Whatever happens in these movies, the compass is the thing that helps drive the characters toward the action.
It leads Jack to the Isle de la Muerta in the first film, to the heart of Davy Jones in the second, and helps Gibbs get back the Black Pearl in On Stranger Tides. The compass is magical, and it points toward that which the holder most desires, be that treasure, love, or really anything at all. However, later we learn that the reason the compass doesn't point north, is that the holder isn't looking for north. It's dismissed at the beginning of the first film as a 'compass that doesn't point north,' an indication that Jack Sparrow is something of a joke as a sailor. Jack Sparrow's compass receives one of the great introductions in movie history. The only problem, we already knew how he got the compass, and this wasn't it. We also learn how he obtained his special compass, which has become a vital part of the franchise's history. We learn how he first became a captain, and where he got his hat. We get to see the moment that young Jackie actually becomes Jack Sparrow. One of the more entertaining aspects of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, is the way it expands on the history of Captain Jack Sparrow.
