See full version: THEN AND NOW: The cast of the original; Pirates of the Caribbean; movie 16 years later
Few people expected Disney's ride-inspired movie "Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl" to be such a wild success back in 2003, let alone give rise to a billion-dollar film franchise. But with the rockstar casting and help from Hans Zimmer's iconic score, "Curse of the Black Pearl" became an instant modern classic. [links]
Keep reading to see what the stars of Disney's breakout movie are up to almost 16 years after the film's premiere.
There are also several scenes that are sexually suggestive. For example, Jack Sparrow tears off Elizabeth Swan's corset to allow her to breath and save her life. An onlooker says "I didn't know you could do that", and Sparrow replies "you've clearly never been to Singapore." A 7-year-old would have no idea what that means. But if they ask about it, you'll have to answer somehow. [links]
I would call this a pretty mild PG-13. It will probably be too spooky for an early elementary school child. There are scenes of ghouls and skeletons taking over ships and terrorizing people. There are battle scenes where people die. It is mostly A-Team style explosions that send people flying, but there are some scenes where people are killed in cold blood. None of it seems gratuitous though. It is not the sort of thing that I suspect would whittle away at one's value of human life, unlike the other movies in the series which cross that line big time.
After reviewing this movie over the weekend, I'll be letting my 8-year-old watch, but not my 6-year-old. It's just too spooky for her yet.
But for better or worse, Disney is pressing on with the franchise despite all these questions. As of June 2020, the plan for the series seems to go in two separate directions. One involves a seeming reboot headed by Chernobyl writer Craig Mazin, while the other is a spinoff series starring Margot Robbie, who will team back up with Birds of Prey writer Christina Hodson — a movie that already had Robbie doing something along the unleashed lines of Captain Jack.
With the Pirates of the Caribbean movies more accessible than ever, and a summer season void of blockbusters, this month we’re diving deep into Disney’s swashbuckling series. Grab your cutlass and hoist the colors: here be Polygon’s take on all things PotC.
Image: Walt Disney Pictures here
All of the swagger and confidence that propels Jack in his pirating career is lost in their chemistry-less relationship. The rogue’s appeal in the first three movies is that he’s so obviously unappealing. He’s magnetically charming despite being a bad, gross, and probably irritating person. But when On Stranger Tides waters him down for the romance plotline, all it’s really doing is sanding off the edges that make Jack interesting. By the end of the movie when he has to show he really cares about Angelica, it doesn’t really matter, because he’s no longer the lovable rogue Jack Sparrow, he’s just every other lovelorn adventure-movie protagonist. It makes for a stilted romp, and a waste of one of this century’s most fun movie characters. Though it seems the franchise realized its mistakes, as Sparrow moves back to a supporting role for Dead Men Tell No Tales, the fifth Pirates movie doesn’t have the same energy, and Depp’s heart doesn’t quite seem in it. here
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All of blockbuster output — from Guy Ritchie’s Sherlock Holmes reboot to the anarchy of Heath Ledger’s Joker — seemed tinged with Depp’s now-signature strangeness. In no career was this trend more evident than Depp’s own. From his own performances in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, to Sweeney Todd to Alice in Wonderland, to Mortdecai, to Into the Woods, to The Lone Ranger, it all felt like variations on a Jack Sparrow theme. Even the franchise that spawned him wasn’t immune to the charms, and the lucrative profits, of the Jack Sparrow wave. By the time work began on the back-to-back sequels, it was already clear that Jack was going to serve a more central role in Dead Man’s Chest and At World’s End.
Or he didn't know for sure but confidently assumed it anyway (it's in character for Jack Sparrow). The rules of magic aren't always scientifically verifiable and you just have to take them at face value.
He agreed to help Will when he knew he was a Turner. [links]
Bill would've been stripped of valuables before it happened (scavenging off the dead is common), so any of the cursed coins would've been found and returned to Cortez' treasure, which clearly hasn't happened since the curse is not lifted. [links]
Jack can make a reasonable guess that Bill partook in the share of Cortez' treasure and thus is cursed as well.
So in the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie, Jack Sparrow knew about the curse but had the confirmation of its existence when he was locked and left there.
He can't know that Old Bill was "killed".