What Do The Critics Say?

"The intricate plotting involves a myriad of characters with murky motives and at times it is difficult to actually care about onscreen proceedings. You're simply impatient to get round to the next impressive special effects sequence. The Pirates movies have been lots of fun in their own Saturday matinee-ish way and you probably won't feel that you've wasted your time with this latest instalment, particularly if you've enjoyed the previous two films." James O'Ehley SA MOVIE & DVD MAGAZINE "POTC:AWE is a lukewarm maelstrom of secret agendas, double crossings, tricky alliances, back stabbings, familial complications, romantic entanglements, political conspiracies, warring factions, hidden gods, cheeky monkeys, and excessive eyeliner. It's time to throw Jack Sparrow overboard." Nathan Lee VILLAGE VOICE "As Depp fades into the periphery, Bloom and Knightley grapple with roles that have never been thoughtfully developed. However, after three films, these two young actors still still don't have much chemistry together. Fortunately, the special effects and production design are consistently stunning, creating a rich world filled with one memorable location after another." Tim Grierson EMANUELE LEVY "The franchise's previous installment, "Dead Man's Chest," was overlong and confusing. Can the longer, more densely plotted "At World's End" recapture the fun of "Curse of the Black Pearl"? Skip it: You won't fully grasp what's going on or give two doubloons about the endless betrayals or squabbles over who gets to be captain. By now Depp's swaggering shtick also seems pretty low on gas. Left to do most of the movie's heavy lifting, Knightley and Bloom are still so flavorless that they make Rice Cakes seem like a feast for the senses." Matt Pais METROMIX "It’s all the cast can do to try to stay afloat as they’re tossed from one chaotic event to the next. Roger wouldn't be so jolly if he had to sit through "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End," a tiresome, disorienting walk down a 165 minute-long plank." Phil Villarreal ARIZONA DAILY STAR "Interminable, with more plot lines than pirates, At World's End is a mix of theatrical bravura, magical special effects and tedium. Performances, costumes, production design and special effects are marvellous, but in the final analysis, give me a coherent story any day. The heart of any film is its story, and we know what happens when there is no heart." Louise Keller URBANCINEFILE

"I could happily watch Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush and Bill Nighy just cavorting about the deck of a pirate ship in their characters. But even that could get tedious after three hours unless they were telling a gripping story. The big problem with this is that if we can't follow the details, we don't get involved, we start to fidget and slowly care less and less about what happens to whom." Andrew L Urban URBANCINEFILE "Watching Bloom, Knightley and Depp constantly double and triple-crossing one another for three hours, I finally realized why the Pirates of the Caribbean movies feel so cold: These characters are all assholes. Surprisingly skimpy on action for the first couple hours, Pirates closes with a gargantuan 40-minute ship battle in the midst of a swirling maelstrom. It’s an eye-popper of a sequence that eventually starts to feel like a grind. Sort of like the movie itself." Sean Burns PHILADELPHIA WEEKLY "There's a point at which this simple plot begins to feel unnecessarily extended by a raft of knotted betrayals, side stories, underhanded trickery and rather a lot of talky dialog that we can't understand due to ludicrously strong accents and a cacophonous sound mix. There comes a point where we give up even trying, realising that the narrative is irrelevant anyway. We're only watching this because it's hilariously silly." Rich Cline SHADOWS ON THE WALL "I applaud the Oscar nomination Depp received for the first Pirates, but the third chapter proves that there can indeed be too much of a good thing. Pirates 3 raises everything from the dead, except inspiration. Producer Jerry Bruckheimer does deserve a shoutout: It takes a kind of genius to sucker audiences into repeatedly buying the same party tricks." Peter Travers ROLLING STONE "There’s already talk of making a fourth Pirates of the Caribbean movie, and while I think this one is a fairly adequate entry into the series, it’s also pretty clear that the concept is running out of gas. "At World’s End" could easily have turned into one long, ocean-faring, conference nightmare except for one thing: His name is Geoffrey Rush. Pirates 3 is better than Pirates 2 for one, very good reason: Forget Captain Jack, Captain Barbossa is back!" Josh Tyler CINEMABLEND

The Golden Touch Jerry Bruckheimer holds an undisputed position as one of the most successful producers in both motion pictures and television. First in partnership with Don Simpson, and then as the chief of Jerry Bruckheimer Films and Television, he has produced an unprecedented string of worldwide smashes, hugely impacting not only the industry, but mass culture as well. Bruckheimer’s films have included "American Gigolo", "Flashdance", "Beverly Hills Cop", "Top Gun", "Beverly Hills Cop II", "Days of Thunder", "Bad Boys", "Dangerous Minds", "Crimson Tide", "The Rock", "Con Air", "Armageddon", "Enemy of the State", "Gone in 60 Seconds", "Coyote Ugly", "Remember the Titans", "Pearl Harbor", "Black Hawk Down", "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl", "Bad Boys II", "Veronica Guerin", "King Arthur", "National Treasure", "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest", and the upcoming "National Treasure: Book of Secrets". On television, Jerry Bruckheimer had an unprecedented 10 television series airing simultaneously in the Fall season 2005, a record in the medium for an individual producer. JBTV’s series have included "C.S.I.: Crime Scene Investigation" and its spinoffs "C.S.I.: Miami","C.S.I.: NY", "Without a Trace", "Cold Case", and "The Amazing Race". Jerry Bruckheimer Films and Television have been honored with 39 Academy Award nominations, six Oscars, eight Grammy Award nominations, five Grammys, 23 Golden Globe nominations, four Golden Globes, 53 Emmy nominations, 14 Emmys, 16 People’s Choice nominations, 11 People’s Choice Awards, numerous MTV Awards, including one for Best Picture of the Decade for "Beverly Hills Cop" and 14 Teen Choice Awards. The Most Famous Screen Pirate Johnny Depp has become one of the world’s most popular and acclaimed actors, with a hugely versatile range of performances marking his outstanding career. He was nominated for Best Actor Academy Awards® for both "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" and "Finding Neverland". Depp’s extensive motion picture credits since the late 1980s have included "Cry-Baby", "Platoon", "What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?", "Ed Wood", "Benny & Joon", "Edward Scissorhands", "Don Juan DeMarco", "Donnie Brasco", "Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas", "Sleepy Hollow", "Chocolat", "Blow", "Once Upon A Time in Mexico", "Secret Window", "The Libertine", "Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride" and Burton’s "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory". Depp began his career as a musician, joining a rock group named 'Kids', which eventually took him to Los Angeles. When the band broke up, he turned to acting and earned his first major acting job in "Nightmare on Elm Street". He went on to earn roles in several films including Oliver Stone’s Academy Award-winning "Platoon". Depp then won the role that would prove to be his breakthrough, as undercover detective Tom Hanson on the popular Fox television show "21 Jump Street". He starred on the series for four seasons before segueing to the big screen in the lead role of John Waters’ "Cry-Baby". Depp starred and made his feature directorial debut opposite Marlon Brando in "The Brave", a film based on the novel by Gregory McDonald. Depp co-wrote the screenplay with his brother D.P. Depp. A Great Australian Performer Geoffrey Rush one of today’s most respected actors, started his career in Australian theatre, and has since appeared in over 70 theatrical productions and more than 20 feature films. He won an Emmy, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award for his captivating performance in HBO Films "The Life and Death of Peter Sellers", in which he portrayed the title character. He first became internationally known for his starring role in Scott Hicks’ feature film "Shine", which garnered him an Academy Award for Best Actor as piano prodigy David Helfgott. He also won a Golden Globe, Screen Actors Guild, British Academy of Film and Television Arts, Film Critics’ Circle of Australia, Broadcast Film Critics, AFI and New York and Los Angeles Film Critics’ Awards for the film. Rush also received an Academy Award nomination for his performances in Philip Kaufman’s "Quills", and both Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for "Shakespeare in Love". Rush received a degree in English at the University of Queensland, before continuing at the Jacques Lecoq School of Mime, Movement and Theatre in Paris. Returning to Australia, he starred in the theatre productions "King Lear", and appeared alongside Mel Gibson in "Waiting for Godot". He was a principal member of Jim Sharman’s pioneering Lighthouse Ensemble in the early 1980s, playing leading roles in numerous classics. His work on stage garnered many accolades, including the Sydney Critics Circle Award for Most Outstanding Performance, the Variety Club Award for Best Actor and the 1990 Victorian Green Room Award for his lauded performance in Neil Armfield’s "The Diary of a Madman". He also received Best Actor nominations in the Sydney Critics’ Circle Awards for his starring roles in Gogol’s "The Government Inspector", Chekhov’s "Uncle Vanya" and Mamet’s "Oleanna". In 1994 he received the prestigious Sidney Myer Performing Arts Award for his work in theatre. Rush resides in Melbourne, Australia with his wife Jane and their two children. The Inside Story Sequels are always a risk, but sometimes they succeed even when they are not as good as the original. Such was the case with POTC:2, a film that took a massive $US1,060,332,628 worldwide thanks to clever marketing. The fact that it took megabucks most probably made those associated with the so-called final edition "Pirates Of The Caribbean: At World's end" a little nervous. "It’s scary when you make a picture that’s such a huge success," confesses the films producer Jerry Bruckheimer. "You never quite know. It was against conventional wisdom that a pirate movie based on a theme park ride could be such a hit. Then we came back with the second film, and it’s common knowledge in our business that a sequel will make 20 to 30 percent less than the first one. And yet,'Dead Man’s Chest' made almost double of what 'The Curse of the Black Pearl' took in." For the third film, the producer and director encouraged screenwriters Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio to push that envelope even further; quite literally, to the ends of the earth. "What we set for ourselves with Jerry, Gore, Johnny and everyone else," says Elliott, "was to figure out a way to do two more movies that were of a piece with the first one, and yet still be unique in their own right. What we had to do with each one was, as quickly as we could in the story, satisfy expectations. And then set ourselves the challenge to go past that, and create events that people could never anticipate. Which isn’t easy." Terry Rossio notes the theme of the latest film "is the nature of what it takes to be a good person, and each person faces that struggle. We embrace the idea that all pirate movies are about moral ambiguity, and good people can be forced into circumstances wherein they do something bad. So from the point of view of every character, they all have to go through that challenge, that transformation, facing their own ability to do something they’re not comfortable with, and making really tough choices. In that sense, every character in the story has a villainous moment at some point." "There’s never a trust between any of our characters in the movie," adds Jerry Bruckheimer. "There’s always a devious plan to benefit their own ends. 'At World’s End' is a movie about who's going to end up where, when and how, with constant one-upmanship." When it came to the third film the filmmakers knew that audiences, although having been thrilled by the first two films, would obviously be seeking the 'Astonish me' factor. "We wanted to tell a story which would be an epic struggle between freedom and conformity," says executive producer Mike Stenson. "A fundamental question of the movie is, why are we supposed to like pirates? It really does come back to the sense that when you’re growing up, you want to be a pirate…you want to do something that’s about freedom, no rules, not dealing with authority." Executive producer Bruce Hendricks notes, "In a way, the most satisfying aspect of 'Pirates' is that it has become this kind of cultural phenomenon that audiences have embraced so passionately," says . "You’ve got to give Jerry, Gore, Ted and Terry, and Johnny and the cast credit for that. This has forever changed the approach to the pirate genre, which was basically dead. It’s now been re-invented, whether or not we make more pirate movies, or someone else does, there’s a different way of looking at pirates now." And, of course, the actors who play the charcters in the franchise. "When we last saw Jack in Dead Man’s Chest," Depp explained, "he was swatting his way into the mouth of Kraken, and when we pick him up again in ‘At World’s End’ he’s in Davy Jones's Locker, which is kind of beyond the idea of purgatory, a kind of hell in which he’s surrounded by himself. I thought it was a brilliant idea of taking this guy and not have him face his demons, but rather the various sides of his personality." Bruckhiemer is full of praise for Depp who he says has created a pirate who "was unlike anything that audiences had seen on screen before, a drunken, swashbuckling character who can barely stand up sometimes, yet is so clever and smart that he outwits everybody around him." Almost as big as Depp's Captain Sparrow is Geoffrey Rush's Captain Barbossa. "There’s a shift in Barbossa’s character in the third film," Rush says. "I think that in 'Dead Man’s Chest', Davy Jones becomes the villain or dark force at the center of the film. And with Barbossa being absent, when he re-emerges, he actually comes back as a kind of politician, which is great for me because it meant I didn’t have to play the same flavors, or work off the same dramatic palette as in the first film, which was pure rivalry with Jack. I mean, that’s certainly still there, but my job in ‘At World’s End’ is to make sure that the romantic true heritage of the pirates being the vagabond brotherhood at sea maintains its identity against this rather ruthless corporate world of the East India Trading Company that wants to stamp it out." Orlando Bloom returns as Will Turner. "By the time 'At World's End' begins," Bloom notes, "Will has embraced the pirate code that he so hated at the start of 'The Curse of the Black Pearl', to pursue his own purposes. A promise has been made that he will save his father’s life, and Will will try and do everything he can to honor that vow…not forgetting that he still loves Elizabeth, and wants to get her back into his life. The third movie reveals the true nature of all the characters, and it’s great to go on a journey with Will where you’re not quite certain which direction he will turn to." "There’s a certain amount of guilt that Elizabeth feels about having delivered Jack to the Kraken at the end of 'Dead Man’s Chest', but I think that was something that had to be done at the time. But then she finds out that actually, what they really need to do is save him. Elizabeth is certainly more than the girl who stands in the corner by this point in the story. It’s been great to play a girl who’s strong and interesting, and isn’t afraid of a fight," says Kiera Knightley. "Davy is now in service to the East India Trading Company and Lord Cutler Beckett, certainly the first time he’s been in service to anybody. He’s no longer the free lord of the seas," says Peter Sellers Best Comedy Performance Award winner Bill Nighy. "In 'At World’s End', you see how love and betrayal wrecked Davy’s life and ruined his existence. He just wants Calypso, and peace from this terrible love pain." Tom Hollander notes, "It was thrilling, a fantastic feeling. Being a part of something which people absolutely love is just wonderful. It’s been quite a tough job, but amazing as well. Davy Jones can be seen as the main villain of 'Dead Man's Chest,' but Beckett becomes his boss in 'At World’s End', so technically speaking, I’m on the top of the heap of villainy. Davy Jones’ heart is my secret weapon, what’s known in show business as 'leverage'. Because he who has the heart of Davy Jones controls the seas." One of the new characters is Sao Feng played by Chow Yun-Fat. "There is no good or evil in the pirate world, and Sao Feng is neither a good person nor a villain," he says. "They are all pirates, and that’s how pirates are." Synopsis

It is a dark time as the Age of Piracy nears to a close. Lord Cutler Beckett of the East India Company has gained control of the terrifying ghost ship, the Flying Dutchman, and its malevolent, vengeful Captain, Davy Jones. The Dutchman now roams the seven seas, unstoppable, destroying pirate ships without mercy, under the command of Admiral Norrington. Will Turner, Elizabeth Swann and Captain Barbossa embark on a desperate quest to gather the Nine Lords of the Brethren Court, their only hope to defeat Beckett, the Flying Dutchman, and his Armada. But one of the Lords is missing. Captain Jack Sparrow, either the best or worst pirate ever, and now trapped in Davy Jones Locker, thanks to his encounter with the monstrous Kraken. In an increasingly shaky alliance, Will, Elizabeth, Captain Barbossa, Tia Dalma, Pintel and Ragetti must first travel to dangerous, exotic Singapore and confront Chinese pirate Captain Sao Feng to gain charts, and a ship, that will take them off to world's end, to rescue Captain Jack.

The Verdict One can not doubt the success of the POTC franchise. "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl" world-wide grossed $US653,200,000 and the sequel "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" (2006) took a whopping $US1,060,332,628. But is more better? Standby for what is supposed to be the final instalment in the pirate saga as all is revealed in "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End". For many in the audience, sitting through nearly three hours of the this finale` will leave them feeling as though they have travelled to the ends of the earth and back. After waiting nigh of two hours me hearties, we finally reach what we all (including the pirates) came to see, that final battle between The Black Pearl & The Flying Dutchman. But even that becomes a little mindnumbing. "POTC: At World's End" is, like its predecessors, destined to make big bucks at the box-office, unfortunately for all the wrong reasons. The 'lemming' and 'dare I miss it' factors will ensure the success of the third, and what is supposed to be, last edition in the POTC franchise. Like lemmings spilling over a cliff, cinemagoers will rush to see this. Those who have already seen the first two POTC films will feel, even after the lack lustre POTC:2, POTC:3 is long. Very long! There's heaps of dialogue. Too much dialogue! Once again, Orlando Bloom and Kiera Knightley give overpoweringly lifeless and bland performances. What does in the main save POTC:3 from total failure is its extremely good special effects (especially the work of Key Makeup Artist and Makeup Effects Designer, the three time Academy ® Award winner Ve Neill) and, the return of EMMY, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild Award winner Geoffrey Rush. Without them POTC:3 wouldn't be worth the effort. As for Capt Jack Sparrow, I suspect it's time that they laid the 'camp' Captain to rest. Finally, at the risk of sounding cynical, let me say that when it comes to POTC3 being touted as the final film, well I'll believe it when I see it! I am sure that after seeing POTC:3, many cinemagoers will, on reflection, agree that this third and supposedly final edition in the POTC franchise is a pretty disappointing experience. Despite its failings it's hard not to recommend. Just enough to get your monies worth. 3 STARS." Cast & Crew Bytes "PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END" stars .......
Two time Empire Award winner & 2003 Hollywood Film Festival Actor of the Year Johnny Depp ["The Astronaut's Wife", "Chocolat", "Once Upon A Time In Mexico", "Secret Window", "Finding Neverland" and "POTC: 1, 2 & 3"]; Academy ® Award, two time BAFTA and 1996 AFI Award winner Geoffrey Rush ["Shine", "Quills", "The Life And Death Of Peter Sellers" and "Candy"]; BAFTA Best Actor and Royal Television Society Best Actor Awards winner Bill Nighy ["Guest House Paradiso", "Lawless Heart", "I Capture the Castle", "Shaun of the Dead" and "The Constant Gardener"]; 2002 MTV Movie Award Orlando Bloom ["Ned Kelly", "LOTR: I, II & III" and "POTC: POTC: 1, 2 & 3"]; 2007 People's Choice Award winner Kiera Knightley ["Bend It Like Beckham", "King Arthur", "Pride & Prejudice" and "POTC: 1, 2 & 3"]; 2006 Evening Standard British Film Comedy Award winner Tom Hollander ["Piccadilly Jim", "Pride & Prejudice", "A Good Year" and "POTC: 2 & 3"] with David Bailie ["Son of Dracula", "Legend of the Werewolf", "Cutthroat Island", "Gladiator" and "POTC: 1, 2 & 3"] as Cotton and Mackenzie Crook ["Finding Neverland", "The Life And Death Of Peter Sellers", "The Brothers Grimm" and "POTC: 1, 2 & 3"] as Ragetti.
"PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: AT WORLD'S END" was .......
directed by Gore Verbinski ["The Mexican", "The Ring", "The Weather Man" and "POTC: 1, 2 & 3"]; screenplay by Ted Elliott ["Godzilla", "The Mask of Zorro", "Shrek", "The Legend of Zorro" and "POTC: 1, 2 & 3"] and ["Godzilla", "The Mask of Zorro", "Shrek", "The Legend of Zorro" and "POTC: 1, 2 & 3"]; costume design by Liz Dann ["POTC: 1 & 3"] and Penny Rose ["Evita", "King Arthur", "The Weather Man", "Wild Hogs" and "POTC: 1, 2 & 3"]; production design by 2000 Academy Award winner Rick Heinrichs ["Fargo", "The Big Lebowski", "Sleepy Hollow", "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events" and "POTC: 2 & "]; set decoration by five time Oscar nominee Cheryl Carasik ["Edward Scissorhands", "Men in Black 1 & 2", "K-PAX" and "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events"]; cinematography by Dariusz Wolski ["Crimson Tide", "The Fan" and "POTC: 1, 2 & 3"]; original music by 1999 Academy Award and 10 time BMI Film Music Award winner Hans Zimmer ["Crimson Tide", "The Lion King", "Broken Arrow", "As Good As It Gets", "The Ring", "The Last Samurai" and "The Holiday"]; produced by 2004/5/6 Emmy Award winner Jerry Bruckheimer ["Black Hawk Down", "Veronica Guerin", "King Arthur" and "National Treasure"]. Who's Who?

Johnny Depp Geoffrey Rush Orlando Bloom Keira Knightley Jack Davenport Jonathan Linsley Yun-Fat Chow Keith Richards Ghassan Massoud Hakeem Kae-Kazim Marcel Iures Sergio Calderón Bill Nighy Jonathan Pryce Stellan Skarsgård Tom Hollander Naomie Harris David Bailie Mackenzie Crook Lee Arenberg Kevin R McNally Martin Klebba David Schofield Lauren Maher

... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ...

Jack Sparrow Barbossa Will Turner Elizabeth Swann Norrington Ogilvey/Dutchman Captain Sao Feng Captain Teague Captain Ammand Captain Jocard Captain Chevalle Captain Vallenueva Davy Jones Governor Weatherby Swann 'Bootstrap' Bill Turner Lord Cutler Beckett Tia Dalma Cotton Ragetti Pintel Gibbs Marty Mercer Scarlett

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