Pros: Everything.
Cons: Why is the rum always gone!?
The Bottom Line: Aye. Sea turtles.
Plot Details: This opinion reveals minor details about the movie's plot. After reviewing the second movie, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest, I realized I was doing things a little backwards. So I decided to plop down, pop in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and enjoy the first run of Captain Jack Sparrow and all that seems to follow him.
According to a deckhand, Mr. Gibbs, having a woman on board, in this case a young Elizabeth Swann, is bad luck. Not so for young William Turner, who is spotted by Elizabeth among the wreckage of a ship. In order to save Will from being branded as a pirate, she takes a strange medallion from around his neck and hides it. Some say it was the Black Pearl that attacked the ship. Others don’t believe it. After all, the Black Pearl is manned by a crew of the damned and never leaves survivors.
Whatever the case may be, years later Will has become a rather fine blacksmith and hiding a powerful crush on Elizabeth. Things seem normal in Port Royal until a rather peculiar character sails (sort of) into the bay. Captain Jack Sparrow, if you please. But despite all of Jack’s wiles, it isn’t long before he’s tossed into jail – Port Royal does not tolerate pirates. That night, all is not well as that gold medallion Elizabeth took from Will years ago leads to an assault on the town via the Black Pearl, as highly unlikely as it seems. Elizabeth is taken captive and Will, the lovesick puppy that he is, makes his own plans to rescue her, and that includes using Jack’s knowledge of where the Black Pearl can be found.
The chase is on – the captain and men of the Black Pearl need the medallion and a certain person, Elizabeth needs to be rescued, Jack wants his ship back, Will wants to save Elizabeth, and the royal navy wants to arrest Jack, Will, and any other pirates they get their hands on. Sails away!
Before this movie I hadn’t seen many movies involving Johnny Depp, but I believe that his performance as Captain Jack Sparrow takes the cake. You simply forget all about Johnny Depp and totally fall into all that is Jack, crazy rambling and all. Daft he is, that Jack Sparrow. Keira Knightley as Elizabeth Swann is just as good. She projects just the right amount of fire and ladylike reserve and makes for a wonderful character. And of course, most of us know Orlando Bloom from his debut in Lord of the Rings as Legolas. But here he trades in his bow, Mirkwood clothing, and wispy blonde hair for darker curls, a cutlass, and a hat with a very long feather in it. I hope to see him go far in the acting world, just as long as he doesn’t go all weird the way a lot of them tend to.
The movie is action packed, but not so much that it takes away from the storyline, which is a very interesting one indeed. It’s hard not to enjoy a good ghost story, and most of us haven’t encountered a good pirate movie (if at all) in a long time, no matter how fantastic it may be. Disney hit the jackpot with this little nugget of gold. It’s hard not to love all the characters, even the diabolical Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush). I give kudos to the writers because the dialogue is great, hilarious, and simply adds to the flavor of the movie. Nothing really needs to be said of the effects simply for the fact that they were awesome. They weren’t over the top, but they didn’t skimp on the budget and end up with a lack of skill either.
A perfect balance of comedy, action, and romance, and if you haven’t seen this movie already, then go out right now and rent it (and buy some snacks to go with – and maybe a bottle of rum!). Then tomorrow go and see the newest release of Dead Man’s Chest and go bonkers when you get to the ending!
NT
Recommended:
Yes
Viewing Format: DVD
