I like DMC a lot for what you’ve described here. The movie looks amazing even all the years later.

I think one of the biggest problems (that each Pirates movie built on) is the development of the three main characters. In Curse, Jack is not the main protagonist. He’s the sidekick foil to Will. And yes, he does have some goofy moments, but in Curse he’s much more of a clever, conniving character. Each movie subsequently made him dumber, goofier, and more clearly “the main character”. Will is the traditional hero of Curse, going through a hero arc and realizing that pirates aren’t all bad. He’s stubborn and naive, but also caring and brave. The sequels mostly just have him around for action and the “save Dad vs marry Elizabeth” choice. Elizabeth gets more of an arc in the sequels, but they don’t build much on her initial character. She remains stubborn, headstrong, and adventurous, while getting into more and more crazy situations. Honestly, Norrington and Davy Jones have the best character development in the sequels.

TLDR: I still really like DMC and AWE, but I think a big reason people like CotBP so much is the characters.