Depp saves the day

Rating: 7/10 (19 January 2007)

Pirates of the Caribbean is a nice 100-minute movie with an extra hour of inane plot twists thrown in - who edited this thing? Johnny Depp's performance is the one thing that makes this movie enjoyable throughout. Without Depp, Pirates is just another bad summer block-buster movie with too little plot and too much special effects trying to cover it up. I'm a bit amazed that the Oscars saw fit to nominate his performance - one of the boldest, riskiest acting jobs ever allowed in a summer release. I know all the accolades went to Sean Penn's overdone performance in Mystic River. But, I'd give the nod to Depp for single-handedly pulling this movie into the enjoyable category.
Afterword: Pirates II has come out, and the first hour is abysmal. Depp seems bored, and there's even less of a story than in Crrse of the Black Pearl. Barely worth renting.