An amazing film for everyone except annoying nitpickers

Rating: 10/10 (10 July 2003)

Pirates of the Caribbean (PotC) is an exceptional film unique in our film scene today. Not only have pirate films not been common since the days of Errol Flynn, but as others have put it, they portray leads that have a mixed standing in America; half hero, half villain.
Johnny Depp is exceptional in PotC as Captain Jack Sparrow, playing a rather cunning, if down on luck pirate in the eyes of both the British guard and amongst his fellow pirates. He provides much comic relief with his laid back swagger and in-conversation wise cracks. He does his good pirate/bad pirate thing well, and when Orlando Bloom is asked whose side he's on, Bloom tells it like it is; "Ours... for now."
Orlando Bloom and his love interest Keira Knightley, daughter of the Governor, fit their roles well as a rather scrawny blacksmith and well versed swordsman and very slightly tomboyish young lady with agendas different from her father's, respectively. Bloom and Depp have pretty decent and sometimes funny chemistry when interacting, and the more romantic scenes between Knightley and Bloom are a cut above the rest.
Where PotC also shines is in the visuals. The pirate/skeleton changing due to the exposure to certain kinds of light is flawless, and will most definitely get at least an Oscar nomination, if not the statuette. The fight scenes, consisting mostly of sword duels and intra-ship cannon warfare, are well done and look very realistic, even in scenes between the evil skeleton pirates and the protagonists. The imagery back on Bloom's home island of the British redcoats, old cobblestone streets and the moorings on the coast are also very well done.
Some homages are paid to the ride in Disneyworld, but this isn't just some kiddie-park ride. Everyone can enjoy this movie, except for some nitpickers; with most period pieces and movies in general, they can find inaccuracies. But if you find some, don't despair; the movie is definitely worth seeing.