Yo ho! Yo ho!
A ‘Pirates’ flick for me!

The courageous “The Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl,” is almost as breathless and exasperating as trying to recite its full title. Yet along with its adventurous tone, the film has a firm grasp on comedy and elicits more than a few laughs.

In keeping with the film’s bouncy and humorous tone, please accept my apologies in advance for any atrocious pirate puns I make during the course of this review, matey!

From the very moment we meet him, we love the character of Captain Jack Sparrow, who is so lovingly portrayed by Johnny Depp. In what is apparently a rare moment of kindness, Jack rescues the governor’s daughter, Elizabeth Swan (Keira Knightley), from a watery grave. But he is quick to put a knife to her throat when threatened with a death sentence for piracy. Of course, that doesn’t sit well with Elizabeth’s beloved, Will Turner (Orlando Bloom), who fends off Jack long enough for the royal guards to capture him.

Now, before any of it gets too dramatic, in busts the crusty old Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), who is joined by his ghastly crew of pirates. Although they look normal, by the moonlight, they are all revealed to be skeletal zombies and, as the movie goes to great pains to prove, they cannot be killed. They kidnap Elizabeth for their own misdeeds, but Will has already teamed up with Cap’n Jack to gather together their own band of pirates to save her.

Having ridden the titular ride in Disney World (several times), I can say quite readily that much more thought and effort was put into the film rather than just to market it as a mere expansion of its real-life counterpart. If it capitalizes on anything, it’s the references to adventure films of old and the animation work of Ray Harryhausen. Still, those who are preparing for references to the ride will not be disappointed; for instance, in a wild pirates’ party, some people engage in short, repetitious, almost robotic actions. (However, I was rather saddened that there was no “he’s chasing me for my food plate” joke).

Many critics have commented on the apparent futility in engaging in swordplay with zombie pirates, knowing full well that they cannot be killed, not even by George A. Romero’s revered solution of destroying the brain. Allow me to interject on the film’s behalf; this is not a zombie horror movie we’re dealing with here, where you’d expect the ghouls to drop like flies. This is rather a unique full-blooded adventure. I prefer to think that the extended swordfights are a continuation of the bold traditions of pirate films of yesteryear. Perhaps we cannot win a swordfight with the undead, but we’re sure as heck gonna die trying.

The movie never takes itself seriously, and neither should the audience; the sole purpose of “Pirates of the Caribbean” is to be escapist entertainment, and it succeeds admirably. This is actually the first film officially under the Walt Disney Pictures banner to be rated PG-13. Hopefully, when the already-planned sequel comes out, it will be as exciting and fun as this one, and it won’t be rated “Arrrrr!”