The Pirates

"The Pirates" is an entertaining and epic South Korean comedy-action film in the key of "Cutthroat Island" and "Pirates of the Caribbean". It tells the fictional tale of several groups looking for the precious and significant Ming Emperor's Seal of State which was swallowed by a giant whale. A group of mountain bandits led by a former soldier and rebel, a righteous group of pirates led by the smart woman Yeo-wol and an evil group of pirates that teams up with a pitiless army clash on their quest for fame, redemption and wealth.

Even though the story is rather predictable, the acting performances are spectacular enough to get the viewers emotionally involved. Especially Son Ye-jin convinces as tough female pirate with a strong moral compass. The various settings from spectacular fight scenes in a military camp over vivid chase sequences in a coastal village to spectacular naval battles make this movie a gripping roller-coaster ride. The colourful costumes only add to this and bring the fourteenth century to life in a mostly genuine way. The special effects are slightly exaggerated but nevertheless well-executed and the deep-sea sequences involving whales are beautiful and ethereal. This potpourri of stunning elements makes this film one of the best pirate movies in a very long time without reinventing the genre but rather focusing on its strengths in form of spectacular settings, breathtaking effects and solid acting performances.

Genre fans should ignore the uninspired sequels of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" franchise that are childish and hollow slapstick spectacles. "The Pirates" is a creative, diversified and energizing film that offers something for every taste including spectacular fight scenes, dramatic and emotional passages, romantic relationships, some sinister suspense and a balanced dose of humoristic elements. Get your rum ready, get together with some of your friends and enjoy this stylish blockbuster with a smile upon your face.

So this really isn't just a copy of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies although it carries on a similar vibe. And when I say vibe, it's more of a slapstick comedy with Korean humor elements. When it comes to the story, it is actually similar to "On Stranger Tides" where multiple pirates and thieves are after the same thing. So yeah, this movie doesn't bring anything new except it takes place in Korea during Joseon Dynasty. Sure it's a movie that people with low expectations, especially when watched with the whole family can be a alright time. But the movie as a whole, when it comes to the story and direction it falls flat. The whole thing is more illogical then "Pirates of the Caribbean" movies minus the supernatural stuff. The humor falls flat as well, on a plus side it does have few moments when it comes to the silly action scenese. But besides that, everything else just seemed to drag and just wasn't interesting. I am not a big fan of Son Ye-jin but I thought she was pretty good in this one. It wasn't a super impressive role, but she was good. Overall, this is a pretty forgettable movie that isn't really worth the time to watch but isn't awful either.

5.8/10

This movie is just mindblowing. I have never seen a movie like this where pirates and bandits are bought together. When we heard the word "Bandit or pirates'' one thing that instantly comes to mind, there will be bloodshed, evil, snatching etc. But,in this movie these bandits and pirates are working to make people life better. Apart from this, Bandits vs Pirates concept is really funny where both are trying to catch a whale which swallowed a royal seal. I laugh out my heart, it was so funny and at the same time emotionally touching.

I won't add anything to the material Dare Devil Kid has already stated as I agree wholeheartedly with him. I will however look at this film from the point of view of a kung fu fan. (and why is there no category on IMDb for kung fu / martial arts? ) As an entry in the genre of martial arts oriental film making faithful to the traditions of Wong Fei-Hung and such classics as Project A, Pirates walks tall and proud and has no apologies to make. The timing and mixture of love, honour, tradition, comedy and drama are perfect throughout. These by the way make up the elements in the complex and near impossible to explain within the word limit here, concept of "face". As well, the sword work and fighting skills are nearly as good as anything Jet Li or Jackie Chan would be impressed with. Speaking of sword work, there is a lot of it and never comes off as anything but intense or bloody dangerous to the actors should they make a mistake. Based on the fight sequences and rope tricks alone, I would watch more of anything starring these guys.

Having seen more hours of this kind of film from China over the years, I'm surprised I hadn't ventured into the Korean historic martial arts scene earlier. J pop may be both alien and compelling to me but this genre is like walking into a room full of 80's Shaw Brothers films I'd somehow missed. What a deliciously tasty feast Pirates is to someone like me, it assumes you are familiar with all the significant bits of the culture and story, so don't lumber the film with a lot of klunky exposition as in some films that aspire to being seen at some point in the west. While my Korean is non existent, the easy to read sub titles ( that's important too ) seem to allow the original script's concepts and plot points to come through without the usual over simplification and ham fisted translation into western ideas that haunt many other such films. Most recently I saw a Korean anime that I'm sure was brilliant in the original tongue but was so badly dubbed it went from funny for the first 15 minutes to too painful for my brain to process. I'm sure this may in fact be the principle reason I might have steered clear of the genre till now.

Pirates deserves better distribution, a proper name in English and as mentioned somewhere else, is an object lesson for anybody considering making a film about pirates. There is more Errol Flynn 1940's fun factor here than the confused drive-by muggings of the Pirates of the Caribbean sequels churned out for the sole purpose of parting gullible people from their money. I will go so far as to suggest that in the event a DVD of this comes available in near the future, fans of martial arts films add this to the must have list.

It was funny and stupid, but still better then last 3 Pirates of the Caribbean movies