Movies - Commodore James Norrington

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	Movies - Commodore James Norrington

Commodore James Norrington (played by Jack Davenport) is a brave and faithful officer in the British Royal Navy in Disney's "Pirates of the Caribbean" movie series, which, after the first film (2003) became an international blockbuster, is being expanded into a trilogy. The second and third films are due to be in theaters in July of 2006 and 2007 respectively.

In "The Curse of the Black Pearl", Norrington is first introduced as a Lieutenant on the Dauntless as it makes the crossing from England. Over the eight years that follow he becomes an established figure in Port Royal, and is promoted to Captain. As the movie begins, he his about to be promoted yet again, from Captain to Commodore, and consequently he wants to marry the Governor's beautiful Daughter, Elizabeth Swann, both because a wife is the only thing his enviable life is missing, and because he truly loves Elizabeth, having known her since childhood. However, Elizabeth is in love with Will Turner, a common, yet handsome and charming blacksmith. Norrington at first openly doesn't want her to be with Will Turner (creating something of a rivalry between the two), but later on helps them and Captain Jack Sparrow in their fight against Captain Barbossa´s evil cursed pirates and accepts Elizabeth´s decision to be with Will with dignity and grace.

Norrington's personality at first seems very rigid and noble, perhaps even slightly snobbish, but by the end of the first film you can see he is a much more compassionate man, who learns to better discern what is lawful from what is truly right. He becomes a character that the audience is made to pity somewhat; they slightly wish he had found love even though they feel that Will Turner is ultimately the better and more appealing choice for Elizabeth. It can also be suggested that Norrington serves as a foil for the character of Captain Jack Sparrow and, to a lesser extent Will Turner, as both are constantly breaking laws throughout "The Curse of the Black Pearl".

His personality is given yet more depth in several of the deleted scenes from the movie (specifically "Accepting the Proposal" and "Happy Endings"), where yet more of the rigid, snobbish persona is squashed, revealing him to be a genuinely kind and decent man, who is so deeply in love with Elizabeth he is prepared to give up any chance of being with her to ensure her own happiness.

Because of these aspects of his character, and the fact that Norrington is one of the characters within the film with the most depth and complexity, he has a considerably large fanbase, a fact that often suprises newcomers to the "Pirates of the Caribbean" fandom. Indeed, he is arguably one of the most popular characters, some say he is only dwarfed in popularity by Captain Jack Sparrow.

A recent trailer for the second film in the trilogy, Dead Man's Chest has shown Norrington dressed in more pirate-like garb with a full beard, and taking part in several major fight scenes, including what appears to be a duel with Will Turner. It is widely believed that Norrington will become a major character in the sequels.

[ Visit the complete Wikipedia entry for Commodore James Norrington ]

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