Pirates of the Caribbean

Walt Disney strike gold with a film that combines pirates, ghosts and Keira Knightley! Here's our review.

Pirate films haven't really seen the kind of mass exposure that several other themes have over the last 20 or so years. In fact, I daresay even the most hardened moviegoer would have difficulty naming a memorable attempt at capturing the dirtier side of the period drama. So it is with a great deal of cynicism that I heard of Pirates of the Caribbean going into production. Setting aside the fact it is loosely based on a Disneyland ride, my cynicism stemmed from the fact that the production had no peers or contemporaries to match or surpass and no real frame of reference. Read on to find out why my misgivings were so unbelievably unfounded.

Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) is a humble blacksmith often finding himself in service of the British Navy. However, his ties go deeper as the opening scenes of the film see him being rescued from a shipwreck several years before by a British ship, largely thanks to the eagle eye of Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightely), daughter of the Governor of Port Royal. As Turner lay unconscious on deck, Elizabeth notices a gold medallion, which she rather sneakily pinches for herself. Skip a decade or so later and the lovely Lady Elizabeth is engaged to the rigid Commodore Norrington (Jack Davenport), whilst Turner struggles to keep his affections to himself.

As night falls, the legendary Pirate ship, the Black Pearl, pulls into port, decimating the land and pillaging the streets and houses. Unfortunately for Lady Elizabeth, they are only looking for one thing, the medallion she kept in her possession for so long. With the dastardly Captain Barbarossa now in possession of the medallion, the final piece in lifting the curse that befell them is now in their grasp.

In the aftermath, Turner seeks the help of Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp), aiding him in stealing the pride and joy of the British Naval fleet to find the young Damsel and the Black Pearl, a ship that Sparrow is all too familiar with...

Despite having very little to live up to, Pirates of the Caribbean took no chances with the assembled cast and crew: ranging from Hollywood's established to the bright new stars of the silver screen, director Gore Verbinski is to be admired for taking on a project that initially had very little going for it other than a big budget and the money of Disney. Fortunately, the accumulation of talent and budget sees Pirates of the Caribbean become a sure-fire hit for the summer.

Despite the cast and crew being of the highest calibre, it is undoubtedly Johnny Depp who steals the show for his portrayal of the witticism-slurring Captain Jack Sparrow. Verging on androgyny with his eyeliner and less than rigid posture, Depp nevertheless manages to convince with what must be one of the finest mainstream performances of the year. Whilst this certainly isn't a film with a typical focus on the lead character, it nevertheless makes many fabulous exceptions for Depp to steal the show utterly and entirely, for one minute his dizzy character talks himself into trouble, the very next he's swashbuckling with the best of them.

Whilst it is hard to restrain myself from waxing lyrical with regards to Depp's amazingly eccentric performance, it is nonetheless necessary in order to convey just how brilliant the supporting cast is. Geoffrey Rush's Captain Barbarossa is delightfully creepy and serves well as the villain of the piece. To add to my enthused appraisal of the cast effort, Orlando Bloom plays an excellent straight-arrowed hero, being strung down the less than dignified path by Sparrow and his cohorts.

Fortunately, my praise doesn't stop short at the cast, as the crew behind the camera are so well tuned to the needs of this film it almost renders the entire production a miracle. As well as the skilful and balanced direction of Gore Verbinski comes the production values of Jerry Bruckheimer, who brings with him all the visual feats of some of Hollywood's finest and previous credits (the rock, con air). Battles on the high seas are epic in proportion and don't bog down the pace of the story for one second, as the explosions almost career through the screen and the cutlasses clash with the most satisfying of sounds. Add to this a rousing and fantastic orchestral score from Klaus Bedelt and you're left with what is undoubtedly the most accomplished all-round production of the year.

With all this in taken into account, it leaves you wondering what could possibly detract from what sounds like "the film that was meant to be". Whilst the story is maintained well throughout the running time, it nevertheless manages to overstay its welcome, as one plot device too many sees the story being fleshed out needlessly to the point where you wonder when the climax is due. However, considering this is the first real attempt at a Pirate flick for nearly 50 years, it is a forgivable niggle that never really hampers the enjoyment of the production.

What is truly sad is that it's taken 50 years for this genre to resurface. What used to be a much-loved genre of film has instead remained dormant for far too long, most notably during Hollywood's golden era. Conversely, it's also quite possible that the scope and scale of this production could only be made possible thanks to the budgets moviemakers enjoy today. Whilst it's been a long time coming, Pirates of the Caribbean sees the genre return with a bang. Not only that, but it is quite possibly the finest mainstream movie of the year and most definitely the must-see film of the summer.

Jamie Thomson
Film Critic, Kikizo Movies