Summary
- Pirate movies offer a thrilling mix of adventure, danger, and romance, making them perfect entertainment for audiences of all ages.
- From classic silent films to modern blockbusters, pirate movies have a wide range of stories and styles to offer, with some even focusing on children's adventures.
- The best pirate movies combine unique stories, impressive fight scenes, and stirring performances to create an immersive and enjoyable experience for viewers and critics alike.
There is a big difference between classic and modern pirate movies, but the best pirate movies are all grand adventures. The life of a pirate is a life of freedom, danger, and debauchery that make for perfect entertainment. Pirate films are fun and exciting adventure movies that provide a little bit of everything. There are usually great fight scenes, ship battles, and even some romance. Audiences can have a great time with these movies, and most critics can't deny their joy at getting the chance to become invested in the world of pirates.
From the classic pirate movies of silent film days to modern blockbusters like Pirates of the Caribbean, the range of pirate movies is a large one. Even some "pirate movies" are really tales of children's adventures. Swashbuckling can be found with the Goonies reading a treasure map or in many of Errol Flynn's fights on the big screen. Many pirate movies have earned their place in pop culture with unique stories, impressive fights-at-sea sequences, and stirring performances. The best pirate movies have combinations of all three.
20 Blackbeard's Ghost (1968)
- Available to stream on Disney Plus
Blackbeard's Ghost is a pirate adventure from Disney in 1968. This movie is about a track coach who has a supernatural encounter with the ghost of the infamous pirate, Blackbeard. This sounds like a bizarre concept, but critics really enjoyed the movie and found it to be solid family entertainment that delivers some laughs and is immensely creative. It's an intriguing concept, as it mixes the modern day with the world of pirates. It turns out that these two worlds meld much better than expected. That said, even among the family-friendly pirate movies, it's the weakest of the best pirate movies.
19 The Sea Hawk (1924)
- Unavailable to stream
This silent movie is based on the 1915 novel by Rafael Sabatini. Compared to modern pirate movies, The Sea Hawk might not seem as grand or as fun to watch, but it’s impressive for its era. The story follows an English nobleman (Milton Sills) who is captured and sold into slavery but manages to escape and become a pirate king to gain justice.
Instead of using miniatures to create battles at sea, entire ships were built and filmed on the California coast with more than 1,000 extras. It was an expensive undertaking, costing $200,000 at the time. The sequences were so well done that they would be used in movies for the next two decades, spliced into other movies to show battles between pirates at sea, including the 1940 Errol Flynn movie, The Sea Hawk, which had a very different plot.
18 Muppet Treasure Island (1996)
- Available to stream on Disney Plus
Muppet Treasure Island is a retelling of the classic Robert Louis Stevenson novel but with The Muppets. The Muppets fit very well in this movie, with Kermit the Frog as the captain and Gonzo as a member of the crew. However, the star of this movie is Tim Curry as Long John Silver, who is clearly having the time of his life portraying a pirate alongside Muppet characters.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of this film is the creative and memorable musical numbers that are guaranteed to get stuck in fans' heads. It's got a lot of humor, heart, and family-friendly pirate entertainment. While many pirate films are certainly not appropriate for younger viewers, this is a sanitized version of piracy that anyone can enjoy.
17 Treasure Planet (2002)
- Available to stream on Disney Plus
Treasure Planet is often forgotten among Disney animated movies. The sci-fi adaptation of Treasure Island, however, was nominated for an Oscar and received several nods at the Annies, an award ceremony specifically for animated projects. It was a beautiful movie to watch unfold as pirates took to space. Starring the voice of Michael J. Fox, the movie took the idea of Treasure Island and made the treasure map lead to another planet. It impressively stuck to most of the Robert Louis Stevenson tale, giving a fresh look at a pirate story that was also very familiar. It's definitely one of the best animated pirate movies out there.
16 The Goonies (1985)
- Available to stream on Hulu
The Goonies is the definition of a good time. It follows a group of curious kids who search for lost pirate treasure after stumbling upon a treasure map. Along the way, they face dangerous foes and obstacles that they will have to get through in order to find the treasure in a classic treasure hunt. The Goonies has lots of pirate moments, including a treasure room on a ship that was owned by a character named One-Eyed Willy. Critics really enjoyed this family adventure, and it is considered a classic movie from the '80s. It's hard to watch this movie and not be sucked into the adventure.
15 Porco Rosso (1992)
- Available to stream on Max
Porco Rosso is unique among the best pirate movies because it doesn’t take place on the seas. Instead, the pirates here are those of the air, fighting for space in the sky with their airships. The Hiyao Miyazaki movie was released in 1992.
Combining elements of fantasy with a post-war story, Porco Rosso sees a former World War I pilot become a bounty hunter, someone who hunts down air pirates. The fantasy elements come in because he’s cursed to look like a pig. The movie regularly features in best of animation lists, including Time Out’s 50 best animated movies of all time, and it won a slew of animation awards at film festivals when first released.
14 The Pirates Of Penzance (1983)
- Available to rent through AppleTV, Google Play, and Vudu
The Pirates of Penzance is a romantic musical comedy from 1983. Based on the Broadway play, the film appears as though it is straight from Broadway. The sets are very obvious, and the musical atmosphere is in every frame of this movie. It does have a lot of entertaining pirate moments, but the musical numbers are also clever, catchy, and fit in with the world of pirates.
It still manages to be a pirate adventure while also being a great musical. The action may not be as exciting as other pirate movies, but there is still a lot to love about this goofy, pirate musical. It's become a cult classic for musical fans.
13 The Sea Hawk (1940)
- Available to rent through AppleTV, Google Play, and Vudu
The true pirate movie classic from 1940 stars Errol Flynn as Geoffrey Thorpe, Queen Elizabeth's man on the high seas. Focusing on the conflict between Queen Elizabeth and the Spanish (and her famous 'sea dogs' of the time period), there are plenty of sword fights to be found here - enough that the film was nominated for four Oscars. It was also one of the highest-grossing movies of 1940.
Spies, pirates, adventure, battles, and more are set against a stunning soundtrack, and although the film is in black and white (and many aspects of it may be considered outdated today) it remains a classic... and a film to prove just how long pirates have been popular on the big screen.
12 Peter Pan (2003)
- Available to stream on Netflix
When it comes to movies that tell the tale of Peter Pan, most people think of the Disney animated classic and Hook. However, many overlooked this 2003 version of the classic story, yet it is considered to be one of the better versions by critics who found it to be a faithful adaptation of the novel that still manages to be a great fantasy story.
Captain Hook is a legendary pirate character who is on a mission to get his revenge on Peter. Here, he is played by Jason Isaacs, who always loves to play villainous characters. This version of Peter Pan may have been forgotten about, but it deserves more attention. It's got a gorgeous color palette and the young cast had amazing chemistry.
11 Peter Pan (1953)
- Available to stream on Disney Plus
Disney's Peter Pan is an animated classic that makes viewers wish they could stay kids forever. While there are moments in Peter Pan that have aged incredibly poorly, there is still a lot to love here. The animation is colorful, bright, and beautiful throughout. Peter Pan also has wonderful songs that will make any fan want to fly to the second star to the right.
Captain Hook is one of Disney's best villains, and it's just as easy to love his goofy sidekick, Mr. Smee. Hook and his pirate crew turn this animated fantasy into an imaginative pirate tale. Even Tinkerbell, the fairy that helps Peter Pan, got her own set of spinoff movies that created a whole franchise 60 years later. Those movies even feature pirate fairies.
