Title: Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Release Date: July 9, 2003
Director: Gore Verbinski
Production Company: Walt Disney Pictures
Summary/Review:
The first – and only other – time I watched this movies was when it was first released in the theaters. Expectations were low for a movie based on a theme park attraction and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer, of all people. But early reviews were good, so some friends and I went to see it and it was … fun! Johnny Depp’s quirky take on Keith Richards as a pirate is of course the most memorable thing about this movie. But on rewatching, it’s clear the other actors are doing a good job too. Keira Knightley portrays Elizabeth Swann as a natural leader and Orlando Bloom realizes that playing the straight man doesn’t mean being dull. I also notice that the many action set pieces are not only entertaining but they all also advanced the plot or character development. So this movie does everything that a big budget cash-in on a theme park ride produced by Jerry Bruckheimer shouldn’t and remains a classic.
Rating: ****1/2
Panorama of the Mountains 