Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl

Cast: Johnny Depp, Keira Knightly, Orlando Bloom and Geoffrey Rush.

Director: Gore Virbinski

Release Date: 2003

Running Time: 2hrs 23 minutes
Genre: Adventure

Rating: PG-13

Format: DVD

Synopsis:

Blacksmith Will Turner teams up with the ever so flamboyant Captain Jack Sparrow to save Elizabeth Swan, the governor's daughter, from Sparrow's previous pirate allies who are now the ruthless undead.

Based on the famous ride at Disneyland with the same name, Gore Virbinski brings it to life in an action packed movie! I'm not entirely sure what possessed Disney to turn one of their rides into a movie but it certainly worked and captivated audiences around the world! Elizabeth Swan possesses something that does not belong to her, a medallion that should of stayed in the hands of Will Turner (Bloom), when the curse is released the infamous undead pirates make their return for Elizabeth Swan to get the medallion back so they can live forever! Of course nothing is simple when it comes to pirates. Johnny Depp plays famous drunken pirate Jack Sparrow. An extremely eccentric character who wants nothing more then a bottle of rum in his hands. Well let's face it, what else would you do if you were a pirate? Johnny Depp delivers one of his most famous and entertaining performances to date. Everything about his performance is captivating, Depp is an incredible character actor. Johnny, without a doubt steals the show as Captain Jack Sparrow.

At the time of it's release I wasn't that familiar with actress Keira Knightly, her performance however was pleasantly surprising. Elizabeth Swan is the Governors daughter, she's apprehensively being forced into marriage with Captain Norrington. An irritating gentlemen that to be quite honest is stuck up his own backside. Swan of course has eyes for Will Turner. Jack Davenport delivers a pretty good performance, his character is rather cocky and definitely has a disliking for pirates especially those called Jack. Orlando Bloom is an actor who seems to be extremely hit and miss with his films, "Pirates of the Caribbean" being some of his most famous to date. Is Will Turner a blacksmith or a pirate? Essentially a bit of both, it's lovely to see how his character progresses in the next two films. His performance is good, however I'm not convinced there is a great deal of chemistry between Knightly and himself on screen.

So how exactly does one turn one of Disney's most famous rides into a movie? You get four very, very good screenwriters to write a screenplay for you! The storyline is interesting, fun and very funny. Screenwriters Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio have essentially turned the characters at the ride into fantastic and eccentric characters on the big screen! Disney movies always seem to have this wonderful feel good factor to them, never too emotional, never too scary, never too sinister. The perfect balance of entertainment. The thought of turning a ride into a fun action packed movie is brilliant in my eyes! Made for entertainment and fun, not to be taken seriously! At a mere 2hrs 17 minutes, is it deemed to long a movie for Disney fans? Personally? No. It works.

If you have ever been on the "Pirates of the Caribbean" ride at Disneyland you will soon know how similiar the production design is in comparison to the design of the ride. Production designer Brian Morris has gone to great lengths to make the set design as authentic to the ride as possible. The set design is quite possibly one of my most favourite things, the detail that has gone into the ships, the gorgeous exterior and interior, maps hanging on the walls, compasses, it's imaginative and brilliant! So much creativity went into making them look like they were lived in by Pirates. Stunning costume design by Penny Rose. Each and every character was exactly how I'd picture a pirate to look. I'm not entirely sure what the fascination is with pirates that we all seem to have...is it the unknown? I'm hooked. I can't place my finger on it.

Gore Virbinski of course directed the film beautifully with the help of fantastic cinematographer Dariusz Wolski who also did the stunning photography on the other three movies in the series. Stunning moments of cinematography that capture the Caribbean in the light that we'd all love to see. Paradise. Gorgeous scenes captured inside caves that aren't too dark, too light, just right in capturing the actors at their best in beautifully choreographed fight scenes. Stunning special effects, crossover with capturing the pirates as living people and as the undead skeletons. Fantastic close ups of the actors individually in scenes. This is a very nice looking movie. Perfectly edited each scene flows beautifully into the next and of course the soundtrack that holds the whole film together, a wonderful score by Klaus Badelt, a theme so famous you'll find yourself humming it for days after viewing.  A highly entertaining and fun movie!

DVD Bonus Features:

Audio Commentary: 

Audio Commentary with Director Gore Virbinski

5/5 stars