All these years later, I basically hold the same opinion: perfectly fine summer tentpole filmmaking greatly elevated by two ridiculously fun performances from Johnny Depp and Geoffrey Rush, both who should’ve won Oscars over the already forgotten ones in MYSTIC RIVER. The only thing I forgot is just how sharp the comedy writing throughout the film is. No quipping, no “they fly now” - it’s all layered punchlines, callbacks, wordplay, and visual humor. Great stuff, too bad about the awkward pacing in the third act and the lack of dynamic editing in the fight scenes.

It’s sad that the sequels dug their heels in pointless lore and mythology rather than just offering up another finely tuned adventure with Jack Sparrow only carrying over ala LUPIN THE III. Reclamation projects always relies heavily on nostalgia but they can’t overlook the fact that Disney retained all the wrong lessons from the direction the writers took this franchise.