Entertaining yet slightly shallow and formulatic summer blockbuster that only surprises in the acting department

Rating: 8/10 (14 August 2003)

Pirates of the Caribbean is your traditional summer blockbuster: it has good special effects, a lot of action, a few pretty faces and not too much of a story. But that is not all. It was produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, which usually means that it is very high on the entertaining side and nothing more. Pirates of the Carribean fits that profile almost exactly. It is entertaining (although slightly longish when the cave is visited for the second time), that's for sure, but the makers of this film have succeeded in doing something that I had not yet seen in a summer flick of this magnitude (or maybe I have simply forgotten). They have chosen a cast, that was so superb on the one side, that it almost all of the other actors became mere puppets. Yes folks, I am talking about Johnny Depp. He is just amazing as Jack Sparrow. It is not that he is amazingly funny or something, but he just manages to surprise you over and over again. Then there is the accent and of course not to forget that strange way of movement he has throughout the film. Jack Sparrow might be quirky but he is not in your face' quirky and that is something I also liked about that character. Johnny Depp ruled as Jack Sparrow and outshone all but one of his co-stars who became mere puppets in the Jack Sparrow Show'. The exception was (of course) Geoffrey Rush, who was very solid and did a good Job as Captain Barbossa. The rest of the cast, well I've said it and I'm not sorry for telling the truth: you acted decent, but in the presence of Mr.Depp you faded into the background.

Concluding this review I'd have to say that the acting was the only surprising thing in this film. There are some typical one-liners which either fall flat or which I just do not consider funny (SPOILERS AHEAD), like when the pirate in the cave says: `I'm gonna teach you the meaning of pain!' (SPOILERS END). This sort of thing simply does not do it for me. Also I thought that I, as a viewer, was not involved' deeply enough in the love between Elizabeth and William. Jack Sparrow was just too overwhelming and I feel that the film could have actually done without about everything but Jack Sparrow, without losing it's appeal. This is well made, light-hearted summer entertainment though and not some film you are supposed to think about. Worth watching once, maybe even twice (for seeing Jack Sparrow again most likely), but then it should be left alone.

8 out of 10