Pirates Should Be Pirates!

Rating: 8/10 (21 October 2007)

I am unable to understand the need to overcomplicate plots in Hollywood these days. It seems to be the trend of the contemporary film but I think it's a disease and an urgent cure is needed! It's either too many twists, often boring the viewer instead of working to grab his interest, or too many generic patterns! The first of this trilogy held my attention well and offered a welcome surprise. I had grown nostalgic for the classic adventure genre and reminisced my days as a youth when films like Indiana Jones added excitement to the realms of the big screen. Curse Of The Black Pearl was in my view a pleasant deviation from the wannabe quick thrill action flick of the current day.
Captain Sparrow offered a hero female audiences could swoon over for good reason. Let's face it we all fantasized defiant pirates during some stage of our childhood! They certainly held my fascination when I was a little girl.
Unlike the initial movie though, Dead Man's Chest had disappointed me because it played too much on certain aspects of the rebel captain's character that were off-putting. He appeared far too effeminate, cowardly and comical. I believe his humorous punch lines were enough for the comedy element and his character didn't need to be degraded to a farce through baby jargon and girly flee from the scene to survive tactics! The drunkenness and eccentricity of Sparrow in part one of the trilogy were enough to maintain the mystery that infatuates audiences with lead roles.
Thankfully World's End is closer to Curse Of The Black Pearl in the sense that it doesn't present as cowardly a Sparrow as Dead Man's Chest but although I will contradict my comment on the generic style of action movies nowadays, some things should remain as they were in older eras for a reason. We all seek escapism through a hero who toys with death and isn't afraid to embrace danger. Pirates should be pirates: rough cut, rope-swinging, free spirits.
Which brings me to the excellent portrayal given by Geoffrey Rush and Keith Richards. Rush as Barbossa is every bit the outlaw of the high seas, embodying thrills and territory that shouldn't be trespassed without thought. Richards creates mystery and an aura of fear. His presence spells danger, exactly the way an exciting pirate's should.
World's End runs too long. After the awe of part 1 was spoiled for me with the way Depp's character was written, I haven't been able to feel the same way. What the actor did with the role was magic. The sexy grungy appearance of Sparrow and hints at an eccentric rum-drinking sea master with many legends backing his reputation were all part of the enchantment for viewers. But the director and script writers should have drawn the line when it came to the motives of the Black Pearl's captain. "Save my own butt" and that's all that matters isn't really turn on material. Neither is the new age effeminacy. We want our leading men strong and larger than life! That will never change! We love pirates because they defy, challenge, test, roam free, put up with hardships and risk death. World's End is better than Dead Man's Chest but movie makers should pay attention to the main principles that made the 80s adventure genre work: simplicity. Keeping the plot simple does not always mean resorting to pedestrian role portrayals. It just means allowing the opportunity for audiences to escape to a new world and dream for a while that they are swinging from mast to mast with the heroes without having to ponder for too long how something happened and why it did.
Films like Indiana Jones, Romancing The Stone/Jewel Of The Nile and for a more recent example The Mummy, worked because they had simple elements: fun, adventure, handsome/masculine heroes, gorgeous/thrill-seeking heroines, comical/greedy/cowardly little antagonists and scary villains for contrast. If you're gonna return to the adventure genre you must do it right. Times have changed but human instinct and what appeals to us has remained the same. We're still primitive inside. At least the film ended in a true pirate way: "Drink up me mateys!"