Today’s review is brought to you by the letter ARRRRRRRR. (Sorry, I couldn’t resist…) In the past, it was normal for the Disney Studios to make a film, and then build a themed attraction based on that film in one of its parks. Last year was a little different, as Disney made two big-budget films based on already existing attractions. 2003 saw the release of “The Haunted Mansion” and “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.”

I initially had my doubts that either of these films would be any good, as I figured they would be no more that merchandise marketing vehicles. “The Haunted Mansion” was fairly okay, but when I saw “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl” I was surprised to find that it was of the most entertaining films of the 2003.

Directed by Gore Verbinski (“The Ring”), “Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl” was a cleverly written, rollicking adventure that puts any pirate movie in the last 30 years to shame. The decision was wisely made to take the pirate story to another level by adding an element of horror to it. Here we had pirates that also happen to be cursed to an undead existence, their skeletal-like appearance only revealed by moonlight. What made them even worse, was that they cannot be killed.

There are quite a few things that made this film work so well. But if I was to pick put any one element that really brought the movie to life, it was the performance of its star, Johnny Depp. As the renowned pirate Captain Jack Sparrow, Depp created one of the most wickedly funny characters of his career. This is saying a lot as Depp has made a career of playing against type by becoming some of the most unusual characters in modern film.

Though there are few who would admit it, Depp has honestly got to be one of the most talented and versatile actors working in film, and there have been many times he has delivered Oscar worthy performances, only to be overlooked. His Jack Sparrow is yet another of these in a long line of fully fleshed out and original characters. This time at least, he finally got that Oscar nomination.

Geoffrey Rush also had much to do with the film’s appeal, as his Captain Barbossa seemed to be the perfect picture of piracy. His look and demeanor embodied what I’ve always imagined a pirate captain to be. Orlando Bloom, hot off his stint as Legolas in “The Lord of the Rings” saga, also did a great job in the role of the young sword maker’s apprentice who must save his lady love (Keira Knightley) from the evil clutches of Barbossa.

Due to the supernatural nature of the story, it was necessary for the special effects to be good in order to sell the movie to audiences. Again, the filmmakers went beyond my expectations with effects that were as beautiful as they were frightening. There are scenes where the cursed pirates move in and out of the moonlight with lightning speed, and the transitions between man and skeleton were flawless.
“Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl” also turned out to be one of the most anticipated DVDs of last year. Disney just couldn’t release it fast enough for me, and it was worth the wait. That original release was a 2-disc affair with hours and hours of extra features. So many in fact, that I doubted we would ever see an additional release. But I was wrong…

Nearly a year after the release of the first DVD, Disney is re-releasing the set with an additional disc. This “Lost Disc”, contains several new extra features that were unavailable before. This is a weird release as far as the marketing as the original set is being re-packaged right alongside the additional disc, as opposed to designing a whole new 3-disc holder. And you can’t buy the additional disc separately. A lot of collectors are questioning this odd double-dipping. In essence, they are being forced to buy the original set, which they may already own, in order to get this extra disc. As much as I loved the movie, I don’t know if I’d need to own two copies (though I guees I could give the extra set away as a Christmas gift…).

I’ll get to these new extra features in a moment. For now, let me break down the features that were originally offered. If you can believe it, there were three separate commentaries. All three were worth a listen, but I think I enjoyed the one by the writers the most. They had a lost of inside information on the various directions the story originally went, and their enthusiasm for the work shows in their conversation.

I’ve never been much for deleted scenes since I figure most were cut for a reason, but for those of you who really like them there are a total of nineteen. On the side of the features I really liked were the on set diaries by producer Jerry Bruckheimer, actor Lee Arenberg (Pintel) and that of the ship that became the ‘Interceptor’, the Lady Washington. Bruckheimer’s is more of a narrated photo montage, while Arenberg’s is a full-blown video diary. This one was my favorite as it shows a lot of the cutting up and joking around that goes on between takes.

There is also a full-length ‘Making of…” documentary that covers just about every aspect of the production, as well as several shorter featurettes that focus in on specific parts of the film. The best one in my opinion was the ‘Moonlight Serenade’ Scene Progression that showed how the skeletal images were created in the computer and then placed over the actors in the scene. I also really got a kick out the blooper reel, though it is far too short.

Once you get through all of these extras, there is a great ‘Fly on the Set’ feature that gives you an insider’s look at several of the scenes as they are being shot. It’s as of you are there with a video camera and catching all the rehearsals from different angles.

Being a bit of a history nut, I appreciated the fact that the DVD gurus decided to include some background on the real world of pirates, utilizing film footage from the reel world of pirates. To make it interesting for kids, it is laid out as an interactive feature where you navigate around different parts of a computer generated ship. When you click on various items, you are taken to short videos hosted by a historian who fills you in on some of the details of a pirate’s life.

Fans of the great man himself, Walt Disney, will enjoy the 1968 episode of “Walt Disney’s World of Color” where he takes us on a tour of many of the original sketches and dioramas from the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ attraction.

If you have a computer, the DVD-Rom features are a lot of fun, too. One of the features allows you to import a picture of someone and actually make them look like one of Captain Barbossa’s undead crew. Might I suggest doing this with your mother-in-law’s picture… hmmm? Then there is another featurette on the making of the original Disneyland attraction, as well as an opportunity to navigate through 360-degree views of some of the scenes. You can also scan and compare either the storyboards or the script side by side with the film. This is a really good feature for wannabe screenwriters or storyboard artists.

As for the legend of this “Lost Disc”, it contains quite a few extra features that are admittedly well worth picking up the set again. There are two interviews where Depp and Rush talks about how they created their characters and what it took to ‘flesh’ them out, as it were. You’ll also find a featurette that looks at the Interceptor, from the building of it to its destruction, as well as a shorter featurette where you meet the two monkeys who shared the infamous role of the… uhh… monkey, in the film. The original set had those ‘Fly on the Wall” shots of some of the scenes, and there are about 15 minutes more of them on this additional disc. There is a look at some of the scenes in different languages to give you an idea of how the film was translated around the world and an animatic of the Sneak Attack Scene. The last two featurettes offer a reflection of early memories of the Disney Ride by some of the film’s cast and crew as well as a history of the attraction. This latter featurette is available on the previous DVD set, but only as a DVD-Rom feature.

Whether or not you’re willing to dip into your pockets again to pick up another copoy fo this set in order to get these extra ‘extras’ is up to you, but I definitely found them worth it.

Directed by: Gore Verbinski
Starring: Johnny Depp, Orlando Bloom, Geoffrey Rush, Keira Knightly
Extras: 19 Deleted And Alternate Scenes, Blooper Reel, Multiple Audio Commentaries: Gore Verbinski and Johnny Depp; Jerry Bruckheimer: Keira Knightley and Jack Davenport; Writers Ted Elliott & Terri Rossio and Stuart Beattie And Jay Wolpert, "An Epic At Sea: The Making Of PIRATES", Below Deck: An Interactive History Of Pirates, "Fly On The Set" Featurettes, Diary Of A Pirate, Diary Of A Ship, Producer's Photo Diary With Jerry Bruckheimer, "Walt Disney's Wonderful World Of Color", "Moonlight Serenade" Scene Progression, Image Galleries, Disneyland Pirates Virtual Reality Viewer, "Moonlight Becomes Ye" Effects Studio, "Dead Men Tell No Tales" -- The History Of The Attraction, Pirates Of The Caribbean Attraction Image Gallery, ScriptScanner(TM), Storyboard Viewer
The Lost Disc: “Becoming Captain Jack”, “Becoming Barbossa”, “Thar She Blows”, “The Monkey’s Name is Jack”, More “Fly on the Set Featurettes”, “Pirates Around the World”, “Spirit of the Ride”, “Dead Men Tell No Tales”, “Sneak Attack Animatic”
Specifications: Widescreen (2.35:1), DTS 5.1 Surround Sound, Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround Sound, THX Certified
Studio: Disney
Release Date: 12/2/2003
Region 1
MPAA Rating: PG-13 (For Action Adventure Violence)
Website

We'll give Pirates of the Caribbean: The Lost Disc an A-.