was deliberately misleading Sao Feng in that scene (probably because he assumed that Sao would try to take her for himself).

It's a very subtle bit of acting and direction I thought, and it's definitely not the only one in the movie. There are layers upon layers to the plot and the acting here, people. This movie definitely rewards multiple viewings!

Pity so many people appear to have missed details and gotten confused so they disliked it. Me, I loved it- I'll join with the small number of posters who've said they thought it was the best of the three. All of the characters in this movie were complex and acted intelligently except for the comic relief squad (i.e., Jack the Monkey, the two Redcoats, etc.). And even Ragetti got a character-building moment in this movie by being the one who releases Calypso!

Despite all of the confusion, there were some great elements in this movie. All of the stuff with World's End reminded me of Baron Munchausen or Time Bandits, and the crabs inexplicibly helping Jack get the Pearl back into the water led credence to his story about sea turtles, even though we know that was a tall tale. The town of Shipwreck was just plain amazing-looking, like something out of a Final Fantasy game. And the pirates we met there looked awesome, especially the Spanish pirates and, of course, Teague.

I think there's also a way to explain the little stone-crabs in the Locker. Remember what Tia Dalma turns into when she discorporates after being released? Isn't that an interesting "coincidence" in light of the fact that she was with the party that sailed to World's End to get Jack and the Pearl? Isn't it curious that the crabs start moving the ship just when the rescue party comes ashore, and that they "just happen" to lead the ship to the ocean right next to the rescue party? I certainly thought so...

And the town of Shipwreck reminded me instantly of (spoiler alert for Savage Tide)

Spoiler

the description for the Wreck which is the headquarters for the Crimson Fleet. PotC: AWE just one-upped the Adventure Path!

. It's almost certainly a case of convergent thinking, but still- now DMs who run that adventure have the perfect image to hit their players with. Nice bonus for gamers there, just as the Liars' Dice scene in DMC was.

 

[Orius]

*Casts thread resurrection*.

Just saw it on DVD. Not bad, but I think I liked the second one the best.

Stuff I liked:

The rock crabs carrying the Black Pearl to the sea.
Flipping the ship over.
Jack's spyglass.
Captain Teague.
The big battle at the maelstrom.
The Pearl and Dutchman taking out the Endeavour.

 

[Orius]

Now that I have done that, could someone please tell me what the hell Giant Calypso was saying? I couldn't understand any of it.

Gibberish. I hit the subtitles on the DVD, and it said something like "[Shouts incoherently]".

I have to say that I too was disappointed by the ending for Elizabeth and Will. They've been trying to get together during all three movies, and now he apparently has to say the seas for eternity only to see her once every ten years? Man, he got screwed.

Now, if he only had to serve ten years because she was faithful to him, that's a bit better, and at least it's not sappy. I agree that the whole heart thing was messed up if they chagned the premises behind it, I haven't seen DMC in a while, so I was forgetting a few plot points.

Multiple Jacks: Not bad when he's in the Locker itself, the whole surreal aspect works there. But later on the Dutchman, it was just weird.

 

[JoeGKushner]

Nice resurrection.

I just watched it myself on DVD.

This should've been two, maybe three films.

Way too much going on and the story gets the short stick as a result of it making it, for me, the least enjoyable of the movies.

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

I loved the ending. I thought it was 2nd best of the 3 - I really can't see how folks can like #2 best, as I personally was vastly dissappointed by it (which is why I'm only seeing #3 now).

The biggest problem with #2 is the lack of Barbosa. Barbosa rocks. Hard. Keira Knightly's performance in #2 was also a dissappointment to me, and she made up for it in #3.

I saw the ending coming about halfway through. I thought for a moment that Calypso would be bound again into Elizabeth's body, thus duplicating the Davy Jones-Tia Dalma pairing. I caught the subtle misdirection by Barbosa regarding Calypso, and also Keira's quick picking up on Saio Feng's misunderstanding, which she used to her advantage.

 

[John Cooper]

I finally got to see this last night on DVD. Like several others who have posted on this thread, I enjoyed it, but it's my least favorite of the three.

 

[frankthedm]

Liked most of it.

Was royally PO'ed that the kraken was offed off screen.

 

[Banshee16]

to say the seas for eternity only to see her once every ten years? Man, he got screwed.

Now, if he only had to serve ten years because she was faithful to him, that's a bit better, and at least it's not sappy. I agree that the whole heart thing was messed up if they chagned the premises behind it, I haven't seen DMC in a while, so I was forgetting a few plot points.

I guess getting to see her once every 10 years is better than being dead. But after 3 shore leaves, she's going to be like 50 years old. It's a tragedy for both of them.

Many people thought that he would be released after 10 years if she stayed faithful, and that's the way I prefer to see it. However, there's an insert in the DVD case that answers the question, and says that he gets to come ashore once every 10 years for eternity, and that he's not released from his service.

So, it's back to the "suckage" camp for an ending.

Banshee