Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (Gore Verbinski, 2003) Review

Time to head into another franchise that has suddenly rekindled my love for it after re watching the third film. Pirates are inherently awesome and no other franchise seems to capture this idea like Pirates of the Carribean does. It brought pirates back into public attention and brought use what is arguable the last original iconic film character in the form of Jack Sparrow. So let's get deep into another film franchise that everyone seems to have seen.

In a world filled with swash-buckling and plundering, Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) finds himself caught up in an adventure after the governor's daughter, Elizabeth (Keira Knightley), is kidnapped by the crew of nefarious pirate captain, Hector Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush). Jack teams up with Will Turner (Orlando Bloom) in order to rescue her and learn of Barbossa's secret.

I already mentioned that Jack Sparrow is the last original iconic film character and the main reason is thanks to Johnny Depp's excellent, Oscar-nominated performance. Yes, he does over shadow the rest a bit but they can still hold there own with Geoffrey Rush being the best of the supporting cast. The tone of the film is also a highlight as it's so refreshing to see films that, while can have serious moments, doesn't take itself too seriously. If this franchise had started this year, it would have definitely been gritty and dark throughout.

I know that this seems to be the popular one of the series (as evident for being only one to get a 'fresh' rating on Rotten Tomatoes) but I think that it's a little bit dull in comparison to the other films. Now hear me out. I love this film and think it's great but it doesn't ahve as much substance as the others do. I would probably give this film a higher score if it was on it's own but, as it's not, I just feel that it's weaker than some of the others (some...not all...).

The Curse of the Black Pearl is a great way to start off a new franchise with new and original characters that runs on a tone that doesn't take itself too seriously. This film is truly a breath of fresh air but the amount of content seen in the next films seems to have spoiled me as I feel this isn't as strong as the others. All I can say is that Depp deserves the Oscar nomination and it's great to see something as awesome as pirates get public attention.

Verdict:
7.5/10
A fun films with excellent acting, action and a great premise. It's just a shame that the others tower over it in terms of content and scope.