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If you haven't read the book by Alexandre Dumas then you
are a disgrace, but then you won't be worried by the fact
the movie is based-on, rather than a true adaptaion of the
literary work.
Personally, I don't think it matters because the story of
Edmond Dantes (Caviezel) fall and subsequent rise is very
nicely done.
He begins as a young officer on a merchant ship at the time
Napoleon Bonaparte is being sent off to his first exile on
the island of Elba. He meets the great man and is asked to
deliver a letter.
It is illegal but he thinks nothing of it until his best
mate Fernand Mondego (Pearce), who is seriously jealous of
his fiancee (Dagmara Dominzyk), finds out about the letter
and betrays him.
This sets our hero on a very sharpo downwards spiral and
he ends up in solitary confinement in the sinister Chateau
d'If - a prison where authorities send men who they are embarrassed
about convicting.
During his 13 terrible years there Dantes befriends the Abbe
Faria (Richard Harris) who not only teaches him to read and
write, but also swordsmanship and justice. He tries to stop
his protege thinking of revenge - but he makes little headway.
Eventually, Dantes finds a way to escape and via an encounter
with smugglers locates the legendary treasure of Enrique Spada.
In doing so he becomes the wealthiest man in Europe almost
overnight.
With his riches he then begins to track down and get his
revenge upon the swine who betrayed him.
Caviezel, who is a bit of a newcomer to these eyes, is excellent
as the hero. He's no namby-pampby goodie, but a good man twisted
into a vengeance-seeker.
Pearce is a mighty foil for him to play off as he has that
knack of being both interesting as a character and someone
you just can't wait to see run-through with a sword.
Harris again steals every scene he is in with what seems
like the most minimal effort.
The Count of Monte Cristo is a beautiful movie to
look at and while the video transfer is softer than you would
expect, it does boost the period flavour. The colours, however,
are gorgeous and situation specific - that is the exterior
shots are full on, the interiors more muted and the jail scenes
dark and claustrophobic.
Sound-wise there doesn't seem to have been a lot of imagination
put into the audio.
All up, you can forget most of the bad reports about The
Count of Monte Cristo. It is a really good modernising
of a classic and we can forgive its small faults because it
is a jolly good night's entertainment.
Conclusion: 85% Extras: 70%.
Continued:
DVD details at a glance >
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