Critics praise DMC characters
"If it's the characters that keep film-goers coming back, there's reason to rejoice. Johnny Depp's Captain Jack has lost none of his swishy swagger. Depp is in peak form again, burying himself in the part and making the Captain the most dashing rogue this side of Han Solo. We don't see much of it, but we believe Elizabeth when she asserts there's a heart of gold inside the carefree exterior. For her part, Knightley has grown into Elizabeth. The character feels more integral to the story than in The Curse of the Black Pearl, where she was more often than not the obligatory love interest. Dead Man's Chest takes Elizabeth's romantic life in an unexpected direction, as sparks fly between her and Jack. Knightley and Depp have chemistry; Knightley and Bloom do not. Therefore, this pairing makes sense. Plus, as there's a submerged goodness in Jack, there's a hidden devilish side to Elizabeth.
Orlando Bloom's Will is a little more interesting this time around, but not much more. Bloom is adequate, and his legion of fans will have plenty to squeal about, but he is often overshadowed by Depp and/or Knightley. Actually, many of his scenes are with the CGI-enhanced Bill Nighy, whose voice is marginally more recognizable than his features. Davy Jones represents a creepy villain (splendidly rendered on a computer), but he lacks the vicious charm of Geoffrey Rush. Viewers will feel the absence of Barbarosa (although not his monkey). Stellan Skarsgård joins the film as Will's dead (?) father, Bootstrap Bill. (Death in the Pirates of the Caribbean universe is little more than a temporary inconvenience.) Jonathan Pryce (as Elizabeth's father) and Jack Davenport (as Elizabeth's former earnest suitor) both return, as do the comedic duo of Mackenzie Crook and Lee Arenberg as the series' versions of C3PO and R2D2."
Observant, I think. 😉