Welcome to the Caribbean!

Rating: 8/10 (1 January 2005)

What great fun this movie is! It is in this spirit of fun that I base my high esteem for this excellent, entertaining movie and consider it one of my favorites that I will watch over and over. It is funny, exciting, ahem, er.... sexy, and adventurous escapist fun! It is not meant to be authentic or seriously considered (against the likes of Master and Commander). Rather, it is grand art of a different sort. The key element in this film that made it superior to other pirate fantasy films is the casting. I thought both Johnny Depp and Geoffery Rush were magnificent! It is their endlessly entertaining, outstanding performances that made Pirates of the Caribbean into an instant classic that is very repeatedly viewable. Keira Knightly, Orlando Bloom, Jonathan Pryce and all the rest of the cast were all great also. When I was 8 my father took me to Disneyland for the first time. Although I was apprehensive at first (seeing the talking skull and dropping down through darkness into the caverns in a boat), I ended up loving the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and wanted to ride it again and again! This movie perfectly evoked that same feeling and reaction... creepy apprehension turning into fun adventure and humor... jolly family fun. The various references to the Disneyland ride in the movie just thrilled me. I wholeheartedly recommend it!