Customer Reviews

Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2-Disc Collector's Edition)

5 star:		(782)
4 star:		(155)
3 star:		(62)
2 star:		(43)
1 star:		(48)

 

 

This doesn't remind me of any pirate films. This was a cool subject to cover. I think it's right up there with Lord of the Rings and Spider-man as far as adventure and that feeling when you take a deep breath and enjoy the scenary.

As pirate movies go,I suppose "Pirates of the Caribbean" is a quality movie. I'm certainly no expert on that. However, I am an expert on "Pirates of the Caribbean", the ride at Disney Land. Usually, I will ride it 6-7 times when I'm visiting the park. So, you can understand how I was more than a little excited that my favorite ride was becoming a movie.

Sadly, what I got was little more than a meager bone thrown my way. Director Gore Vidal has taken a stunning experience, and added useless new characters and plot, showing situations that were never in the original ride. What's more, the classic "Pirates of the Caribbean" song is hardly heard at all here. It's heard throughout the ENTIRE ride, Gore.

If you're in the mood for a pirate movie, I guess this is the place to come (although don't overlook the underrated "Pirate Movie" from the early 80s). If you're looking for the ride captured on film, better just save your money and buy a ticket to Disney Land. (or World)

What was once considered to be one of the lamest attempts by money-hungry Disney surprisingly turned out to be quite the crowd-pleaser. That's thanks in part to Johnny Depp's brilliant, Oscar-nominated performance as Pirate Jack Sparrow. The supporting cast, which features Orlando Bloom, Geoffrey Rush, and the always wonderful Keira Knightley doesn't hurt either. Oh, and get this shocker, it actually has a good story! Add a great director (Gore Verbinski of The Ring fame) in the mix and you have a winner. That's exactly what this movie is, in box-office success and audience appeal. This is a wonderful film for the entire family; full of action, adventure and humor. Highly recommended. See it!

I have to say, this is one movie I could not find a single flaw with. Excellent execution, and the film had a magical atmosphere. This was especially apparent in the beautiful soundscapes, sweeping visual effects, and good storytelling with intriguing characters. This was mainly a film of visual intrigue. Port Royal (I beleive it's called) is just beautiful... both magical yet authentic in design, and I can see that care was taken in achieving authenticity of the time period in all aspects of the film. Aethetics held up superbly

Regardless of what anybody says, Johnny Depp IS Capt Jack Sparrow...it's in his blood. Very comical yet serious and sometimes delusional, and brave yet a coward at times... perfect execution of the role down to the "T". Keira Knightley also very talented and well fitting for her role.... very beautiful I might add, almost enchating in a way like Johnny Depp's character. Orlando Bloom's dialogue seemed a bit stale and reminiscent of his Legolas role, however he was well-suited for his role as Will Turner as well. Geoffrey Rush is just one perfectly casted pirate hehe.

Very good! I highly recommend!!

Johnny Depp is sensational in this movie. It is packed with action and has an interesting plot. It was also great to see Orlando Bloom in something so totally different than his LOTR trilogy role as the blonde elf Legolas. Romance, swashbuckling, great effects. Fun for nearly all ages. Some of the pirate scenes might be too graphic for small children, but otherwise I would recommend it for kids over 5 or 6 if they are used to viewing action movies. I thought it was charming and I disagree with the 32 year old who thinks she is too mature for this... I am 56 and I LOVED it!!

This film is still in it's infancy in the world of cinema; it's only about a year old. But it's already a classic.

Much like "Raiders Of The Lost Ark," "Pirates Of The Caribbean" is one of those popcorn adventure films that's enjoyed by both casual moviegoers and cinema snobs. Why? Because you can't deny a great thing when you see it. The best part is it doesn't rely on ultra-violence and crude innuendos to move it's story along, unlike a lot of films today. "Pirates" is good old-fashoined fun that can be enjoyed by everyone. We need more movies like these.

The cast is terrific, especially Johnny Depp, whose Jack Sparrow character was an automatic icon in the film lexicon. Geoffrey Rush is also entertaining as the menacing, campy Barbossa. Direction is solid, dialogue is snappy, cinematography is great and the setting is wonderful. It goes on for almost 2 1/2 hours, but you'll wonder where all the time went when the movie's over.

It's filled to the brim with special effects, but the story doesn't depend on them. "Pirates Of The Caribbean" is real movie magic. Everything just clicks. If you haven't seen it yet, you're really missing out. One of the best movies of 2003.

HIGHLY recommended. I look forward to the sequel.

Will Turner (Orlando Bloom, hubba hubba) is a blacksmith in the town of Port Royal. He and the governor's daughter Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley) share a mutual love, but in the classic story setup, a more ideal husband, a Captain in the Navy, also has his eye on her. Enter Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) who is just about guaranteed to hit you with a stroke of laughter from his first appearance, and keeps it up for the rest of the movie. He's a pirate and a scalawag, but proves he's not all bad when Elizabeth passes out because of an over-tight corset and plummets into the ocean. Sparrow dives to the Depps (sorry, I mean depths) to rescue her, but since he's a pirate, he is met with hostility from the Captain, Governor and their British troops nonetheless. Sparrow then uses Swann as a hostage to escape, and dodging the ensuing manhunt, he ducks inside Will Turner's blacksmith shop. Turner and Sparrow have a duel but the soldiers catch up with Sparrow, and take him to prison. That night, a dark ship sails into harbor, bearing murderous pirates that pillage and plunder the town. Their point of interest, however, is the governor's mansion, specifically the gold medallion that Elizabeth wears around her neck. The gold calls to the pirates (shades of The One Ring here), being the last piece of an ancient treasure. They capture Elizabeth and take her on board their ship, The Black Pearl. Will wants to go after the ship, but everyone else knows it's a suicide errand. Will springs Depp in exchange for his help, and the two of them set sail to rescue Elizabeth.

BAD: One might expect that, with cutlasses, parrots and pirates, this would be a film no worse than Lord of the Rings. However, despite having been warned from previews, the scenes with the cursed skeletal crew belong more in a horror flick than in a Disney action movie. There are several moments where the shock attempts are obvious, but effective. A disembodied skeletal hand, severed from its owner, crawls after a man. One pirate continually fiddles with a glass eyeball, which he drops, rolls around, pulls in and out, and even gets a fork impaled in at one point. The skeleton crew often appear in their human form, then step into moonlight which morphs them into undead. Captain Barbosa (Geoffrey Rush) in his skeletal form guzzles wine, which leaks down his skeletal throat before our very eyes, drenching his ribs and spine and pelvis and legs before spilling on the deck. Elizabeth stabs Barbosa in his human form with a knife, which he looks at half-interestedly before yanking it out of his chest. Directly after that is the most graphic scene of the pirates, all in skeletal form, as Elizabeth is pushed out among them is pushed around. Definitely destined to cause some nightmares if your little buccaneers are allowed to watch. The violence comes in the form of generally non-bloody stabbings etc. The pirates invade a town and kill and rampage at will -- and at Will! Will throws a tomahawk at one pirate, which appears to kill him, but Will later encounters the same pirate. We see Elizabeth get slapped brutally by a rather orc-like pirate, and later we see her hand sliced and the slightly bloody result. We see someone get shot with a pistol, and a close-up of the hole in the shirt from which blood quickly seeps out. There's no immorality, but there are a few suggestive phrases. The pirates threaten that unless Elizabeth dines with the captain privately, then she'll dine with the whole crew and she will be naked. (She dines with the captain) A few women in revealing dresses slap Jack when he arrives on the pirate haven of Tortuga. There are some swear words as well, but most of them were muttered so that I failed to catch them.

GOOD: Will is truly a hero, a handsome young fellow (a fact which won't escape most teenage female viewers) who works hard at an honest trade. He displays a hatred for pirates, and attempts to fight for his city. When he learns Elizabeth was kidnapped, he is daringly goes after the dreaded Black Pearl to save her, telling Jack he is willing to die for her. He fights heroically, and sacrificially to save Elizabeth. Jack is of course, a scoundrel, but as I said, he demonstrates his quality by saving Elizabeth, proving he does have a good side to him. And of course, he'll keep the laughs rolling throughout the film as well.

THOUGHTS: You don't have to have ridden Disney World's Pirates of the Caribbean ride to enjoy this movie, but if you have, you'll recognize a few elements. While trying to escape from prison by coaxing a key-holding dog, prisoners are chided by Jack, saying "that dog is never going to move", a reference to the Disney ride. Surprisingly, the attraction's main theme, A Pirate's Life for Me doesn't make but a brief mention in the film, when Jack sings a few snatches of the tune and pledges to teach his whole crew to sing it, "and then we'll sing it all the time."

As for whether or not the movie is worth buying ... well, I'm hoping that the sequel might perhaps be a little more worth it to see than this. I like the action, and swashbuckler adventure, but it comes with all the ghoulish thrills of the Haunted Mansion, which is just a little too high of a cost. There's a reason a lot of folks don't like Halloween or horror flicks, and I look with regret at the fact that I soaked up the spooks along with the fun. For those families concerned about how wholesome a film is, I would regrettably recommend you probably shouldn't watch this. At the very least, not with the kids.

Okay, everyone has there own opinion but how it looks is basically what it is like. All pirate fighting mainly, not my type extremely boring! Everyone thinks it is ace but me, not.

Pirates of the Caribbean deserves its popularity. The highlights of the entire film are the uses of computor technology. Another addition that saves this flick is the stylish acting of Johnny Depp. He is simply hilarious as Captain Sparrow, and steals the entire show. Geoffrey Rush also delivers a haunting performance as Captain Barbosa. Orlando Bloom is our true hero, and saves the "damsel in destress." (Kera Knightly)
There is no straightforward plot to this, as it focuses on the talents of Depp and Bloom. Background characters do not have as much depth. as usual.
This is an enjoyable flick for most people. However, it may not appeal to people who want a smooth, downbeat story. Action film freaks will certainly devour the material here. Recommended for particular viewers.

I know a lot of people loved Johnny, but I happen to like that cute little monkey!! Jack is a pirate played by Johnny Depp, and he does a great job, no make that excllent job. He actually makes pirates likeable, and laughable. What I enjoyed the most about the movie was the special effects. That scene when you see all the skeleton's in the moonlight, and then they look human again was phenomenal!!! This movie is fun, and it's wonderful for the whole family to enjoy.