One of the years best, pure fun start to finish, Depp is on Fire!!

Rating: 9/10 (18 July 2003)

Harking back to the days when Pirate films and fantasy films were being released with decidedly more regularity this film really brings the young imp inside us all out, the sort of young imp that takes delight in watching classic fantasy swashbucklers from the 80's such as the Princess Bride. I am a big fantasy film fan, I love to plonk on oldies like Krull, Labyrinth and this is the sort of film that really brings that desire back again, not quite to the same level that Lord of the Rings did but still this is a fantastic adventure movie.
What you have here is your basic pirate/fantasy adventure storyline, there is treasure involved, ghosts and of course damsels to be rescued not a Princess but a governors daughter in this case. Considering that the last big studio pirate film was the pap Cutthroat Island and that this film is based off of a theme park ride the signs did look ominous that this would be pants, but the cast involved plus good scriptwriters and a very excitable trailer put pay to that and as such this has struck gold at the box office and is a critical and public success.
The film has great set design, it looks great and there is real scale to it. The action is exciting, the score is chest thumpingly good and the film creates a sense of magic, this is movie making magic, it's a feel good summer movie and has likeable characters and a witty script, hence this seems to have got the best audience reaction I've heard in ages. This movie is about having a great time, it's not particularly meaningful but it is great all round family fun that doesn't suffer from dull patches or failed expectations.
The cast are all good. Orlando Bloom is given a lead role for the first time and he handles himself well, Keira Knightly is feisty and sexy as the damsel in distress, who of course is whooping ass with the best of them by the end. Then there are Brit actors such as Jonathan Pryce, Jack Davenport and Kevin Mcnally who are all good. Geoffory Rush takes delight in chewing the scenery as the bad guy, but in typically show stopping form is Johnny Depp as Cap'n Jack Sparrow who plays him out like Keith Richards from the Rolling Stones (I s*** you not). Depp is superb, he makes the movie, the movie on its own right is pure fun and a good time but Depp really does add another level to it with his charm and his humour. He has boundless energy throughout the film and his cockney accent is faultless, Depp proves once again what a versatile actor he really. Until watching this filming I had not enjoyed a film so much this year aside from Nemo and X2. It was a rollicking good time with great effects, and also very funny. This is good news for the fantasy film genre, with it coming alive recently with hits like Lord of the Rings and Harry Porter perhaps we'll see some more, while perhaps not with the regularity of certain periods like the 50's or 80's. One of the years best most definitely.****