"It seems that Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End might have gotten a little big for its britches, but when people look back at this franchise it will no doubt be remembered as reverentially as The Lord Of The Rings and Star Wars."

Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End is a fitting third film within this installment of movies. It is rich with adventure and lush in its sets and scope. However, this movie isn't without its problems. I am not a nit-picker by nature and I don't feel my comments discuss what should or shouldn't happen or what the characters would or wouldn't do. Rather, I think that Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End, with a run time just shy of three hours, almost had too much of an expanse to play with. It was if its success had given way to too many ideas, when what most likely should have happened is maybe all the films in the series should have been shorter. It seems like when we get into trilogies, the creators feel that its absolutely necessary to make each story the same length. Maybe somebody should have said that a certain length is appropriate if the story calls for it.

In Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End we open with a quest on the part of Will Turner (Orlando Bloom), Elizabeth (Keira Knightley), Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), Tia Dalma (Naomie Harris) and others to get Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) back from Davey Jones Locker. Along they way they forge an alliance with Chinese Pirate Sao Feng (Chow Yun-Fat), while at the same time they have to deal with Davey Jones (Bill Nighy) and his crew on The Flying Dutchman, as well as the East India Trading Company. Eventually, it seems like Lord Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander) has all but gained control of the seas. There are numerous battles across ships, many curses lifted and then reinstated elsewhere, and half the fun is trying to figure out just what the heck is going on.

Something tells me that this is just what producer Jerry Bruckheimer had in mind. Thrill audiences with adventure, then have them come out of the theater debating what they have just witnessed. Then, have them return to the theater en-masse just to see if they actually understood the film on their initial viewing. Whatever the case may be, it seems like the fans should be heartily satisfied with everything that has been served up to them here.

Okay, now for some of the negatives...

There are too many scenes, that go on for way too long, where Jack Sparrow is allowed to act weird. I know that Johnny Depp is a good actor, but its reaching a point where it seems like he is given carte-blanche to do what he feels like doing. I will admit that he pulled a coup with Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. However, in becoming the resident king of quirky he seems to have done himself a disservice. Sort of like those actors that win an Academy Award and then feel that every film they do has to be deemed important. Simply put, I get it. Captain Jack is a different sort of Pirate... I actually got that in the first film.

There is just too much going on in this movie and not enough of the mythological, voodoo aspects are explained. In fact, I am not afraid to admit that I am almost completely lost when it comes to what happens between Davey Jones and Tia Dalma. This is only part of it... there are so many rules for these ships, and so many things that have been brought into this story that I sort of got the feeling that if the writers weren't forced to put this stuff in the script, the people involved saw stuffing this film with so many different plot points as way of counterbalancing Depp's performance. Like amidst his ranting and flitting around, they figured they'd add some good old fashioned openendedness to this movie. For some it might work, for others it might not. Myself, I was left scratching my head.

The CGI in the Pirates films has sadly peaked in Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. I say that for a few reasons, the biggest of which being what was done with The Kraken. As I don't want to give anything away, I'll just leave that point alone. Davey Jones looks amazing but beyond that there was nothing really breathtaking about the effects work in this film. Now, I know that people might take from this critique that I am someone who only likes films that employ those things. I assure you that that is not the case. It just seemed like they had been building up, over each film, the digital effects work. Something tells me that the May 2007 release date might have had something to do with their absence.

Lastly, there was one point in the film where I realized that Johnny Depp's star seemed to shine too brightly. There is a scene on the beach, early in the movie, when everyone is begging Jack to fight against the East India Trading Company, and I was reminded of all things... Another 48 Hours. In the first 48 Hours, Nick Nolte is great as a the racist cop who comes to respect the criminal played by Eddie Murphy. In the second film, everything feels like a Hollywood Power job as Nolte goes back to the prison to beg Murphy's character to work with him on another case. I know that Will, Elizabeth and everyone went to get Jack Sparrow so he would join them, but there's something about it that just didn't ring true. Basically, I never felt like Johnny Depp was the star of this franchise until this movie.

In closing, I would like to end on a positive note. I think that the acting in this film is top notch. Director Gore Verbinksi has once against captured a movie that looks and feels very authentic and real. One can almost smell the sea as the frames of this movie unfold on the screen. I think that this film will be very successful. People seem to like these stories. The like their sense of place and scope. It seems that Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End might have gotten a little big for its britches, but when people look back at this franchise it will no doubt be remembered as reverentially as The Lord Of The Rings and Star Wars.