Adventure on the high seas

Rating: Null/10 (1 March 2004)

Peg-legs, swordplay, plank walking, ships, cannons and ancient curses. Now that's what a summer movie should be. We start off in the 1700s, give or take a hundred, in an island off - where else - the Caribbean. After 30 minutes of setup and character introduction, the island is attacked by the Black Pearl which takes Elizabeth Swann -the Governor's daughter- prisoner. But this be no random pirate attack. The pirates are victims of an Aztec curse that has left them in a state of undead and need Elizabeth's medallion to break it. The roguish Cap'n Jack Sparrow, former captain of the Black Pearl, sets off after them with Will Turner, his new sidekick. That's basically the movie. Now if you're coming into this expecting an intelligent drama about the dangers of sea life, well, forget it. Pirates is a movie whose sole purpose is to entertain, without insulting your intelligence, and entertain it does. It is one of those rare films that's good and fun, and much credit goes to Johnny Depp. One can only guess as to what compelled him to do away with the conventional Errol Flynn pirate and instead channel Keith Richards with a little PePe Le Pew. Depp is an actor who consistently rises above the script, regardless of the film's quality. The stumbling, slurred deliveries, facial expressions and goatee - things that would be out of place in another movie - only add to the performance because they fit in the context of the film. His performance is funny, eccentric, charismatic, and fully worthy of an Oscar nomination. It's time he got some recognition. Without him this would have been an average movie with a good performance from Geoffery Rush. As the mutinous first mate Barbosa, Rush also provides some humorous moments and has some good exchanges with Depp. Orlando Bloom is Will Turner, a blacksmith, who happens to be the reason for the curse. He holds his own as the movie pirate - looks, thinned mustache, ponytail - and Keira Knightley is even better as the damsel in distress. The production values - set design, costumes, cinematography -are first rate as are the special effects. The film also benefits from a rousing score courtesy of Klaus Badelt and Hans Zimmer. The movie could have spent more time in the editing room as it sometimes looses momentum. At two hours twenty minutes, it's about half hour too long. The direction is O.K. The battle scenes and sword fights could have been better choreographed. They come off flat and fail to provide any thrills. The only enjoyable one is the last one when Sparrow and Barbosa are moving in and out of the lunar beams. But these are just minor holes in an otherwise solid film. Pirates of the Caribbean is a fun swashbuckler with a good cast and should appeal to all, even if the wind occasionally goes out of its sails