"Allowed" is a strong term. Like it if you will.

I posted in oyceter's LJ. Funnily, the first movie bothered me because I grew near a (the?) Port Royal which was a hotbed of piracy--the pirate capital of the world, and one of the richest cities in the Americas. So it was jarring to see their Port Royal, peaceful, and with dramatic cliff coastlines.

As for this movie, I was always taught about the Caribs who lived on the islands before the white man came and started importing slaves (and were not black, despite the impression left on oyceter). They spoke pidgin to communicate with the Europeans (really not an uncommon practice, and not a denigrating one, as far as I can tell) and performed religious cannibalism. Or that's what we were told. I understand it's under dispute right now--but under dispute. I'm not aware of it having been disproven. I was also startled to see that she couldn't understand the witchy-woman. I processed her as an Obeah-type practicioner because of her Jamaican accent (it seemed to waver to a couple other islands here and there, but predominantly yardie). Obviously I'm hardly a good control subject, but usually I can tell when it's not understandable.

Back from Pirates. I'd like to hear speculation on why Jack goes back to fight against the Kraken. His compass finally points true, and you think it's for the Black Pearl (as it was in the first movie), but then he says "it's just a ship." It doesn't seem to be for the crew themselves. Elizabeth ruthlessly sacrifices him to escape the Kraken. What makes Jack's compass point true? I have a notion, but it's based on minor spoilers for the next movie. Foreshadowed in this one though!

I could mostly understand her - and I figured that the cannibals were supposed to be the Caribs. So, it didn't bother me.

As with ita, I also understood that the Caribes practiced cannibalism.

Uh, my notion was that it was Elizabeth. I don't think a spot of underhandedness would bother Jack. (He'd do the same.)

Huh. That didn't seem that strong to me, but they definitely did set some of that up.

I understood the woman just fine.

If there's a documented Carib culture, then I'll give myself a pass.

For those of you who know my ScruffyWes love, it will come as no surprise that I am pretty much Norrington's bitch now. (edited just in case that counts as a spoiler)

As for the rest of the movie, the racial stuff bothered me a bit too, but maybe not as much as it should have, and not enough to stop me from liking the movie a hell of a lot. Not as much as the first one, which I bet I will be rewatching tonight, but still a lot.

I'm confused with oyceter's implication that it's racist because all the black characters have strong accents, given that it's set in the 17th C. Caribbean. t seems worse to me to suggest that characters can't be, I dunno, "acceptable," unless they speak with a nice middle-American accent.

And yeah, I thought the priestess/witch was perfectly clear. I had trouble with the guy in the rowboat who made Will swim to the island but I think that was more because he spoke quickly. Though nobody should tell Fay that the most evil human character is British.

Hec, I think my idea at the time was that Elizabeth was right, that he wanted to try being noble. . I'm not convinced of that, though. Alternatively, there's something inside the Kraken, or at World's End. I think the compass pointing to Jack when Elizabeth holds it is that kind of, er, misdirection, though. What's your theory?

--Oh! Wait! He wants to talk to Keith Richards, and he has to die to do that!

Lee, I was thinking he was sorta Wesley-like. Heh.

The guy in the rowboat...you know, that guy in that rowboat was speaking French, wasn't he? I understood him, so it's hard for me to be sure in retrospect (I remember what I understood better than what I heard).