Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)

 

Genre: Fantasy/ Adventure 

Time: 2h 23mins

Director: Gore Verbinski

Quick Summary: Blacksmith Will Turner teams up with eccentric pirate "Captain" Jack Sparrow to save his love, the governor's daughter, from Jack's former pirate allies, who are now undead.

Me when the Swordfights were perfectly timed with the music (>‘o’)>

Man, what a fun and brilliant film. This is everything you could ask for with an adventure film and you know what makes it better than most? Pirates. 

If you want to watch something that is just pure entertainment then please go watch this as it's worth every single second. This is over the top and loveable, really. If you hate this. What is wrong with you? 

Yes, this is over the top and extra, but the story for this is so damn good. It's full of plenty of good twists and keeps a solid storyline with thrilling action sequences, including epic sword fights, ship battles, and daring escapes, which keeps this incredibly engaging. I don't think I took my eyes off the screen at any point. The action is incredible and is actually very cool a lot of the time. I was so glad it didn't feel cheesy or look bad considering when this film came out. 

When I say every single character in this is memorable, I mean it. I loved all of them, even the "bad guys". Keira Knightley who plays Elizabeth Swan, a woman controlled by social standards who just wants to be free and get her fill of adventure, is brilliant and really brings out the fierce independence. Orlando Bloom, playing Will Turner, a man who is trying to win the heart of Elizabeth but also trying to find a sense of duty, is charming and sweet. I don't know how you can't just fall in love with him. Geoffrey Rush plays Barbossa, the cunning and ruthless captain of the cursed pirate ship, the Black Pearl. Honestly, he is my second favourite of this film. He was a brilliant villain, and what I loved is that he wasn't just your straightforward bad guy. There is a lot more complexity to him and watching it unfold is so fun. 

Now for my actual favourite. Captain Jack Sparrow, portrayed by the brilliant Johnny Depp. I'm sure, even if you haven't seen these films, you know who this is. That's how iconic this character is. He is full of eccentric personality, unconventional behaviour, and quirky mannerisms which make him so fun to watch. Something else is that this character is a skilled strategist and manipulator who is always several steps ahead of his enemies, even when appearing like a bumbling drunkard. This is all because of Johnny Depp who is hands down a brilliant actor. 

The look of this film is perfect. It captures the aesthetic of pirates brilliantly, without resorting to basic stereotypes. I don't think I saw a single eye patch throughout this. The settings are stunning to watch, even if half of it was on the sea, it's all so pretty and immersive. Even during some of the more mythical elements of this film, I didn't care that they were CGI because they didn't look awful! Sure they were a little out of place or dated, but I have seen worse and for how brilliant this film is I can forgive it. 

Something else aside from Johnny Depp that is also iconic is the score and the famous theme that as soon as it plays you know it. The theme is just pure brilliant and plays exactly the right times during action-packed moments like all-out fights or daring escapes. A personal love from me is that the music was timed perfectly with the choreography of the sword fights a lot of the time and that pleased me so much. 

I am also glad that the romance wasn't forced down your throat either. It was sweet and smooth, these two characters didn't feel forced together and grew to like each other instead of sudden lust. It helps with the tension at times, it is slightly forbidden, but that makes the few moments of declarations so sweet to watch. 

My one and only gripe about this is how quick the ending was they just didn't know how to end it so they wrapped it up as quick as they possibly could. Sure it is set up for the next film and this is a super long film, but what would have been 15 more minutes so keep the pacing steady. 

Aside from that, a wonderful film full of fun pirate adventures! If you hate this, you suck.

9/10

"Will Turner: This is either madness... or brilliance.

Jack Sparrow: It's remarkable how often those two traits coincide."

"Jack Sparrow: One question about your business, boy, or there's no use going: This girl... how far are you willing to go to save her?

Will Turner: I'd die for her.

Jack Sparrow: Oh good. No worries then."

"Barbossa: Why thank ye, Jack.

Jack Sparrow: You're welcome.

Barbossa: Oh, not you. We named the monkey Jack."