REVIEW

Blu-ray Review: Pirates of the Caribbean - At World's End

Written by Matt Paprocki
Published February 06, 2008

After hitting every necessary point in the first two films, the likely conclusion to the Pirates series, At World’s End, is a convoluted mess. The number of characters, storylines, and double crosses going on are simply ridiculous, enough to fill two movies instead of one. The lackluster soundtrack rarely brings in the wonderful theme fans are used to, and just short of three hours this one doesn’t want to end. Sure, the action is fun, but if you can’t understand why they’re fighting, what’s the point? Read the full movie review.

As with the other films, At World’s End provides the HD goods. This is the darkest entry in the franchise, and is thankfully aided by deep black levels. There’s noticeable grain to go along with the dimly lit sequences and it’s slightly more noticeable than it was in either of the two prior Pirates efforts. Details, sharpness, and clarity are stunning. It’s the weakest of three, yet still an amazing transfer.

Cannons, swords clashing, rain, thunder, and a money shot from a cannon. At World’s End is a showcase for home audio. Bass is rich, deep, and loaded throughout. The use of the surround channels is not limited to action scenes. Ships creak and groan as they traverse the seas while filling the sound field. It’s wonderfully immersive and perfectly mixed.

Following up the typical features of the Pirates efforts, Disney includes the interactive piece Inside the Maelstrom. During this feature, you can branch off into separate smaller pieces that detail how the scene came together. There’s a ton of material here if you get to it all. Disc one includes the latter and a HD five minute blooper reel. Sadly, there are no commentaries this time around.

Disc two begins with the somewhat redundant Anatomy of a Scene: The Maelstom. If you’ve went through the piece on disc one, there’s not reason to waste 20 minutes here. Masters of Design focuses on different aspects of the production, going into depth on things such as food created for the movie.

The Tale of Many Jacks discusses how they pulled off the sequence in which Jack is split into countless copies of himself, and runs for about five minutes. Keith and the Captain looks at the brief appearance of Keith Richards in the film. The World of Chow Yun Fat follows the latter in terms of what it sets out to do.

The Pirates Maestro is a short piece on Hanz Zimmer, as is Hoist the Colors. Two wasted deleted scenes and trailers finish disc two.

After three movies, it’s incredible to think one stereotype of the pirate lifestyle was held off until At World’s End. This is the only movie to have a pirate wearing an eye patch.

Matt Paprocki is the former reviews editor for Digital Press, a video game website with an appreciation for the retro side of the industry. The deep game collection which spans nearly 30 systems and 2,000 games line his walls for research purposes. Matt strives to bring credibility to video game journalism, and take it in a new direction to aid the industry in becoming respected with all forms entertainment media. He currently freelances for GameArgus.com and MultiPlayerGames.com.
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Blu-ray Review: Pirates of the Caribbean - At World's End
Published: February 06, 2008
Type: Review
Section: Video
Filed Under: Video: Action, Video: Adventure, Video: Blu-ray
Part of a feature: The Wild Blu Yonder
Writer: Matt Paprocki
Matt Paprocki's BC Writer page
Matt Paprocki's personal site
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