Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl is the original movie in the Pirates franchise from 2003. It was directed by Gore Verbinski and starred Johnny Depp, Keira Knightly, Orlando Bloom, Geoffrey Rush, and Jack Davenport. The supporting cast included Kevin McNally, Zoe Saldana, Mackenzie Crook, and Lee Arenberg (among others). The movie was the breakout role for Knightly (as a lead), who was just 17 years old when the movie was filmed, the second big franchise appearance for Bloom (who had made the first two Lord of the Rings movies), and was a career resurgence for Depp, who starred in what is clearly his signature role, Captain Jack Sparrow. The movie involves a group of Pirates (led by Rush's character, Captain Barbossa) trying to track down the final pieces of stolen Aztec gold that caused a curse to be placed on those who stole the gold. They plan to return the gold in order to lift the curse and in the process, end up kidnapping Knightly's character, Elizabeth Swann. Bloom, who plays an apprentice blacksmith named Will Turner, teams up with Sparrow (who has his own agenda) to rescue her.
Chances are, by now, most know enough of the movies to know what they are and are not. Curse of the Black Pearl was obviously the first in the chain of "Pirates" movies, based on the ride at the Disney Theme Parks. The movie takes elements from the rides and weaves them into the story. It has the most basic and probably least bloated storyline of the entire series of movies. And, it is probably the one that does not seem like it takes 2+ hours to sit through because the story is fun, and the pacing is so good.
The movie centers around the three characters, Captain Jack Sparrow (played wonderfully by Johnny Depp), Will Turner (played by Orlando Bloom), and Elizabeth Swann (Kiera Knightly). Apart from the main three, there is a huge ensemble cast made up mainly of character actors, all of whom play much larger roles in the movie than in any other movies they have appeared in. As good and original as Depp was in the movie, Geoffrey Rush as Captain Barbossa stole every scene he was in. The scenes with Rush and Depp together were the best part of the movie, in my opinion.
The movie centers around the three characters, Captain Jack Sparrow (played wonderfully by Johnny Depp), Will Turner (played by Orlando Bloom), and Elizabeth Swann (Kiera Knightly). Apart from the main three, there is a huge ensemble cast made up mainly of character actors, all of whom play much larger roles in the movie than in any other movies they have appeared in. As good and original as Depp was in the movie, Geoffrey Rush as Captain Barbossa stole every scene he was in. The scenes with Rush and Depp together were the best part of the movie, in my opinion.
The A/V quality of the Blu-Ray is awesome. The picture quality of the movie was the one that prompted me to start investing in Blu-Ray. The A/V quality of the Blu-Ray was, at the time the movie was released, reference quality. The extras include a ton of behind-the-scenes and making-of features, as well as deleted scenes and a blooper reel. It also includes the TV special about the making of the ride that aired in the 1960s. All in all, you get a good 2 plus hours of material. Ultimately, it is a very good action-adventure movie. It had the perfect blend of action, mystery, thrills, and humor. It definitely did not take itself too seriously, something that cannot necessarily be said for the sequels, and really wrapped up its part of the story by the end. You can, however, see the seeds they were sewing for the subsequent movies by leaving Will's background a mystery. It is absolutely worth the time to watch, and you definitely will not be disappointed with the picture and sound.
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