no wonder it's doing so well at the box office

Rating: 8/10 (29 July 2003)

First of all, I really wasn't expecting to be impressed with this movie, even though I am a Johnny Depp fan. Most movies this summer have have been pretty bad, most notably, Bad Boys II. Jack Sparrow was always two steps ahead of everyone, and I really liked the way that the story tellers didn't reveal was his wily plans were until they came into fruition. The casting was dynamite, as was the cinematography, writing, humor, and set decoration. If I were to raise some of the films weaknesses, I'd say that 1) It was probably too long and had at least one too many endings, 2) some of the violence was a little too graphic,in particular, the slicing of throats and when the British navy troops were run through the sternum with swords. I might also have editted out the crying child when the pirates plundered. It was a little too realistic. The denoument was a little drawn out, but i like the way that even though the damsel's finance was written as unlikable, they didn't cliche him and make him into the scorned rejected villain. But all in all, I definitely recommend this movie. Maybe the sequel will be a little more family-friendly, but still, I endorse this film as sequel-worthy.