Brace the main sail, shiver your timbers and prepare to set sail.

Rating: Null/10 (27 November 2003)

In a time where movies of this type had practically disappeared or bombed badly at the box office (Cut Throat Island springs to mind), it is nice to see Hollywood once again embracing this classic genre.
Despite suffering from a mild case of over hype, this is actually a very good movie, mixing in modern day film making with the classic pirate yo ho ho's without getting all lost at sea (Da-Dum!!)
Johnny Depp plays the lovable rogue Captain Jack Sparrow who along with the dashing Will Turner played by Orlando Bloom, sail the Caribbean Seas to stop a ship of pirates led by Captain Barbossa (Rush) and his crew, who are trying to break an ancient curse... by using the blood of the Governor's daughter (Knightly)
From the outset the film is light hearted and playful in tone giving it an old fashioned boys own adventure' feel without coming across as camp. The set design, locations and costumes are fantastic and really help to set the scene and create the atmosphere.
The story is told well and although getting bottle necked at times, keeps a jaunty pace. There is plenty of swash buckling sword fights and sea bound action, plus some effective if sometimes overused computer driven effects to create the cursed pirates.
All of the main performances are strong. Bloom is fresh faced and as charming as a modern day Douglas Fairbanks (if sometimes too much of a goody goody), Knightly is beautiful and compelling, adding a touch of glamour and Rush is superbly extravagant and plays his part with a good sense of fun.

However all are very nearly played off the screen by Depp as Sparrow, a fantastic character who is swaggered, eccentrically unrefined, wiley, self-promoting and loveably roguish. This is one of Depp's more funny and notable performances making the film worth watching for him alone.
I have no doubt that we will see more of Captain Sparrow in the future and I will look forward to it as POTC was head and shoulders above the rest in a summer of disappointing blockbusters.