My Journey Through IMDB's Top #250

Rating: 7/10 (2 June 2018)

Title - Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Date Released (UK) - 19 July 2003
Average Rating at Time of Review - 8.0
Position in IMDB's Top 250 at Time of Review - #248
Directed By - Gore Verbinski
Starring - Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush & Orlando Bloom
Plot - Blacksmith Will Turner teams up with eccentric pirate "Captain" Jack Sparrow to save his love, the governor's daughter, from Jack's former pirate allies, who are now undead.
I saw this film many years ago; I imagine it wasn't long after its release. I didn't remember much about it, but I must have enjoyed it as I have watched every other Pirates of the Caribbean movie upon release.
Over the years I have (half-heartedly) attempted to watch this film for a second time, but have never felt up to it. Until tonight.
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl is not a perfect film, it can barely be classed as a great film. In fact, I was surprised to find it holding a spot on the Top 250. Upon watching it, I can understand why - it is an incredibly fun film that had me entertained throughout its runtime, despite its shortcomings and made me want to come back for more.
More importantly, it reignited childhood fantasies of sailing and plundering the seven seas.
PROS:
- The Music: This has to be mentioned. The music in this film is such a huge part of what makes it so enjoyable. It perfectly balances a sense of urgency while still being fun to listen to, enhancing any scene it accompanies.
- The Action: I was impressed with how well the action was handled in the film. Watching the trailer will have you believe it is made up of action scenes thrown together in the editing room, littered with quick cuts and close ups. Thankfully, this was not the case. The main point of the action is always in focus and easy to follow and makes the experience much more enjoyable.
- The Story: One can imagine when watching that this was never planned as only one movie. What the writers have done with this film is created a world. A world that feels loved in and offers more to explore. There is plenty of foreshadowing of things to come in this and future films of the series, whilst still managing to make an entertaining, standalone pirate adventure.
CONS:
- The Acting: I know that the film doesn't take itself too seriously and it embraces that, which I can appreciate. However, barring Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow and Geoffrey Rush as Barbossa, I found a lot of the acting and character interactions to be stiff and hollow with no real gravitas to the words being spoken.
- Character Development: Character Development is important to me, especially if I'm to be invested in these characters and their fates. This is why I was let down when none of the characters develop in any significant way over the course of the film and when they do, it feels shoe-horned in for plot purposes.
I find though, that both of those cons can be forgiven; as I mentioned, the film doesn't take itself seriously and doesn't ask to be. What it does do is offer a wholly entertaining, thrilling ride through a world and society long-lost to us. A world that hadn't had the greatest luck in the film industry.
I thoroughly enjoyed my time with these characters and this world and look forward to visiting again with Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Mans Chest.