As the weather cools down and families spend more and more time indoors, annual rewatches of Pirates of the Caribbean are bound to happen. Yet there is more than meets the eyes to these films. Compared to the average Disney franchise, the first three movies have a great level of depth, nuance, and “lore” that many movies fail to achieve today. So what makes these movies so great?
DISCLAIMER! This article contains spoilers about the first three movies in the franchise, so please read at your own discretion.
In 1967, the Pirates of the Caribbean ride opened in Disneyland Park, in Anaheim, California. It was one of the last theme park rides overseen by Walt Disney himself, and the immense popularity of the ride led to versions being made in Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World, Tokyo Disneyland, and Disneyland Paris.
In 2003, Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl premiered. Disney had made a couple of movies based on their theme park rides during the late 90s, all of which were box-office disasters. Along with that, movies surrounding pirates at the times were guaranteed to be a box-office failure. With all the odds pitted against it, what made Pirates of the Caribbean so successful?
Its success can be classified into five different categories: story, cinematography, characters, acting, and the music.
Story
Many famous trilogies had source work to draw from, such as how the Godfather, Lord of the Rings, Spider-Man and Dark Knight were originally novels and comic books. These movies already had material to write about and take inspiration from, while Pirates of the Caribbean is a ride of around fifteen minutes. I think that it’s incredible that just a few people were able to come up with an incredible story with just their imagination.
Let’s start with the first film: The Curse of the Black Pearl.
The film starts off with the title card and the viewer is immediately met with the eerie feeling as the HMS Dauntless sails towards Port Royal and encounters the aftermath of a shipwreck. It is here where we are introduced to the main characters of the story, William Turner and Elizabeth Swan. Contrary to common belief, Pirates of the Caribbean is Will and Elizabeth’s story, not Jack Sparrows, but more on that later. Without giving too much away, in only eight minutes and 52 seconds, we are able to see the literally suffocating society that Elizabeth lives in, the romantic tension between Elizabeth and Will, and the social classes of the two characters. Elizabeth is the daughter of Governor Swann, while Will is the protege of a blacksmith who often goes without being given credit. As we progress, we are met with the villain: Hector Barbossa, played by Geoffrey Rush. Barbossa is based on the classic pirate archetype but is successful because he not only has the classic pirate accent, but he has a backstory that is partially based in history, making him believable and understandable. Not only for Barbossa, but throughout the film we are given small bits of information about each character without giving too much away, keeping the viewer hooked yet curious for more.
Now onto the second film: Dead Man’s Chest
With the last film ending with Barbossa being defeated, Will and Elizabeth ending up together, and Jack going free, it is safe to say that it all ends happily? Right?
The Curse of the Black Pearl was a classic blockbuster movie, with a little bit of everything: romance, action, a good story, well written characters, and incredible visual effects as seen in the army of the undead. The next two films on the other hand are incredibly heavy on the story, bringing back callbacks to the first film. The very first scene calls back to Elizabeth and Will helping free Jack, with their wedding being interrupted by Lord Cutler Beckett, who has arrest warrants for the both of them. Dead Man’s Chest has a darker tone
than the previous film, which works for the story that is presented. Perhaps the biggest piece of lore in this film is the introduction of Davy Jones. Davy Jones’s Locker was originally a metaphor for the wide blue abyss of the ocean, the final destination of drowned sailors and travelers. His ship, the Flying Dutchman, is a legendary ghost ship, destined to port once every ten years. It is very hard to talk about the story itself, especially for this film and the next, because they are so complex and intertwined. Many critics found these two films to be a handful for the viewer to understand and it to be overly-complex, however I think as long as the viewer is watching without any distractions, the story is quite easy to follow and understand.
The last and final film of the trilogy: At World’s End (also my personal favorite!)
This brings an end to the entire trilogy, bringing the cliffhanger of the last film to a close as well. This is my favorite piece in the trilogy because I think that it is the best of the three. At World’s End has an amazing story and is the culmination of Will and Elizabeth’s story. As I said before, Pirates of the Caribbean is Will and Elizabeth’s story. They ground the story and the characters, and go through the most transformation as characters. Their relationship goes through ups and downs, and it is in this film that their love story becomes whole. I am not doing justice to just how incredible this film is because it is impossible to capture its glory in words. It’s just not possible.
Cinematography
There is a reason why I rewatch these movies all the time and it’s not just the story. Pirates of the Caribbean is a truly beautiful film to watch.
There are so many scenes that are just beautifully composed and the angles are just perfect. There is something special about movies that are not just fun and entertaining to watch, but are pretty to see. Along with that, the special effects are out of this world. The films were made in the early 2000s, and have pretty good effects for the undead and especially Davy Jones. He looks incredibly realistic and very much like an octopus, with the smooth yet textured face of a sea creature. Davy Jones was the one amongst the crew of the Flying Dutchman to be filmed in a gray-capture suit, with all his crew being recreated digitally.
Characters
The characters of this franchise are iconic and unforgettable, with so much depth and nuance to each one of them.
A great example of this is seen in Davy Jones and Lord Cutler Becket. Right in the beginning of Dead Man’s Chest, you are introduced to two villains: Jones and Becket. Davy Jones has a deep backstory, as he used to be a man. He fell in love with Calypso, goddess of the sea, and soon after she gave him the job of helping sailors lost at sea to enter the afterlife, but could only make a landmark once every 10
years. After his first ten years, he returned back to find Calypso, only to find her gone. He helped the first Brethren Court of Morgan and Bartholomew and imprisoned the love of his life into a human body, and because of his guilt and anger, he cut out his own heart. His beating heart is heard in the opening seconds of the film. Davy Jones is a villain who is three dimensional, with feelings and a reason for his wickedness. He is the villain that the viewer sympathizes with at times, because even after all that happened, he still loved Calypso, even if his heart was locked away in a chest. On the
other hand, Lord Cutler Becket does not have a backstory as deep as Jones’s, but he is in fact more terrifying than him because he could have existed. He wanted the East India Trading Company to gain control of the waters and wanted to kill all pirates, whether they be on or by association. He was the true heartless man in the series.
Acting
Pirates of the Caribbean has a stellar cast, with amazing performances with Johnny Depp, Bill Nighy, Orlando Bloom, Keira Knightly, Geoffrey Rush, Jonathan Pryce, and many others. A story can only do so much and it is up to the actors to truthfully portray their characters and bring them to life. Jack Sparrow is an unforgettable character and credit must
be given to Johnny Depp for being able to bring the character’s whimsicalness and craziness. You really start to wonder if Sparrow plans her actions or makes it up as he goes. Credit should be given to all the actors who gave an amazing performance. Many of these characters are so iconic and their performances so iconic that it is difficult to imagine anyone else to portray them. All these actors were cast for a reason and it is very clear that it was only them who could make the franchise what it is.
Music
Any film is incomplete without its background score. The scoreis what helps draw in the emotion from the viewer and helps to exactly express all the
feelings in a scene. Pirates of the Caribbean has arguably amongst one of the most famous and well-known scores in the world, such as the theme, He’s a Pirate. The score of the first film was composed by Klaus Badelt, with the following two films being composed by Hans Zimmer. The score is ethereal. All the instruments, the chorus, the strings, just everything. It’s amazing. Will and Elizabeth’s theme draws a bittersweet feelings, Davy Jones’s theme makes you feel rather melancholy, and He’s a Pirates makes you feel energized. I find that scores are often overlooked by the common person because the score does such a good job in capturing the attention of the audience. Some of the best tracks come from the second and third films, as each track contains the tension and emotion from its respective scene. Here are some tracks that everyone must give a listen to:
- One Day (At World’s End
- I Don’t Think Now Is the Best Time (At World’s End)
- The Kraken (Dead Man’s Chest)
- He’s A Pirate (The Curse of the Black Pearl)
- Davy Jones (Dead Man’s Chest)
- Calypso (At World’s End)
- Hoist the Colours (At World’s End)
- Will and Elizabeth (The Curse of the Black Pearl)
Here are what students at our school say about their favorite trilogies.
All in all, Pirates of the Caribbean is a truly underrated trilogy that should get more appreciation for being pieces of art, pieces of cinema.
Here are some videos about this topic if you’re interested!
