Written by: Kevin Berge
Courtesy of: moviedeskback.com.
Quick Take: You will never miss the two hours you spend watching Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl which now almost 13 years old still never feels dated. Guided by a furiously likable performance from Johnny Depp, the adventure never slows down even to develop its characters who are given only enough to be distinguishable.
***Everything from here on out is written with the understanding that the reader has seen this movie before with no overwhelming spoilers but plenty of references. If you have not seen the film yet and still wish to, turn back now. There are perils here you will not yet wish to tread.***
No one expected much when it was announced that Disney was making a movie based on a theme park ride. The charming Pirates of the Caribbean ride was about an immersion in the wacky world of pirates, glorifying their triumphs and their many transgressions while showing just a little bit of spookiness and treasure. As a ride, it was a fun couple minutes but with no actual story to it.
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was wildly different than that ride. Guided by the sure eye of director Gore Verbinski, this was the tale not of pirates as a whole but of one pirate and the many people he inspired to have just a little bit more fun. It's charming and exciting to a fault and a different kind of ride worth taking.
The film begins making you think this is the tale of Elizabeth Swan, a young, adventurous, and inquisitive girl, and Will Turner, a mysterious boy who may just be a pirate. While the two characters played by Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom are the movie's plucky protagonists, they are quickly wrapped up in an action driven affair and rarely allowed real development.
You'll never really miss the two when they are not on screen as their characters are the most straight moral compasses of anyone in the film. Knightley as Elizabeth is allowed to be more than eye candy, getting in more than her share of the action, but she does not stand out at any stage (though she would get better in the followup films). Orlando Bloom's Will is so dreadfully honorable that even the other characters laugh at his goody two-shoes routine.
"You are in fact the worst pirate I've ever heard of." "But you have heard of me."
None of that really matters though because the real hero of this story is Jack Sparrow played with unforgettable flair by Johnny Depp. The pirate is quick witted, plays with people's minds as easily as he does words, and never fails to make you think less of him just before he shows he's several steps ahead of you. On top of that, he's got a heart of gold even as he revels in immorality.
His introduction in the film is superb as he comes riding in on a tiny ship as the film's definitive theme plays, and he walks onto the bay just as the ship sinks away. It doesn't take long for Jack to get himself into trouble, and we find out all that he finds important in the world are his hat, his pistol with a single bullet, and a compass that does not point north.
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl was wildly different than that ride. Guided by the sure eye of director Gore Verbinski, this was the tale not of pirates as a whole but of one pirate and the many people he inspired to have just a little bit more fun. It's charming and exciting to a fault and a different kind of ride worth taking.
The film begins making you think this is the tale of Elizabeth Swan, a young, adventurous, and inquisitive girl, and Will Turner, a mysterious boy who may just be a pirate. While the two characters played by Keira Knightley and Orlando Bloom are the movie's plucky protagonists, they are quickly wrapped up in an action driven affair and rarely allowed real development.
You'll never really miss the two when they are not on screen as their characters are the most straight moral compasses of anyone in the film. Knightley as Elizabeth is allowed to be more than eye candy, getting in more than her share of the action, but she does not stand out at any stage (though she would get better in the followup films). Orlando Bloom's Will is so dreadfully honorable that even the other characters laugh at his goody two-shoes routine.
"You are in fact the worst pirate I've ever heard of." "But you have heard of me."
None of that really matters though because the real hero of this story is Jack Sparrow played with unforgettable flair by Johnny Depp. The pirate is quick witted, plays with people's minds as easily as he does words, and never fails to make you think less of him just before he shows he's several steps ahead of you. On top of that, he's got a heart of gold even as he revels in immorality.
His introduction in the film is superb as he comes riding in on a tiny ship as the film's definitive theme plays, and he walks onto the bay just as the ship sinks away. It doesn't take long for Jack to get himself into trouble, and we find out all that he finds important in the world are his hat, his pistol with a single bullet, and a compass that does not point north.
Courtesy of: fanpop.com.
The mystery of who Jack really is makes for the film's most compelling plot point. When the fabled Black Pearl arrives to abduct Elizabeth, we see hints that he knows the Pearl then each step from there on reveals a little more and peels back layers. Even as he parades around as a goof, he's revered as a legend, making his slow rise to success once more fun to watch even though not all the stories about him are completely true.
All of this would be wasted if there was not a strong antagonist to challenge Jack, and Geoffrey Rush's Captain Barbossa is perfect as the only man that really can match Sparrow in every way. While Depp's performance is special, Rush gives him a run for his money with a bombastic turn that holds hints of humanity behind the villainy.
While Depp is the film's number one asset, the script is an easy number two. Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio's screenplay sparkles particularly early on as it briskly introduces characters to the audience. Some of the very first words out of Sparrow's mouth come in exchanges with navy officers that feel almost like Shakespearian comedy with consistent hilarious wordplay.
"What's your purpose in Port Royal, Mr. Smith?" "Yeah, and no lies."
"Well, then, I confess, it is my intention to commandeer one of these ships, pick up a crew in Tortuga, raid, pillage, plunder and otherwise pilfer my weaselly black guts out."
"I said no lies." "I think he's telling the truth."
"If he were telling the truth, he wouldn't have told us."
"Unless, of course, he knew you wouldn't believe the truth even if he told it to you."
The script does not keep up that steady pace as time passes with the primary comedic characters, pirates Pintel and Ragetti, being extremely hit or miss, unfortunately replacing the navy duo of Murtogg and Millroy who were perfect with every line. However, the script also manages to make it easier to care about all the characters more as time passes even in rushed fashion.
The writers deal with a variety of morality issues with well meaning but unkind "good guys" and likable but often disloyal "bad guys". Unfortunately, those moral issues are answered in rushed fashion with a conclusion where all the slimy officers suddenly accepting piracy just because Elizabeth tells them to. This is primarily due to the film's most pressing issue: its pacing.
Action films rarely slow down because they know what fans of the genre are looking for. They want excitement not character moments. Pirates doesn't even give fans a moment to breathe, pushing forward and trusting people to follow visual clues about changes in characters through action. The film never gets boring which is a credit to it, but it also can get exhausting to follow.
All of this would be wasted if there was not a strong antagonist to challenge Jack, and Geoffrey Rush's Captain Barbossa is perfect as the only man that really can match Sparrow in every way. While Depp's performance is special, Rush gives him a run for his money with a bombastic turn that holds hints of humanity behind the villainy.
While Depp is the film's number one asset, the script is an easy number two. Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio's screenplay sparkles particularly early on as it briskly introduces characters to the audience. Some of the very first words out of Sparrow's mouth come in exchanges with navy officers that feel almost like Shakespearian comedy with consistent hilarious wordplay.
"What's your purpose in Port Royal, Mr. Smith?" "Yeah, and no lies."
"Well, then, I confess, it is my intention to commandeer one of these ships, pick up a crew in Tortuga, raid, pillage, plunder and otherwise pilfer my weaselly black guts out."
"I said no lies." "I think he's telling the truth."
"If he were telling the truth, he wouldn't have told us."
"Unless, of course, he knew you wouldn't believe the truth even if he told it to you."
The script does not keep up that steady pace as time passes with the primary comedic characters, pirates Pintel and Ragetti, being extremely hit or miss, unfortunately replacing the navy duo of Murtogg and Millroy who were perfect with every line. However, the script also manages to make it easier to care about all the characters more as time passes even in rushed fashion.
The writers deal with a variety of morality issues with well meaning but unkind "good guys" and likable but often disloyal "bad guys". Unfortunately, those moral issues are answered in rushed fashion with a conclusion where all the slimy officers suddenly accepting piracy just because Elizabeth tells them to. This is primarily due to the film's most pressing issue: its pacing.
Action films rarely slow down because they know what fans of the genre are looking for. They want excitement not character moments. Pirates doesn't even give fans a moment to breathe, pushing forward and trusting people to follow visual clues about changes in characters through action. The film never gets boring which is a credit to it, but it also can get exhausting to follow.
Courtesy of: blogs.disney.com.
When I watched this movie again recently, I was particularly impressed by the way this film is shot. While the action occasionally leans toward the future shaky cam trend, it is constantly involved and very well choreographed. The sword fighting in particular is always staged well with Sparrow and Will's duel being a great introduction to the film's action to come.
There is always something going on in the background of the film. While Sparrow speaks with his first mate in Tortuga, bar fights are just occurring in the background as matter-of-fact. The coloring of the shots throughout are always eye catching with the consistent use of smoke to give a hazy and dark feeling to the proceedings.
"I'm dishonest, and a dishonest man you can always trust to be dishonest. Honestly, it's the honest ones you want to watch out for, because you can never predict when they're going to do something incredibly... stupid."
That dark feeling is also well balanced from the beginning. This is a PG-13 film that could have scared away much of its intended audience as a Disney film. All it would have taken was for several of the near-horror scenes to lose their goofy edge. Pirates raiding, murdering, and even implying sexual assault are offset by making the villains ridiculous and hammy.
As a last (but not least) note, an action film's lasting mark is often left by how good the score for the film is, and the Pirates score by Hans Zimmer and Klaus Badelt has one of the best you'll hear, clearly getting across the constant mood of adventure and swashbuckling. "The Medallion Calls" is a track that is so catchy that it's hard to get it out of your head even days after seeing the film.
This film is just funny enough to get constant laughs, just action packed enough to never lose interest, and just wild and aggressive enough to feel like it does its pirate theme proud. Because of that steady focus, this film became an instant success.
Where this film would succeed and its future franchise would fail is that even when the pacing feels overwhelming, there are no unnecessary scenes. This is a film that quickly sets up and delivers on its mythology, letting the characters all have their moments. Even though Depp would always be great as Sparrow, he was never so readily quotable at every moment as in this film.
Final verdict: (in lieu of a grade which seems superfluous for a "classic review")
Three Defining Success
***Thanks for reading and feel free to comment below with your thoughts on Pirates of the Caribbean, the review, or what you would like me to review next. I can tell you that I have a very long list of films that meet my own personal, very biased criteria for classics, and they will range wildly in every way from one another. The only reason I chose to review this film first is that I was in the mood for some old school swashbuckling.***
There is always something going on in the background of the film. While Sparrow speaks with his first mate in Tortuga, bar fights are just occurring in the background as matter-of-fact. The coloring of the shots throughout are always eye catching with the consistent use of smoke to give a hazy and dark feeling to the proceedings.
"I'm dishonest, and a dishonest man you can always trust to be dishonest. Honestly, it's the honest ones you want to watch out for, because you can never predict when they're going to do something incredibly... stupid."
That dark feeling is also well balanced from the beginning. This is a PG-13 film that could have scared away much of its intended audience as a Disney film. All it would have taken was for several of the near-horror scenes to lose their goofy edge. Pirates raiding, murdering, and even implying sexual assault are offset by making the villains ridiculous and hammy.
As a last (but not least) note, an action film's lasting mark is often left by how good the score for the film is, and the Pirates score by Hans Zimmer and Klaus Badelt has one of the best you'll hear, clearly getting across the constant mood of adventure and swashbuckling. "The Medallion Calls" is a track that is so catchy that it's hard to get it out of your head even days after seeing the film.
This film is just funny enough to get constant laughs, just action packed enough to never lose interest, and just wild and aggressive enough to feel like it does its pirate theme proud. Because of that steady focus, this film became an instant success.
Where this film would succeed and its future franchise would fail is that even when the pacing feels overwhelming, there are no unnecessary scenes. This is a film that quickly sets up and delivers on its mythology, letting the characters all have their moments. Even though Depp would always be great as Sparrow, he was never so readily quotable at every moment as in this film.
Final verdict: (in lieu of a grade which seems superfluous for a "classic review")
Three Defining Success
- Johnny Depp's manic, character defining turn as Jack Sparrow.
- A script that is hilarious and intelligent enough to set up and execute its plan.
- Action that is well choreographed and satisfying.
- Pacing that can be exhausting and rushes any attempts at character building.
- Even worse than the three films (eventually four *shudder*) only one of which was really bad, this film ultimately led to Disney changing the Disney Land ride of my childhood in order to shoehorn in characters of the franchise. They still didn't actually give the ride any kind of story.
***Thanks for reading and feel free to comment below with your thoughts on Pirates of the Caribbean, the review, or what you would like me to review next. I can tell you that I have a very long list of films that meet my own personal, very biased criteria for classics, and they will range wildly in every way from one another. The only reason I chose to review this film first is that I was in the mood for some old school swashbuckling.***