More 'Pirates' Set Visit

Shooting two "Pirates" sequels (the third movie will be released after "Dead Man's Chest"; the date is unknown) back-to-back is a tremendous undertaking. Although it's a Disney film, sound stages are being used on both the Universal and Disney lots. Plus, there have been weeks of shooting on the sea in St. Thomas. Leaving Universal behind, our party heads over to Disney Stage 2 where a beautiful bayou set has been created.

A few days before, the cast filmed a scene here where a soothsayer, played by Naomie Harris ("28 Days Later"), warned Captain Sparrow of a dire future. The set, which resembles an Indian river in Dominica, features multiple huts and incredibly realistic trees constructed completely of plaster. It contains a three- to four-feet deep "river" that boats can sail through. The set is so fun to walk around that you wish you could bring it home. Credit this stunning creation to one of the few new additions to the "Pirates" creative team, Oscar-winning Production Designer Rick Heinrichs ("Sleepy Hollow"). He admits that although the new films have a broader scope than the original, the practical sets have been less challenging than having to build boats from scratch.

"We're building boats that actually work on the water," Heinrichs says, noting another upgrade on this production. "The Black Pearl's built on top of another boat. It's got twin diesel engines and can have quite a bit of a bow wave this time. [That's] something [director Gore Verbinski] really wanted to do. He felt that in the first movie, all the boats felt a little turgid, and they were basically barges that were being dragged behind another boat. This time we actually built the boats so they do have that feel of reality to them."

Not anticipating any sequels, the studio destroyed a number of sets from the original movie. This has given Heinrichs the opportunity to recreate different sections of the Black Pearl. Walking onto the sound stage version of the Black Pearl's cannon deck was quite a thrill. It seemed incredibly realistic down to the rusting of the cannons themselves. But, then again, are cannonballs supposed to be light enough to toss back and forth?

Our last stop was the Captain's Quarters on the Black Pearl. Although it looks similar to the first one, Heinrichs has gone all out using real (and expensive) mahogany wood. Funny, it seems a bit too nice for Jack Sparrow. It definitely is more Barbosa's style... but too bad he was killed off in the first movie.

So, with a wave goodbye from our friendly Disney publicist, the sneak peek at "Dead Man's Chest" ends with Depp, Knightley or Bloom nowhere in sight. Of course, one of them was around during our visit to the sets of the third "Pirates" movie, but that's a tale for another
time.

Look for the first trailer from "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest" on MSN Movies soon.

source: msn.movies.com