Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (Walt Disney Pictures, 2003, PG-13)
I realize I'm seven years behind most of the rest of the country in watching this movie, but at last I understand why our nephews love it so much. Maybe it's another example of the value of low expectations, but I can't remember the last time I enjoyed a movie so much. Just pure fun. Probably not grandchild material yet, but I wouldn't rate it worse than PG myself.
Sure, it's as unrealistic as Indiana Jones, and they break the rules of physics, biology, history, and more, but it's easy to suspend disbelief because it's not pretending to be real, or true to a book I love. It's plain fun, like the Disney Pirates of the Caribbean ride that inspired it. Perhaps the ride is one reason I enjoyed the movie so. Having had virtually unlimited access to the Disney parks when the kids were growing up, we became very familiar with this ride, and catching references to it in the movie is more fun than finding hidden Mickeys in the parks. The music is great, too.
We missed having Janet around, though. She would have told us in the beginning, "Hey, that guy played Legolas in The Lord of the Rings," whereas we only figured it out when the credits scrolled by.We're now only four years behind, having decided to watch the second movie, Dead Man's Chest. This one is also PG-13, and more deservedly so—it's a bit more intense and scary. Still a lot of fun, however, a good afternoon's internal exercise.
I'm developing an appreciation for my nephews' judgment: as they said, the third movie, At World's End is the least interesting of the three. Also the weirdest: at one point, Porter wondered, "Was this scene written by [Salvador] Dali?" But it still made us laugh.
