"Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End"
Rated PG-13
Now playing
***

THE PLOT: Will Turner (Orlando Bloom), Elizabeth Swann (Kiera Knightley) and Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush) sail to Davy Jones’s Locker to rescue Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) from death, each for their own purposes.

They all make backstabbing deals with Lord Cutler Beckett (Tom Hollander) of the East India Trading Co., whose goal is to end piracy and rule the seas. Beckett controls Davy Jones (Bill Nighy). It all sets the stage for the ultimate showdown between the pirates and the law.

(Photo: Geoffrey Rush, left, and Johnny Depp return for more pirate action in "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End." Credit: Peter Mountain -- Disney)

THE GOOD: Full of ludicrous fun and sexual innuendo, the movie surprises and delights. “At World’s End” is tremendously imaginative and quirky, overlooking the plot to have fun. The action sequences are spectacular, and the special effects are realistic, yet under control. The references to the first movie are fleeting and mostly visual, as they should be. Scenes such as the starry ocean and the arctic adventure give visual splendor to the film.

BUT WHAT JUST HAPPENED: The plot is hard to follow, as the characters’ motives and agreements run together, then are left never to be mentioned again. Questions remain unanswered by the end. The ending feels contrived, aiming more to be surprising than true to the characters and the storyline.

THE BOTTOM LINE: “At World’s End” is a solid finale for the Disney saga. While the second part of the trilogy missed a step, altering Sparrow’s character and developing romances where none were to be had, this movie brings back what was most loved about Sparrow and his minions.

-- Erica Lee, Monta Vista High, Cupertino