Pirates of the Caribbean was a fascinating attraction and story since it opened in New Orleans Square, Disneyland in 1967. One of the first pirate movies for Disney was Treasure Island (1950) which adapted the Robert Louis Stevenson novel. Another adaptation on the high seas was Kidnapped (1960). The live action Disney film, Blackbeard’s Ghost (1968) came out one year later. It wasn’t until 2003 that the ride was adapted into a blockbuster film series with Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. It changed the fortunes of Disney attraction adaptations with earlier tries with the tv movie, Tower of Terror (1997), The Country Bears (2002), and the same year as Pirates, The Haunted Mansion (2003). I like both Tower of Terror and Haunted Mansion as bringing and adding to the fun of the ride stories.
Pirates of the Caribbean, Magic Kingdom, 2010, photo by the author.
There was a film, Mission to Mars (2000), that had inspiration from a Disney ride, but the characters and situations are original in the movie. There were changes in 1997 with pirates chasing after food instead of women. In 2006, Davy Jones from the second film, was added to the misty darkness and Jack Sparrow animatronics. In 2007, Pirate’s Lair on Tom Sawyer Island was added to Disneyland. In 2018, the redhead from the auction scene was changed into Redd the Pirate. Attractions need to be refreshed with changes, but there are so many with Pirates that the story doesn’t make sense. The Pirate film when it was announced was interesting to me since the studios were shy about pirate movies since Cutthroat Island (1995). What I thought would be the key was the 1990 Lucasfilm computer game, The Secret of Monkey Island, by Ron Gilbert.
Check to see if any of this is familiar; young man hopes to become a pirate, not Will Turner, his name is Guybrush Threepwood (though they look similar), he has to travel to Monkey Island and face the Ghost Pirate LeChuck, shades of Barbossa? LeChuck attacks the island run by Governor Elaine Marley, Elizabeth Swann was the daughter of the governor. Guybrush runs into cannibals (save that for 2006’s Dead Man’s Chest). Gilbert was inspired by the Disneyland ride and also Tim Powers’ novel, On Stranger Tides, which was the basis of course for Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides (2011). So let’s look back at the ride story of the original. The boats are loaded at Lafitte’s Landing which is set in New Orleans. There was a French pirate, Jean Lafitte, but he is of course missing from the Pirates movies. This moves through the dark bayou with houseboats and alligators, until you enter brick tunnels and hear the ghostly voice of a talking skull.
Pirate's Lair on Tom Sawyer's Island, Disneyland, 2015, photo by the author.
It warns you with, “Dead men tell no tales” before you plunge down into Dead Man’s Cove. There are skeletons including the eerie sailor still clinging to a ship in a storm. This was used in the Pirate poster promotion, but not in the films. I recall strongest the crab next to the skeleton with a sword in its back. You eventually get to the cursed treasure and the pirate skeleton peering at a magnifying glass in bed. None of this is actually in the Pirates movies except the treasure on Isla de Muerta. The best part of the ride is the imagery, I’m constantly looking around, finding new things, corners, the sky. The point is that films give passing nods, gags, to the ride, but not the strong imagery from the attraction. The movies are not interested in scenary or strange looking supporting actors. Which is fine, the movies can take inspiration, but be separate from the ride, which is probably in part the reason for their success.
This takes you to the full size pirate ship, the Wicked Wench, which was commanded by a black-bearded Pirate Captain. Captain Barbossa from the films replaced him in 2006. So you caught in between a cannon battle between the pirate ship and the fort of Isla Tesoro. It would be great if the upcoming Pirates film would have boats going through a battle. Then, the boat enters the town of Puerto Dorado, and there we see the mayor, Carlos, dunked by rowdy pirates. I also hope the new Pirates film would have more of the ethnicities that are in the Caribbean. I took a cruise that went to the Bahamas, the people there are not who was in the Pirates movies. Then, we get the auction scene, the “Take a Wench for a Bride” is replaced with a sale of chickens? It is held by a pirate captain with a red beard, next to what looks like his wife, and now Redd the Pirate who wants to sell rum. Jack Sparrow is seen hiding throughout the ride.
So what is confusing is what is the story? The story is Jack Sparrow trying to get some of the treasure, with Barbossa, another captain, and Redd? Barbossa is entering the town, missing from that point, Redd and the pirate captain are selling items, and Jack Sparrow is after the treasure? The fun adventure of the attraction is just confusing. Shanghai Disneyland has the high tech attraction, Pirates of the Caribbean: Battle for the Sunken Treasure which opened with the park in 2016. This of course has a cohensive storyline bringing moments from the films. The last Pirates film was Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales (2017). It was announced in June 26th that there will be a new Pirates film starring Margot Robbie. I imagine that there might be some questions of how can there be a Pirates movie without Johnny Depp’s Jack Sparrow? I can see how the filmmakers could craft a movie that has the action and tone of Pirates and bring in the original story of the ride.
Shanghai Disneyland of course has the new Pirates ride. Possibly Hong Kong Disneyland can keep the Pirates attraction styled on Disneyland. I think Tokyo Disneyland should have a re-themed Pirates ride with the Margot Robbie character. So what would this re-theming look like? Again, I think the movie should have the constructs of the attraction, the cursed skull, the skeleton helmsman, and Puerto Durado with its burning. Her ally could be the black bearded captain and rival, the red bearded captain. I’m really hoping Margot Robbie will be playing the real life Irish pirate captain, Grace O’Malley, or a character based on her. The rest is all up to the filmmakers. I can see Disneyland’s attraction re-themed to get the back story of the bearded captains maybe with Margot Robbie as Redd! Disney World can be themed to the Margot Robbie movie. So this would be Pirates around the world, each unique, so you wouldn’t get the same ride at a different park. There is potential with the Pirates movie franchise and the theme park attractions!
#PiratesoftheCaribbean, #Disneyland, #SecretofMonkeyIsland, #MargotRobbie
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