? about PoC movie

[punkin]

OK d-r...but, according to Barbossa, the curse was supposedly put on the gold only after Cortez betrayed the Aztecs. So the Aztecs were essentially doomed anyway. There was nothing the Aztec gods could do to help them (remember, Aztec gods, like the Greek gods were not considered omnipotent. That's a more modern invention.) The curse was merely a punishment, and as a punishment it's wonderful.

 

[mickey1010]

Those were my thoughts too, punkin. The Aztecs knew it was a losing battle and decided to set up a poison pill that would at least give them some retribution.

Interesting thread on the movie!

 

[Walt's Frozen Head]

We really enjoyed Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl.

To me, quite possibly the most powerful moment in the movie is the acting done by Geoffrey Rush, between the last two words of the line "I feel... cold."

The Aztec curse gave the pirates the opportunity to steal and kill and take forever into eternity... but only if it was the gold alone that meant anything to them.

The pirates found out that was not the case. Their greed did cost them their lives, even though it took them awhile to realize what their lives were really about... beyond the gold.

From at least one point of view, it was a ripping good curse.

I also found interesting the ever-changing allegiances, the mutable assessments of who is "right" and "good" depending alternately on their actions or your own stereotypes of them. In the scene on (and off) the parapet where Jack is allowed his final escape... every single character up there is a "good guy." In the absence of the curse, in the absence of that greed: former foes could respect each other for who they were and what they stood for.

All things considered, I could easily see PotC:CotBP as an allegory for Disney's condition, right now. Cursed by greed, it is best for everyone to simply send Eisner (Barbossa) and his crew to their deaths... and once that curse is lifted, the ******* between the folks on Parapet #1 and those on Pirate Ship #3 will evaporate.

So I thought it was a pretty good curse, and I basically agree with the Aztecs' underlying message: that simply everyone would be better off if Eisner had a sword stuck through him.

 

[FriendsOfEeyore]

Ok. Umm Good Movie. Nice Curse..

Jeff,

You have again blown me completely away with your analogy. I mean I see where you are coming from, but I would never thought of that myself.

Yes, the curse is ingenious in it's making.. If you want our Gold, you can have it for eternity, but that is all that you will have. You will learn to grow sick of the gold.

I, often, do not get as deep into the hypothetical like a lot of, but I must say that PotC was very intersting movie, and I can't wait to see the next. Only after reading this thread, I will be watching both PotC again and it's sequel on a different level.

Great thread...

 

[punkin]

Umm, very interesting analogy there Walt's Frozen Head. I'm not sure that's exactly what the movie meant however
I do want to mention that I really hated that last scene where everyone was all of a sudden the good guy. Fake and stupid in my opinion and totally not in keeping with the level of the rest of the movie. Just too trite and too pat.
Yes, I agree that when Rush says "I feel...cold" That pause is oscar worthy!

 

[natt]

Originally posted by punkin
Yes, I agree that when Rush says "I feel...cold" That pause is oscar worthy! [/B]

Just wondering if anyone else thinks this movie could be recognized by the Academy in some form? I realize by next January that this film will be in the past. I would just LOVE to see THIS movie (a Disney) film, be the one that "bad boy" Johnny gets recognized for his genious! I know it's a long shot, but wouldn't that be a kicker to the Disney suits who didn't like his portrayal, thereby depriving all of us middle aged women of obtaining marketing items! Natt

 

[Walt's Frozen Head]

I do want to mention that I really hated that last scene where everyone was all of a sudden the good guy. Fake and stupid in my opinion and totally not in keeping with the level of the rest of the movie

Interesting. I very much appreciated that scene. The commander/commodore whatever his name was, showed very nearly as much character development in that one scene as Will had over the entire movie... and it led him to make a personally painful decision in the hopes of improving lives other than his own. That borders on heroic, methinks.

Mayhap there's a fine line between heroism and being fake and stupid (but actually, Jack pretty much spelled that out in the movie, too, didn't he? Man, Everything I Really Needed To Know I Learned in PotC).

I still don't think the business model for PotC was any different that that of Pearl Harbor, so I still don't recommend the process as a reliable producer of good movies... but I admit to being personally blown away by individual acting performances (Geoffrey Rush is the obvious one, but sometimes I think Johnny Depp's acting skill is underestimated simply because he's so pretty. Depp's been my favorite actor since about Edward Scissorhands, and PotC was another great performance, I think), by the cohesive intricacy of the Curse itself as a plot device, and by the computer generated special effects that can trace their creative lineage directly back to Ray Harryhausen.

I'm about to talk myself into going to see the damn thing again.

 

[punkin]

I was going to wait for the DVD, but you just about convinced me to go see it in the theater again too.
I agree Jonnie Depp is just too pretty to be noticed as a good actor. I LOVED him in edward sicsorhands (I can't spell, forgive me). But he was absolutely fabulous in Gilbert Grape. There's an underrated movie.
About an Oscar for this movie, I really doubt it. Summer blockbusters are generally forgotten by oscar time. Also, the serious competitors (the more "serious" movies) haven't come out yet. They'll be out closer to the oscars so the short attention span of the academy members won't be an issue for them.
On another point. I dislike the way this movie is being promoted. If Disney is in charge of that part, I agree with you they are shooting themselves in the foot (again). Looking at the commercials, I would never have gone to see this movie. I think it gets its "legs" purely from word of mouth.

 

[JeffH]

I've heard only great things from those who have seen it.
I enjoyed the movie 2 times now and will consider seeing it a 3rd time next weekend.
This is the movie to see this summer!!!
T3 showed that people are a little tired of Hollywood cranking out another typical action/adventure (and in T3s case a bad remake of T2 with a bad/unhappy ending).
Pirates is a breath of (dirty) fresh air.

 

[punkin]

I did not see T3. I was a big fan of The Terminator, a wonderful, terrifying, low budget apocalypse movie. I thought T2 was awful with good car chase special effects. There was absolutely no reason to see T3 after that.

 

[emmagata]

Originally posted by punkin
I did not see T3. I was a big fan of The Terminator, a wonderful, terrifying, low budget apocalypse movie. I thought T2 was awful with good car chase special effects. There was absolutely no reason to see T3 after that.

hmmm...

I thought 1 was good, 2 was better, 3 was good (even my DW thougth so too!).

I can't wait until T4!

I just bought both the T1 and T2 DVDs.

 

[Demosthenes]

Originally posted by punkin
I agree Jonnie Depp is just too pretty to be noticed as a good actor. I LOVED him in edward sicsorhands (I can't spell, forgive me).

I think Depp's best movie is "Ed Wood." That movie made me realize how good he is. I somehow managed to connect and then sympathize with a transsexual. Unreal.

 

[punkin]

I did not see Ed Wood (I actually have it on DVD because it's one of my husband's favorites) so I have no comment, but I don't doubt he was brilliant.

 

[d-r]

Actually, Punkin, if you have a dark side to you, you might like t3. I kind of hope they don't make a t4. T3, to me, put the series where it needs to be. I don't want to spoil this, but the deeper, thematic side of the terminator series (good lord, I can't believe I just wrote that) takes a 90 degree turn to the darkside in T3, and it takes care of that whole time travel contradiction thing.

OK, I'll let you all think this was a good curse. Cortez defeated thousands of Aztecs with a few dozen men, steel swords and helmets, horses, and gun powder. If I was an Aztec god back then, and I could make thirty or forty people invincible, we'd have a different set of history books today. That's all I'm saying.

DR

 

[JeffH]

As I watched T3 I was amazed how the storyline was exactly the same as T2 up until after they reached a 'safehouse' after the initial escape. They just replaced mom with future wife, kid with older kid, evil terminator man with evil terminator woman. They just rewrote the same chases, and even the save of the mom now future wife. After the safehouse is when the 2 stories go completely different directions, T2 was hopeful, while T3 simply sets up the sequel which was eliminated by the 'success' of T2.
Yes, it did clearup the timeline conflicts that T2 created, so the story now makes sense, but who cares...in fact it actually makes for quite interesting discussions after, just like the curse in Pirates has done.

But my main point was how Pirates was an original, new way to have fun this summer (no typical chase scenes, no uzies, no 'high-tech' special effects <the great special effects were REAL effects, not slow mo flying/spaceships-battles>),
while T3 was pretty much a remake of T2 with the same old 'high-tech' special effects, whose main goal was to set up future sequels.

T2 was great no matter how many times I see it, so T3 was entertaining as well.

 

[d-r]

ah, but Jeff, T3 presents the total anathema of the the theme of T2. It takes the whole point of T2 and puts it on its ear. I really hope that the series ends here.

I can't believe that I am thinking about the "theme" of t2 or t3. Anyway, even the parts that were, um, reminescent, were funny - speak to the hand.

Anyway, it was a somewhat tedious film, but I liked the negativeness and hopelessness of it.

DR

 

[FriendsOfEeyore]

Geeting back to Oscars for PotC. I have always been a big fan of Johnny Depp. I really liked him him Benny & Joon.

But as far as Actors and Oscars, I just don't see Hollywood giving the time of day to any of the "summer adventure" movies.

Now if we want talk about editing and special fx, I think that they could win a Technical Oscar for the fight scene between Rush and Depp.

 

[April76]

I pay more attention to the "People's Choice" awards now than I do to the Academy Awards..... If PoC is going to get the attention it deserves, it will probably be there.

I've just gotten tired of the Hollywood politics....too many time "great' movies are pushed aside for the mediocre "pc" ones.

Although I guess some stars might see the Oscar as more desireable..... JMHO

 

[WDWFOREVER]

I have to say that up to a month ago, before I saw PotC, I would not have been able to recognise Johnny Depp if my life had depended on it! However ..... since seeing the film, I am an absolutely besotted fan! His performance was outstanding and I loved that slightly "camp" feel to Jack Sparrow. It was true genius and have been telling anyone who would listen how I think he should receive an Oscar for his performance ......