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Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)

By Scott Root · July 26, 2011

Screenplay Genre: Action / Adventure / Fantasy

Movie Time: 143 minutes

1. INCITING INCIDENT

Elizabeth Swann (Keira Knightley), daughter of a governor in the Caribbean, feels trapped in a world of proper etiquette. Due to her social standing, she is unable to be with the man she loves, Will Turner (Orlando Bloom). When a commodore of the Royal Navy proposes — overcome by the feeling of her last freedom slipping from her grasp — she falls off a cliff into the ocean, which prompts Captain Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) to save her. However, Will’s magic coin, exposed to seawater, sends out a mysterious magical signal, and lures the cursed pirates. (00:15:07)

2. LOCK IN (End of Act One)

After receiving the signal from her magic coin, pirates storm the port where Elizabeth lives. They search for the coin and find her wearing it. She invokes “Parlay,” which she believes will protect her from being killed. The pirates take her to see Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush), and they kidnap her. Will breaks his rival, the eccentric Jack Sparrow, out of prison and teams up with him in order to save Elizabeth. (00:34:00)

3. FIRST CULMINATION (Midpoint)

While Will and Jack chase the evil pirate crew to rescue Elizabeth, she lies to the pirates about her surname name, giving it as “Turner. Believing that her ‘Turner’ blood will be the key to lift the curse, the pirates take her to the island, which the magical coin must return, to break said curse. They attempt the ceremony to remove the curse, but her blood doesn’t work. In their confusion, Will saves Elizabeth. (01:12:48)

4. MAIN CULMINATION (End of Act Two)

When Elizabeth and Jack are trapped on a desert island due to Will giving himself up, Elizabeth manipulates Jack into drinking himself unconscious and sets fire to their supplies, luring the navy to the island. Her fiancé and father show up to rescue her and take Jack into custody. (1:39:00)

5. THIRD ACT TWIST

Jack removes a coin from the treasure chest, rendering the curse upon himself and becoming an immortal of the damned. This action ultimately allows Jack to fight the evil pirates in order to help Will break the curse at the last minute. Jack then shoots Barbossa in the heart with the bullet he saved for ten years. (1:50:00)