Let's be real for a second. By the time Pirates of the Caribbean 2017—officially titled Dead Men Tell No Tales (or Salazar’s Revenge if you’re reading this in the UK)—hit theaters, the world was kinda done with Jack Sparrow. Or so we thought. It had been six years since the previous film, and the franchise felt like it was drifting in a sea of CGI and legal drama. Yet, there’s something fascinating about this specific movie. It tried so hard to go back to the roots of the original 2003 hit while simultaneously feeling like a fever dream of modern blockbuster tropes.
It’s messy. It’s loud. But honestly? It’s a lot more interesting to dissect than people give it credit for.
The Return to the Roots of Pirates of the Caribbean 2017
Directors Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg, the guys behind the excellent seafaring film Kon-Tiki, were brought in to steer the ship. They clearly loved The Curse of the Black Pearl. You can see it in the way they structured the plot. We got a young, headstrong guy (Brenton Thwaites as Henry Turner) and a brilliant, scientifically-minded woman (Kaya Scodelario as Carina Smyth). It was a blatant attempt to recreate the Will and Elizabeth dynamic.
Did it work? Sorta.
Henry Turner’s motivation is actually one of the strongest emotional hooks in the later sequels. He’s obsessed with breaking the curse of the Flying Dutchman to free his father, Will Turner. Seeing Orlando Bloom back, even briefly, covered in barnacles and looking miserable, reminded everyone why we cared about this world in the first place. But the movie also had to juggle Javier Bardem’s Captain Salazar, a ghost pirate who looks like he’s permanently floating underwater. Bardem is a powerhouse actor, but in Pirates of the Caribbean 2017, he’s mostly asked to hiss and spit black goo. It’s a choice. A weird one, but a choice nonetheless.
The Jack Sparrow Problem
We have to talk about Johnny Depp. In this installment, Jack Sparrow isn't the clever trickster who is "always three steps ahead" while pretending to be drunk. In this movie, he just... is drunk.
Many critics at the time, including those from The Hollywood Reporter and Variety, noted that the character felt more like a caricature than a protagonist. The "bank heist" scene at the beginning of the film is a perfect example of this. It’s a massive, expensive sequence where an entire building is dragged through a town. It’s visually impressive, sure. But Jack is mostly a passenger in his own action scene.
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- The De-aging Tech: One of the most talked-about moments was the flashback to a young Jack Sparrow. This used the same "de-aging" technology Disney pioneered in the Marvel movies. It was our first real look at how Jack became "the Sparrow," outsmarting Salazar in the Devil's Triangle. It was a rare moment of the old Jack—the one who actually had a plan.
- The Compass Retcon: Hardcore fans noticed a major plot hole here. In earlier movies, it was established that Tia Dalma gave Jack his magical compass. In the 2017 film, he gets it from his dying captain. It’s a small detail that annoyed the lore-buffs, but it shows how the writers were willing to play fast and loose with the past to make the current story move faster.
The film's budget was a staggering $230 million. You can see every cent on the screen, from the rotting textures of the silent Mary to the literal parting of the sea in the finale. But the heart of the story often felt buried under that digital weight.
Why the Trident of Poseidon Matters
The MacGuffin of this movie is the Trident of Poseidon. It’s a classic "reset button" item. Whoever holds it can break every curse on the ocean. This was a clever way for Disney to essentially "clean up" the franchise's messy mythology.
Think about it. By 2017, there were so many curses, ghost ships, and immortal pirates that the world-building was getting bloated. By having Henry and Carina find the Trident, the filmmakers were able to end the story of the Flying Dutchman and potentially start a fresh chapter. The climax at the bottom of the ocean, with the water held back like a salty version of the Red Sea, provided the kind of scale that justifies a theater ticket.
And then there’s Barbossa.
Geoffrey Rush has always been the secret weapon of these movies. In Pirates of the Caribbean 2017, he gets a surprisingly emotional arc. Finding out that Carina is his daughter adds a layer of humanity to a character who started as a skeletal villain. His sacrifice at the end is arguably the most "human" moment in the entire two-hour-and-nine-minute runtime. It’s the one part of the movie that doesn't feel like a cynical cash grab. It feels earned.
The Financial Reality vs. The Critical Reception
If you looked at the Rotten Tomatoes score for Pirates of the Caribbean 2017, you’d think it was a total disaster. It sits somewhere in the "Rotten" territory. But look at the box office. It made nearly $800 million worldwide.
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The gap between what critics want and what the global audience wants is massive. People in China and Russia turned out in droves for this movie. There is an enduring love for the Pirates aesthetic—the salty air, the Hans Zimmer-inspired score (handled here by Geoff Zanelli), and the slapstick comedy.
However, the film struggled domestically in the US. It was the lowest-grossing entry in the series at the time. This suggests that while the brand was still strong, the formula was wearing thin. You can only watch Jack Sparrow fall off a building so many times before you start checking your watch.
Production Struggles
Making this movie wasn't easy. Filming took place in Queensland, Australia, and was plagued by delays. Johnny Depp suffered a hand injury that shut down production for weeks. There were even reports of stray monkeys causing chaos on set. It’s almost as if the production itself was cursed by one of the movie's own MacGuffins.
The script went through several iterations. Jeff Nathanson, who wrote Catch Me If You Can, took over the writing duties. He tried to inject more humor, but some of the jokes—like the "horologist" running gag—felt a bit out of place for a Disney tentpole. It’s that tonal inconsistency that makes the 2017 film such a weird watch today. One minute it’s a dark horror movie about ghost sailors, the next it’s a literal cartoon.
The Future That Never Happened (Yet)
The post-credits scene teased the return of Davy Jones. For fans of the original trilogy, this was huge. The idea of Bill Nighy’s iconic villain returning to haunt Will and Elizabeth was the perfect setup for a sixth film.
But then, everything stalled.
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Legal battles, the "reboot" rumors starring Margot Robbie, and the general uncertainty surrounding Depp’s involvement have kept the franchise in limbo. Pirates of the Caribbean 2017 stands as a strange finale. It wraps up the Turner family saga but leaves the door wide open for a threat that hasn't arrived.
If you’re revisiting the film today, try to ignore the franchise fatigue. Look at the craftsmanship of the ghost ships. Watch Geoffrey Rush’s performance. Notice how the film tries to balance being a horror movie, a rom-com, and an action epic all at once. It’s a mess, but it’s a big, beautiful, expensive mess.
How to Experience the Best of 2017’s Pirates
If you want to actually enjoy this movie without getting bogged down in the plot holes, here is the best way to do it.
1. Watch the Original Trilogy First
You need the context of Will and Elizabeth’s tragedy to care about the ending of the 2017 film. Without the emotional weight of At World’s End, the reunion in Dead Men Tell No Tales feels hollow.
2. Focus on the Visuals over the Logic
Don't ask how the Trident works. Don't ask how Salazar's ghost sharks can swim but his men can't walk on land. Just look at the textures. The "Silent Mary" (Salazar’s ship) is one of the coolest ship designs in cinema history—a rib-like structure that "eats" other ships.
3. Pay Attention to the Score
Geoff Zanelli did a great job incorporating Klaus Badelt’s and Hans Zimmer’s original themes while adding a more Spanish, gothic flair for Salazar’s theme. It’s one of the best parts of the movie.
4. Check Out the "No Quarter" Behind-the-Scenes
If you have the Blu-ray or Disney+ extras, the making-of documentaries for this film are actually quite good. They show the incredible practical sets they built in the Australian desert, including an entire Caribbean village.
The movie might not be the "best" in the series, but it’s a fascinating relic of a specific era of Hollywood filmmaking. It’s the end of an era for the classic Jack Sparrow character, and for better or worse, it’s the last time we saw the core cast together on the high seas. Whether a sixth movie ever happens or not, this 2017 entry remains a massive, clunky, and surprisingly sentimental goodbye to the Golden Age of Pirates.