History Film / PiratesOfTheCaribbeanAtWorldsEnd

** Perhaps Beckett's single biggest mistake is relocating the Dead Man's Chest to the ''Flying Dutchman''. It's done out of frustration with Jones chafing at Beckett's orders and to keep him in line. [[spoiler:Instead, putting the Heart on the ''Dutchman'' backfires spectacurarly and ultimately gets both Beckett and Jones killed. Beckett didn't account for actual combat conditions, which of course disrupts the guard over the Chest. In the chaos of the Maelstrom battle, Jack's able to steal the Heart and help Will stab it -- thereby killing Jones, installing Will as the new Captain, and removing the EITC's control of the ''Dutchman''.]]

* DeathIsCheap: Deconstructed. Jack's resurrection is a unique instance because he was taken body and soul to the Locker. No one else has ever gone into the Locker, rescued a prisoner, and escaped (and the film makes it clear the ''Black Pearl'' characters got lucky and no on else would be able to duplicate this jailbreak). With Barbossa, his resurrection in the last film likewise turns out to also be unique because Tia Dalma [[spoiler:is actually the goddess Calypso. Even bound, she still had enough divine juice to pull him out of the afterlife -- and she has no problem revoking Barbossa's second lease on life unless he fulfills her terms (summoning the Brethren Court, destroying the Nine Pieces of Eight, and releasing her from her bindings).]] As Barbossa and Jack ultimately discuss later, yes they both beat the odds and came back -- but they're still the exception to the rule. There's never a guarantee of coming back, but passing on ''is'' dead certain [[spoiler:(and indeed, Barbossa will prove this with his final death in ''Dead Men Tell No Tales'').]]

* IDidWhatIHadToDo: Elizabeth's defense after Will learns the truth about Jack's "heroic sacrifice" at the end of ''Dead Man's Chest'' and confronts her. Interestingly, Will doesn't actually dispute this. He knows that Davy Jones had backed them into a no-win situation with the Kraken; if Jack had been with them, then they'd have all died on the open water in the longboat. Rather, Will's angry because Elizabeth lied to him (and because her deception left him thinking for months that she'd fallen for Jack rather than being guilt-ridden over sacrificing him).

* DeathIsCheap: Deconstructed. Jack's resurrection is a unique instance because he was taken body and soul to the Locker. No one else has ever gone into the Locker, rescued a prisoner, and escaped (and the film makes it clear the ''Black Pearl'' characters got lucky and no on else would be able to duplicate this jailbreak). With Barbossa, his resurrection in the last film likewise turns out to also be unique because Tia Dalma[[spoiler:is actually the goddess Calypso. Even bound, she still had enough divine juice to pull him out of the afterlife -- and she has no problem revoking his ressurection unless he fulfills her terms (summoning the Brethren Court, destroying the Nine Pieces of Eight, and releasing her from her bindings).]] As Barbossa and Jack ultimately discuss later, yes they both beat the odds and came back -- but they're still the exception to the rule. There's never a guarantee of coming back, but passing on ''is'' dead certain [[spoiler:(and indeed, Barbossa will prove this with his final death in ''Dead Men Tell No Tales'').]]

* DeathIsCheap: Deconstructed. Jack's resurrection is a unique instance because he was taken body and soul to the Locker. No one else has ever gone into the Locker, rescued a prisoner, and escaped (and the film makes it clear the ''Black Pearl'' characters got lucky and no on else would be able to duplicate this jailbreak). With Barbossa, his resurrection in the last film likewise turns out to also be unique because Tia Dalma[[spoiler:is actually the goddess Calypso. Even bound, she still had enough divine juice to pull him out of the afterlife -- and she has no problem revoking his ressurection unless he fulfills her terms (summoning the Brethren Court, destroying the Nine Pieces of Eight, and releasing her from her bindings). As Barbossa and Jack ultimately discuss later, yes they both beat the odds and came back -- but they're still the exception to the rule. There's never a guarantee of coming back, but passing on ''is'' dead certain (and indeed, Barbossa will prove this with his final death in ''Dead Men Tell No Tales'').]]

* DeathIsCheap: Deconstructed. Jack's ressurection is a unique instance because he was taken body and soul to the Locker. No one else has ever gone into the Locker, rescued and escaped (and the film makes it clear the ''Black Pearl'' characters got lucky and trying this again would be all but impossible). With Barbossa, his ressurection in the last film likewise turns out to also be unique because Tia Dalma[[spoiler:is actually the goddess Calypso. Even bound, she still had enough juice to pull him out of the afterlife (and his ressurection is only temporary and dependent upon Barbossa fullfilling Tia Dalma's terms: summoning the Brethern Court, destroying the Nine Pieces of Eight, and releasing her from her bindings). As Barbossa and Jack discuss later, yes they both beat the odds and came back -- but they're still the exception to the rule. There's never a garuntee of coming back, but passing on ''is'' dead certain (and indeed, Barbossa will prove this with his final death in ''Dead Men Tell No Tales'').]]

* DentedIron: Downplayed, but going into the climax of the FinalBattle, [[spoiler:this is the ''Pearl'''s situation when it looks like it's just her alone against the ''Endeavour'' (and before the ''Flying Dutchman'' resurfaces on their side). The ''Pearl'' just fought Davy Jones' ship ''and'' the natural forces of the Maelstrom for the last half an hour. She's damaged, her armaments have been all but depleted, and our heroes are exhausted (and dealing with the emotional turmoil of Will's apparent death). By contrast, Beckett and his flagship are rested, undamaged, and fully armed and ready to rock.]]

* XanatosGambit: The aftermath of the Parlay in theory leaves the Pirates with one on the board. [[spoiler:Jack is now a prisoner aboard the ''Dutchman'' where, knowing Jack, he'll get loose and make a play for the Dead Man's Chest. If he can stab it or at least get it off the ship, they can remove Beckett's leverage over the ''Dutchman'' and the big gun of the EITC Armada. Back on the ''Pearl'', they've got Jack's Piece of Eight and can now free Calypso and hopefully turn the tide of battle in their favor -- provided she doesn't kill them all first.]]
** This being ''Pirates'', of course, complications arise and ensue (and are overcome). [[spoiler:Both sides of the Gambit ultimately contribute to a Piratical victory, but ''not'' how Jack or company anticipated. Thanks to Will's intel about Davy Jones' betrayal, Calypso ''doesn't'' destroy the Brethern Court ''or'' the EITC Armada. Instead, she creates the Maelstrom to level the playing field and let both sides go at it and kill each other (battle conditions which ultimately do allow the ''Pearl'' characters to board the ''Dutchman''). Jack ''does'' get the Heart, but he ultimately has to let a dying Will stab it to save his life (which still ultimately gives the Pirates control of the ''Dutchman'' and allows them to take out Beckett.)]]

* EvilIsPetty: Beckett and Davy Jones (the latter even more compared to the last film due to his resentment and rage at being leashed by Beckett). Their mutual preference for this trope also is why they both make a critical mistake going into the final battle: [[spoiler:Taking Jack alive and imprisoning him aboard the ''Dutchman'' instead of killing him. Given how dangerous and unpredictable Jack is, the wiser course of action would be to just shoot him and be done with it. But beause Beckett and Jones both ''hate'' Jack, they need ''and'' want him to suffer. This of course, backfires, as Jack gets loose, gets the Heart, and helps Will kill Jones (which turns the ''Dutchman'' against the EITC and allows them to finally sink ''Endeavour'' with Beckett aboard.]] In the case Davy Jones, his previously established love for this trope is also what [[spoiler:kills him. Despite Jack literally holding his life in the palm of his hand if he harms Will, Jones just ''can't'' stop himself from stabbing Will in the heart out of spite.]]

* EvilIsPetty: Beckett and Davy Jones (the latter even more compared to the last film due to his resentment and rage at being leashed by Beckett). Their mutual preference for this trope also is why they both make a critical mistake going into the final battle: [[spoiler:Taking Jack alive and imprisoning him aboard the ''Dutchman'' instead of killing him. Given how dangerous and unpredictable Jack is, the wiser course of action would be to just shoot him and be done with it. But beause Beckett and Jones both ''hate'' Jack, they need ''and'' want him to suffer. This of course, backfires, as Jack gets loose, gets the Heart, and helps Will kill Jones (which turns the ''Dutchman'' against the EITC and allows them to finally sink ''Endeavour'' with Beckett aboard.]]
** In the case Davy Jones, his previously-established love for this trope is also what [[spoiler:kills him. Despite Jack literally holding his life in the palm of his hand if he harms Will, Jones just ''can't'' stop himself from stabbing Will in the heart out of spite.]]

* EvilIsPetty: Davy Jones continues to be this into this film. But the climax takes the cake wherein [[spoiler:despite Jack literally holding his life in the palm of his hand if he harms Will, Jones just ''can't'' resist stabbing Will in the heart.]]

* ScrewTheRulesTheyreNotReal: {{Justified|Trope}} and {{subverted}}. It turns out there is a good reason why, while all pirate characters [[LoopholeAbuse bend the ever-living hell out of the Pirates' Code to suit their needs]], they never actually violate the ExactWords, and that reason is [[TheDreaded Captain Edward Teague]], the Keeper of the Code. When one of the Indian pirates says "Hang the Code!" without knowing Teague is present, [[AppealToForce Teague immediately shoots him dead]] and asserts "The Code is the law", which makes all of the other pirates in the room, the so-called "Pirate Kings" included, [[AsskickingLeadsToLeadership immediately ditch that train of thought]].

* KeystoneArmy: The ''enormous'' Imperial Armada Beckett brought with him to annihilate the pirates: they all [[InstantWinCondition turn tail and run]] when the ''Endeavour'' is sunk, despite it being heavily implied that they vastly outnumber the entire pirate fleet. This may simply be a case of LazyBackup, but on the other hand, they ''are'' up against the ''Black Pearl'', which is pretty infamous for her actions, as well as the ''Flying Dutchman'', which would probably have made it a CurbStompBattle given how everyone keeps saying "Control the Dutchman, control the seas."

*** Similarly, after learning that [[spoiler:Jones was the one who helped the original Pirate Lords bind Calypso, it doesn't occur to Beckett to reach the obvious conclusion from the revelation. If Jones was working with the First Court, then he ''must'' know Shipwreck Cove's location and the EITC doesn't actually need Will's assistance at all (not to mention that Jones has known this all along and intentionally witheld it from Beckett out of spite).]]

** Upon escaping the Locker, Jack refuses to join up with the Pirate Lords. While the characters argue the EITC will hunt them all down one by one unless they unite, Jack admits he actually ''likes' this outcome. Think of what it could mean for his own legend: Captain Jack, the Last Pirate. An irate Barbossa then asks Jack how he, said Last Pirate, will feel about having to face Davy Jones ''alone'' and with no backup or allies. Jack sheepishly admits he's still working on that plan.

* DidntThinkThisThrough: Beckett tightens the leash on Jones by having the Dead Man's Chest returned to the ''Flying Dutchman'', with guards ready to destroy it on command. He clearly doesn't expect the chain of command to be disrupted by an active combat situation.
** Similarly, after learning that [[spoiler:Jones was the one who helped the original Pirate Lords bind Calypso, it doesn't occur to Beckett to reach the obvious conclusion from the revelation. If Jones was working with the First Court, then he ''must'' know Shipwreck Cove's location and the EITC doesn't actually need Will's assistance at all (not to mention that Jones has known this all along and intentionally witheld it from Beckett out of spite).]]

** Similarly, after learning that [[spoiler:Jones was the one who helped the original Pirate Lords bind Calypso, it doesn't occur to Beckett to reach the obvious conclusion from the revelation: If Jones was working with the first Brethren Court, then he must know Shipwreck Cove's location and the EITC doesn't actually need Will's assistance at all.]]

* TookALevelInKindness: In a weird way, Barbossa when [[spoiler:he steals the ''Pearl'' for the second time at the end of the film. Yes, he screws over Jack again -- but this time, Barbossa isn't vindictive about it. He doesn't maroon Jack on a deserted isle, but instead leaves him stranded in Tortuga and in the comforts of civilization. It may also count as PragmaticVillainy fro, Barbossa; after all, being vindictive towards Jack last time set off the chain of events that ultimately got Barbossa killed at the end of the first film.]]

** During the Brethren Court summit, Barbossa admits the First Court binding Calypso has ultimately backfired on the Pirate Lords. Yes, binding the Goddess of the Sea granted the Pirates control over all the oceans -- but in hindsight, it also opened the door to someone like Beckett and his ilk.
** During the final battle [[spoiler: Will gets stabbed by Davy Jones, who at this point's armed with the sword Will made for Norrington back in the first film (and which Jones claimed for himself after Norrington died).]]

** At the end of the previous film, Norrington stole the Heart of Davy Jones to present to Beckett in order to get his life and Naval position back. If anything, it worked better than he could've been expected; Beckett's not only restored his old commission, but promoted him from Commodore to Admiral. However, it's ''not'' a win for Norrington, because his new flag rank leaves him commanding the EITC's armada and stuck as TheDragon (or at least CoDragon with Jones) to a sociopath who wants the love of his life dead instead.
** Jack spends much of the film manipulating events to ensure he winds up on the ''Dutchman'' and have a shot at stabbing Davy Jones' heart. It works and he does indeed end up on the ship...only to be locked in the brig. The Multiple Jacks naturally lamspadhe the trope (not that being locked up keeps Jack down for long).

* GoneHorriblyRight: At the end of the previous film, Norrington stole the Heart of Davy Jones to present to Beckett in order to get his life and Naval position back. If anything, it worked better than he could've been expected; Beckett's not only restored his old commission, but promoted him from Commodore to Admiral. However, it's ''not'' a win for Norrington, because his new flag rank leaves him commanding the EITC's armada and stuck as TheDragon (or at least CoDragon with Jones) to a sociopath who wants the love of his life dead instead.

* GenreBlindness: [[spoiler: After the First Brethren Court bound her, Calypso never considered or realized the obvious implication: These pirates and mere mortals ''couldn't'' have done it on their own. ''Somebody'' showed them how to bind a sea goddess. Who in her inner circle would have had the tools and knowledge? Who else could have betrayed her, ''but'' Davy Jones? Could be justified by Calypso being a deity and not thinking in human terms and perceptions. It's also possible [Calypso was blinded by her love for Jones. Indeed, her muted, almost ''desperate'' aggressiveness when Will reveals the truth implies that on some level, Calyspo ''knew'' it ''had'' to be Jones. She just couldn't accept her lover would do that (or perhaps hoped she was wrong and that there was an alternate explanation) until Will's revelation.]]

* GenreBlindness: [[spoiler: After the First Brethren Court bound her, Calypso never considered or realized the obvious implication: These pirates and mere mortals ''couldn't'' have done it on their own. ''Somebody'' showed them how to bind a sea goddess. Who in her inner circle would have had the tools and knowledge? Who else could have betrayed her, ''but'' Davy Jones? Could be justified by Calypso being a deity and not thinking in human terms and perceptions (to say nothing of being blinded by her own love for Jones).]]
* GenreShift: While it began in the previous film, ''At World's End'' completes the transition from the LowFantasy of the first film to HighFantasy.

* NoodleIncident: Implied, albeit downplayed, with Barbossa and Jack the Monkey. But ''something'' must have happened during the decade Barbossa had the ''Black Pearl'' to convince him to train his undead pet and accomplice how to use firearms (let alone that it was a good idea).

* NoodleIncident: Implied, albeit Downplayed, with Barbossa and Jack the Monkey. But ''something'' must have happened during the 10 years Barbossa had the ''Black Pearl'' to convince him to train his undead pet and accomplice how to use firearms.

** Beckett initially withholds details of Jack's escape from the Locker from Jones (as he needs Jack alive long enough to lead him to Shipwreck Cove and the news will only set off Jones). That plan goes down in flames after Will gleefully reveals the truth to Jones when he comes aboard the ''''.

** Downplayed, but the reunion between Davy Jones and [[spoiler:Calypso all but confirms he knew all along where Shipwreck Cove was and witheld its location from Beckett out of spite.]]