George Bruns’ music, "Yo Ho - (A Pirate's Life For Me)” is one of the popular nod songs associated with the Pirates Ride at Disneyland. In fact, the Disney ride was an inspiration for the film. Now, movie adaptations of amusement park attractions do not always turn out to be good, but Pirates of the Caribbean movies broke the mold and became a successful franchise. In the starting scene of the movie, the song exhibits young Elizabeth’s interest in pirates. That is also where we are introduced to the golden necklace pendant (the pirate medallion), Elizabeth’s only connection with her past. In a way, the movie tells the pirate story through an unlikely source, Elizabeth. If there is a movie that sheds new light on pirate life, it's Pirates of the Caribbean. And for us to appreciate this work of art, we need to break down the reasons that make this movie tick.
Historical Accuracy
The Pirates of the Caribbean franchise respects some elements of piracy in the 1700s. For example, they represented real-world locations like Tortuga and Port Royal. The producers also used costumes and ships of that era. They also showcased how back in the day, female pirates dressed up like men to go on sailing.
There are many other examples in the movie. For instance, the famous black flag in the film is from Jolly Roger of Calico Jack - a famous 18th-century English pirate known for the design of the skull with two crossed swords flag. You can also see Elizabeth in the first scenes being forcefully dressed in the 18th-century corset, an indication of the constraints of life in the upper class. The dress choked her to the point where she fell off the roof due to the lack of air. Jack Sparrow is the one who tore the corset, an indication of removing the shackles of privilege from her.
There is another historical fact from "The Pirates of the Eastern Seas book" by Charles Grey that describes captured pirates branded with the letter P on their foreheads. But in the movie, the P brand is switched to the hand. We can also try to loosely sneak in this point about Jack Sparrow’s eye makeup called coal. It is a cosmetic popular in Ancient Egypt as an eye protection mechanism from the sun. And today, it is popular among some nomads and pop stars. But what about Barbossa? Does the name hail from anywhere? The name is associated with the Ottoman Privateer, Hayreddin Barbarossa – which means red beard. If you compare the images of the two people, you will see the origins of the character's inspiration.
The final example is for you to judge if it stays. There is a scene in the movie where Elizabeth invokes parley. She quotes the Code of The Brethren written by the pirates Bartholomew and Morgan. Elizabeth was likely quoting Bartholomew Roberts and Henry Morgan, real pirates from the 1700s, the "Golden Age" of piracy. Roberts had a code for gambling, bedtime, and desertion. But there is no rule about parley in any of their lists. However, the use of parley dates back to the Middle Ages.
A Fresh Kind of a Pirate
Jack Sparrow performs rather uncharacteristic of the usual pirates we see in movies. Sparrow's unique style as a pirate brought about a fresh take on a genre that was already stale. If one could describe Jack Sparrow in one sentence, it could be with elements that inspired him to play this role, a mixture of the rock star attitude of Keith Richards and the self-confidence of Pepé Le Pew - an animated character from Looney Tunes. Jack Sparrow’s inspiration came to life to the point where Keith Richards played Jack’s father in the sequels.
In the movie, Jack plays a trickster. A cunning troublemaker that challenges the rules to suit his ways. Similar devious acts from other movies include Loki and Bart Simpson. Jack Sparrow is an interesting actor with a lot of confidence and swag. One of his best trademarks is the catchphrase, “You will always remember this as the day you almost caught Jack Sparrow.” This phrase is adopted into pop culture to the point that it came to life during Johnny Depp’s 2022 televised trial.
Use of Comedic Characters
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Pirates of the Caribbean uses comedic characters to tell the movie’s story, starting from Jack Sparrow to Ragetti and Pintel to Hector Barbossa, the ferocious pirate. The movie does a great job of balancing the quirky energy of Jack Sparrow and the conventional classic hero character of Will Turner. This odd pairing steers the movie in a focused direction because they complement each other.
Ragetti and Pintel make one of the best duo scenes in the movie; they are flat-out funny. The pairing of the fat (Pintel) and skinny (Ragetti) is often used to show the differences between personalities. Picture Bert and Annie from Sesame Street. These acts make the movie feel grounded and warm, an element that is not popular in most pirate movies.
Jack Sparrow’s Ambiguous Moral System
One of the film’s major themes is morality, but Will Turner’s honor demands that he fights Jack Sparrow to the death to prevent him from escaping. As a pirate, one would think Sparrow could fight his way out, but he seems to have a moral code for his reluctance to fight Turner. But Sparrow is an odd character because he risks his life to save Elizabeth from drowning, while he undoubtedly plans to trade Turner’s life to get his boat back from Barbossa. At the end of the day, Sparrow plays by his own rules. For some reason, Pirates of the Caribbean fans were rooting for him even though he lied just to get his way. Others even celebrate when his trickery yields great fruits.
Jack Sparrow presents himself as a carefree drunk sailor, but underneath, he is smarter than he looks. His dialogues echo intellect, and the solutions he comes up with on the fly are just magic, especially when they work. The most interesting plot in Pirates of the Caribbean runs between Barbossa and Sparrow, two pirates sharing the same qualities. This dance of wits makes their encounters fun to watch as they play their tricks on each other.