- Hi, I'm Michael.
This is "Lessons from the Screenplay".
I've always loved "Pirates of the Caribbean",
but the idea of doing a video about it didn't come
from some specific book or technique.
It came from the patrons of our podcast,
"Beyond the Screenplay".
Every month, they vote on a movie for us to talk about
in an exclusive episode.
And in May of 2020, they voted for
"Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl".
The whole LFTS team chatted about it
and we had a ton of fun.
You know, when they're fighting in the smith's office,
whatever it's called. (people laughing)
- [Alex] The blacksmith's shop?
- [Michael] Yeah, that thing.
- [Tricia] Forge, the word you're looking for is forge.
- [Michael] The donkey or whatever.
But in the process, we also became fascinated
with its genre.
It's kind of interesting cause the tone of this movie
is there's an adventure happening.
I am feeling the adventure emotion.
"Pirates of the Caribbean" feels
like a classic historical adventure film,
providing the audience with all the swashbuckling,
exotic lands, treasure, and danger we might expect.
But at the same time,
the film offers us surprising twists and dark turns
that aren't exactly typical of adventure movies.
So today I wanna follow the conversation we had
on "Beyond the Screenplay"
and break down the crucial rules or guidelines
of the adventure genre,
to see how Pirates not only follows each one,
but also uses these elements as fundamental building blocks
for the story and character design.
And to examine the biggest and most unexpected element,
that Pirates introduces as a surprise to the audience.
Let's take a look
at "Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl".
(bright music)
As we discussed "Pirates of the Caribbean",
we identified four key elements of classic adventure films.
And then, you know,
did some research that confirmed our initial thoughts.
First adventure movies often take place
in a historical setting.
They involve an element of travel to unknown lands.
They're frequently structured
around a quest for magical objects.
And they're exciting to watch
because the characters face real danger.
It's pretty obvious
that "Pirates of the Caribbean" fulfills each
of these requirements,
but part of what makes it such a great example
of an adventure movie is that
these requirements are not just pasted
onto the film's surface.
Each element of the genre is a fundamental building block
of the script.
Let's take a closer look at each of these,
starting with the historical setting.
- [Tricia] I think the real difference between
what we would think of as quote unquote an action movie
versus an adventure movie has to do, of course,
with technology and like the sort of the time period
in which to set.
It's that old timey thing that makes an adventure movie
kind of what it is.
- [Michael] The first few scenes
of Pirates immediately let the audience orient themselves
to the historical period.
It's there in the setting, a Colonial British port,
the costumes the characters wear,
and the technology they wield,
but the historical element runs deeper
than mere set decoration or costuming.
It's embedded in the central characters design.
When we first meet Will Turner as an adult,
we learn that he works as a blacksmith.
This profession provides him with some skills
that will be handy and the swashbuckling to come,
but it also makes him of a lower class.
This is the root of Will's primary conflict.
The class separation between him and the woman he loves.
- Will, how many times must I ask you to call me Elizabeth?
- At least once more, Miss Swan, as always.
- [Michael] Similarly, Elizabeth's position
as the daughter of the governor of Port Royal
creates her central conflict as well.
She is expected to dress properly,
act politely and marry someone chosen
by her father from her own social class.
- You have become a fine woman, Elizabeth.
- [Michael] But Elizabeth's headstrong personality
often causes her to clash with people's expectations
as she refuses to quietly play her social role in this era.
- Pirate or not, this man saved my life.
- One good deed is not enough to redeem a man
of a lifetime of wickedness.
- [Michael] Which in turn propels the events of the plot.
(Elizabeth gasps)
- No, no, don't shoot!
- I knew you'd warm up to me.
- [Michael] These aren't simply modern characters
with modern problems dropped into a different time period.
The historical setting is a designing principle upon
which the characters are built.
Once those characters are established,
they must travel to unknown lands.
- [Brian] There's this sort of travel element
to a lot of adventure movies
where it's like characters need to get
from point A to point B and they're gonna run
into a lot of locations and characters along the way.
Or "Star Wars", there's almost always like,
now we have to go to this planet or this city.
And it's like, yeah, there's still action
but I think that's part of where
the adventure kind of element comes into.
- [Michael] Well, yeah, there's
like a exploring the unknown.
An adventure movie where people don't go anywhere
wouldn't be much of an adventure.
So "Pirates of the Caribbean" utilizes travel
to transport its audience to many exotic locations,
Port Royal, the Black Pearl,
the Interceptor and the Dauntless, Tortuga,
and of course, Isla de Muerta.
But these locations aren't just unknown to the audience,
they're also unfamiliar to the main characters.
Will hasn't been at sea since he was a child.
- You are not a military man, you are not a sailor.
You are a blacksmith.
- [Michael] And in this case,
the travel to unknown lands requires Will to make a choice
that challenges his morals.
- Can you sail under the command of a pirate?
Or can you not?
- [Michael] Elizabeth assumes the pirates
are kidnapping her because she's the governor's daughter,
but she quickly learns
that they want something far more mysterious from her.
- We are cursed men, Miss Turner.
- [Michael] So the travel element is a critical part
of both plot lines.
Will is compromising his strict morality
and setting sail with a pirate to rescue the woman he loves
and Elizabeth is being taken to a mysterious island
where she'll play an as yet unknown role
in removing a dark curse,
which brings us to a quest for magical objects.
- [Tricia] Returning a little bit
to what you were talking about
in terms of how confusing the plot is,
it has to do with mechanics.
And I mean that in the like strictest sense of the word
of what are the actual pieces necessary
to make the machine work?
You have to have those elements,
but not so many that the audience can no longer track
with where they are and who has them.
- [Michael] Unlike travel or exploration for its own sake,
a quest is a long or arduous search for something.
The central plot of "Pirates of the Caribbean"
is propelled by the pirates' quest for the gold medallion.
It's what draws them to Port Royal
and prompts them to kidnap Elizabeth.
And it's what later makes them pursue Will.
As it turns out, his blood is the second magical object
they need to lift the curse.
But it's not just the central plot
that's built around a quest.
Both of the film's subplots are also quests.
In the first half of the film,
Will sets out on a quest to rescue Elizabeth.
- How far are you willing to go to save her?
- I'd die for her.
- [Jack] Oh, good.
- [Michael] And then the second half, Elizabeth goes
on a quest to rescue Will.
- Commodore, I beg you.
Please do this for me, as a wedding gift.
- [Michael] Meanwhile, Jack has his own quest
that drives his constantly shifting loyalties.
- It's the Pearl.
- [Michael] He's determined to win back his ship,
the Black Pearl.
So in addition to the main plot of the pirates' curse,
the two subplots are also about characters
who are seeking something,
driving the story's action toward the resolution
of all three quests.
But ultimately it's not an adventure
if the quest doesn't involve danger.
It is dark enough to be scary.
And I think that is an important part of adventure.
"Indiana Jones", that's really dark
and has really weird stuff that scarred me as a child.
"Pirates of the Caribbean" is filled
with exciting sword fights, seafaring chases,
and epic ship battles.
But while most of these sequences feel fun
rather than scary,
the film also establishes early on that violence
in this world has serious consequences.
- Hello, chum!
(Elizabeth screams)
- [Michael] And that our characters
might be facing real peril.
- 'Ello, poppet.
- [Michael] However, there's another unique side
of danger often present in adventure movies, darkness.
Darkness in fiction is a kind of wickedness or evil,
shrouded in secrecy or mystery.
And in "Pirates of the Caribbean",
the pirates' curse adds that element of darkness.
A mysterious and wicked affliction.
- So there is a curse.
- [Michael] That makes the danger at hand more menacing.
- That's interesting.
- [Michael] "Pirates of the Caribbean"
isn't just an adventure movie on the surface.
Adventure is in its bones,
and speaking of bones, Pirates doesn't simply satisfy
the genre requirements of adventure.
It remixes the genre by adding an unexpected element.
As we mentioned, many adventure films,
incorporate elements of superstition and the supernatural,
but for the pirates' curse,
the film directly borrows from another genre, horror,
and turns the pirates into zombies.
- You best start believin' in ghost stories, Miss Turner.
You're in one!
- [Michael] And just us with each of the adventure elements,
the film fully commits to this horror convention
by making the undead pirates a critical aspect of the plot.
Because the cursed pirates can't be killed.
- You've only got one shot and we can't die.
- [Michael] Characters use bizarre and surprising tactics
to get what they want.
- You can't, I can.
- [Michael] The pirates' quest to free themselves
from the curse allows for opportunities
to give the antagonists deep, personal stakes.
- For too long I've been parched of thirst
and unable to quench it.
Too long I've been starvin' to death
and haven't died.
- [Michael] And finding the opportune moment
to lift the curse is critical to the heroes' success.
In "Pirates of the Caribbean", the zombie pirates
aren't just in the story to be scary, gross, or funny.
(gunshot roars) (Elizabeth gasps)
They are the undead heart of its very premise.
- I feel cold.
(dramatic music)
- [Alex] We have so few of these in the 21st century,
a movie that stands on its own as just a really classic
and yet modern adventure film.
- [Michael] "Pirates of the Caribbean:
The Curse of the Black Pearl" is a great example
of how to use genre conventions
as foundational design elements,
while remixing the genre
with at least one major unexpected and spooky element
from somewhere else,
demonstrating how to take the audience
on an adventure-filled ride
with the "Pirates of the Caribbean".
- Drink up me hearties, yo ho.
- Hey guys, Michael here,
the elements of of adventure found
in "Pirates of the Caribbean" have their roots
in the earliest days of film history.
The same is true for science fiction and horror.
A fun early example of a film
with adventure elements is the 1939 version
of "The Man in the Iron Mask".
For horror, there's the 1922 silent film "Nosferatu"
and for science fiction,
there's the 1927 Fritz Lang classic, "Metropolis",
one of the most iconic films ever made.
And if you wanna check out these films
to do some genre research,
all three of them are available on MUBI.
I like MUBI
because it's a curated subscription streaming service
that premiers a new film every day.
Each film is handpicked.
There's no algorithm
and they have an amazingly eclectic selection
of exceptional films from all over the world
and from every time period.
From old classics to new releases.
So if ever you wanted to step outside your particular bubble
of film knowledge, MUBI is the perfect place to get started
and you can do so today for free.
Just head to https://www.mubi.com/LFTS to get 30 days free.
That's M-U-B-I .com/LFTS for a whole month
of great cinema for free.
On a personal note, MUBI has also been a sponsor
of "Beyond the Screenplay" for a long time now,
which has really helped us to grow the podcast.
This is the first time they're sponsoring the channel itself
so I'd really appreciate it if you'd check them out.
They're pretty awesome.
Thanks to MUBI for sponsoring this video.
Speaking of the podcast,
if you wanna listen to our full episode
on "Pirates of the Caribbean",
the link to that Patreon-exclusive episode
is in the description below.
Thank you to the patrons of "Lessons from the Screenplay"
for making this channel possible
and thank you for watching.