Frank Turtletaub’s review published on Letterboxd:
Okay, this movie is beloved by younger me and I have probably seen it over ten times. But I can tell you, ten times over, that this film is probably the most contrived film ever to still actually be pretty good, because every sequence is adrenaline-inducing and funny. It's quotable, lovable, and cute. But I will now go into the fatal flaw of Curse of the Black Pearl.
There is virtually no thematic or story-written reason for Will Turner's dad to carry the blood to lift the curse. Why? He was WITH THEM when they stole the gold. He is just as guilty as the rest of them. Just because he has misgivings afterword doesn't change his action, and there's still no reason for his blood in particular to be as fortuitous as it is.
And yet, they spend so much time talking about Will's dad, telling stories about Will's dad, bringing up Will's dad for Will's character development. It's pretty endless.
And yet, still--none of this harms the movie. It's still has tons of pirate action that's aged incredibly well, and dare I say the effects are pretty powerful even if they've aged a bit. The concept is so alluring.
Another cool thing I noticed this time around is that Elizabeth does actually warn Gillette and the Marines on the Dauntless that the pirates are invincible and that Jack Sparrow's going to trick them, which gives her much more chutzpah and gives her questioning Jack's allegiance in the cave much more relevance.
