Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl (12)

Who'd have thought it? In a summer soaked by big-money sequels, here's a Brit-bolstered pirate movie that swaggered away with more than its fair share of the box-office bullion. And Pirates Of The Caribbean is the real deal, an inventive, swashbuckling actioner packed with high-seas heroism, boisterous rib-tickles and spectacular effects.

Embracing this treacherous genre (remember Cutthroat Island? No, thought not), The Ring helmsman Gore Verbinski and Shrek scribes Ted Elliot and Terry Rossio shuffle monkeys, plank-walking and Jolly Rogers into a winning hand of iconographic flashcards while twisting in some delightful quirks of their own. To start, these aren't your average scurvy pirates - - they're cursed zombie-werewolf crossbreeds, dissolving into rotting skeletons at moonlight's touch.

Led by cartoon villain Geoffrey Rush (chews up script, spits out scenery), they mistakenly kidnap Elizabeth (Keira Knightley) instead of Will Turner (Orlando Bloom), a shy swordsmith whose buccaneer blood holds the key to the curse. Turner's going to need help, that's for certain. And here comes Pirates' masterstroke: the bizarre, brilliant and bonkers Johnny Depp. Captain Jack Sparrow is an outrageous creation - - a mascaraed glam-rock rogue. All gold teeth, dreadlocks and Cock-er-nee slur, Depp's pirate swaggers through the movie stealing every frame he steps into.

Not to say there aren't plenty of holes in Verbinski's tub. Fights to the death with pirates who can't be killed can all get a tad repetitive and it's hugely overstuffed at nearly two-and-a-half hours. But when the gusts of energy and action catch its sails, there's more than enough briny fun to steer Pirates through the convoluted plot; bombastic battle scenes and some relentless visual and verbal gaggery all add up to entertainment that really marks the spot.

DVD Extras:

Now this is what we like to see - - a two-disc package assembled with quality and care. No less than three commentaries set the (cannon)ball rolling, with director Verbinski and Depp's effort proving the most fun. Depp makes a great comic foil for Verbinski's chatter in a track that turns out more reflective and anecdotal than info-sodden. Keira Knightley and Jack Davenport try to keep the British end up on so-so track two, but the screenwriters' third chat-track is a far catchier listen. Slap in spinner two and you'll find a treasure trove of goodies. The guts of the bonus material are comprised of bags of Making Of material splattered across a variety of featurettes that boast interviews with Verbinski, producer Jerry Bruckheimer, screenwriters Elliott and Rossio and the main actors and crew. Every aspect of the movie's production - - be it set construction, scouting, design - - receives generous time and it's all accessible in easy-to-digest segments.Even better, it's a disc free of overlap. Watch Verbinski handing out directions and running through takes in a variety of scenes; see Bloom, Depp and baddie Rush practise their choreographed swordfights under the eye of blademeister Bob Anderson; gape as the FX wizards deconstruct the `Moonlight Serenade' sequence, guiding us through the storyboards, live action, bluescreen and CGI that make up the spooky skele-pirates. Elsewhere, a historian clambers on deck to dredge up the reality behind pirating mythology (walking the plank is Peter Pan-inspired bunkum). Yakking about life aboard a pirate ship with some of history's most infamous buccaneers, it's a great backdrop to the genre.Oh, and did we mention that Pirates is based on a Disneyland ride? Well, while it hardly matters, there's even a vintage featurette of Uncle Walt explaining his new Pirates ride back in 1968. Quaint. Factor in Mr Bruckheimer's photo album, video diaries, an image gallery, a blooper reel, 19 deleted scenes and DVD-ROM features, and you have a treasure chest of a package. And that's before you consider the hidden extra: an interview with Keith Richards about Depp's decision to base his character on the shrivelled Stone. Quality.

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