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A few negative things that I found with this movie:
- I assume within the eight year gap period from her dream to now she somehow got her knowledge of this code from other people. I doubt that she suddenly knew all about the pirate code. It would have helped the movie if some writing was done over it. Part of me feels like the some or a few British naval men would know a little about piracy, but not a whole lot.
- One of the major problems is how Elizabeth and Will never had the curse, yet had one medallion for at least eight years. Barbossa says that if anyone takes it, then the person is cursed for life. Jack took one piece and was cursed immediately. I would say that would only be noticeable when the full moon is out or if someone tries to kill you, but again Barbossa said he saw a gradual decrease in his senses so I still consider it a big mistake/plot hole.
- They also do a poor job with the explanation of how a Turner’s blood will cure their curse. Thankfully they do explain what the curse is and how it can occur. If one takes a piece of the Aztec gold, then one is cursed forever; no longer can that person feel the touch of another, taste food and drink, and die.
Positives:
- I will say that this movie is widely accepted as the best Pirates movie. It gave Johnny Depp one of his most iconic roles in his Hollywood movie history, and a very popular song called “He’s A Pirate” written by Klaus Badelt that recurs in all of the sequels! And I usually expect more originality or new stuff, but this song is the theme to this franchise. If there are anymore movies after Dead Men Tell No Tales (also include it), then I expect the song to be played once in the entire movie because it is not a pirates movie without that song!!
- The visuals are great for 2003. I was actually surprised when I re-watched it, and I noticed that most of them come from the underwater scenes. The sets on the beaches were also breathtaking! Disney actually got me excited for Aquaman (2018). Weird connection but I made it happen, and I will let it happen.
Synopsis:
The movie opens with Elizabeth Swann’s (Kiera Knightly) dream about how she met her future husband, William “Will” Turner (Orlando Bloom). We see a younger Norrington (Jack Davenport), Gibbs (Kevin McNally), and Governor Swann (Jonathan Pryce) as well. She gazes out into the cloudy open ocean and sees Will afloat on ship debris. The ship’s damage was caused by Captain Hector Barbossa (Geoffery Rush) and his crew aboard the Black Pearl. They were searching for the last Aztec gold medallion that was the source of their immortality or curse.
Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) is shortly seen after Will gives Norrington’s sword to the governor. His boat is sinking and little is said where he actually came from. He meets two British guards, Mullroy (Angus Barnett) and Murtogg (Giles New), who are the comedic relief in the movies in my opinion. Then Norrington asked Elizabeth to marry him, but she is unable to accept/deny because her corset is too tight which restricted her
breathing. When she hits the water, the gold medallion sends out a shock wave; this attracts Barbossa and his crew to the port. We also hear that the Pearl has been hunting down ships for the past ten years. Pintel (Lee Arenberg) and Ragetti (Mackenzie Crook) attack Elizabeth, and they bring her to Barbossa. She says she is the daughter of Bill “Bootstrap” Turner; Turner’s blood is the source of the cure for mortality. She also explains that she knows the Pirate’s Code, and Barbossa says they’re more like guidelines rather than rules.
Jack and Will take the Interceptor to Tortuga and meet a rough-looking Gibbs to get a new crew for the ship and journey to the cove. The crew ends up in captivity after the first ship battle of the franchise. Jack and Elizabeth are stranded on the same island that Jack was on before. He admits that he was only on the island for three days and barred off the rum-runners way. Later, Jack, Elizabeth, and Will defeat Barbossa with the help of the Commodore Norrington and his crew. Barbossa is shot by Jack’s lone ten-year old pistol shot, and Will slits his hand and returns the pieces to the chest. Jack is taken back to Port Royal to be hung, but Will saves him and everyone is free for the time being.
End Credits:
We see Jack the monkey return to the cave with the Aztec gold. He ends up taking one of the medallions which explains why he was unable to die with the gun shots in Dead Man’s Chest. It is a scene that could be used with assumptions if you never knew about it. I did not know that these movies had end credit scenes for the longest time. I think it was a year or two after On Stranger Tides.
Ratings:
8.0/10, A, 5/5 Geek Motivation (GM (future references))
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