The Count of Monte Cristo - Review

Discuss this movie on our message board!

Rated: PG-13

Release Date: 2002-01-25

Starring: Guy Pearce, JB Blanc, James Caviezel, Henry Cavill, Dagmara Dominczyk, James Frain, Luis Guzman

Directed by Kevin Reynolds (i)

Produced by Gary Barber, Roger Birnbaum, Jonathon Glickman

Written by Jay Wolpert

Reviewed by Joshua Tyler : 2004-04-12 00:00:00

Share |

Some stories never seem to wear out their welcome. You know, the ones that seem to get remade about once a decade or so for no apparent reason. Usually the director spouts on and on about "re-imagining" the storyline or making it a "tale for our day". Pretty much anything written by Alexander Dumas seems to fall into this frequently remade pack, so it's no surprise to see someone trundling out yet another remake of Dumas' classic novel The Count of Monte Cristo.

Jim Caviezel is Edmund Dantes, a simple and honest man, betrayed by his friends and falsely imprisoned. After years in bond, Dantes escapes and uses wealth gained from a secretly discovered treasure to become The Count of Monte Cristo and exact revenge on his betrayers. Chief among them is Fernond Mondego (Guy Pierce), who sacrificed their lifelong friendship to the fires of jealousy, stealing Dantes' fiancé (Dagmara Dominczy) through lies and murder.

Like all previous Monte Cristo incarnations, there is an element of romance to this film, that is likely to easily sway female moviegoers. Caviezel cuts a dashing figure as Dantes and displays a real vigor and energy for his character. Unlike his stunning portrayal of downtrodden widower "Catch" in last years JLo vehicle Angel Eyes, Caviezel exudes an air of electric charisma and intensity every moment he sweeps across the screen. Pierce too glows as the increasingly repulsive Mondego. Even his sneer seems to grow more wicked with passing years.

However, unlike most movies based on Dumas' tales, Monte Cristo isn't all swordplay. In fact, there is really surprisingly little fighting to be had. Instead, the movie takes its time to develop Dantes, chronicling his torturous solitary confinement in prison, and subsequent self-education and escape with a strong eye to detail. Monte Cristo is a constant build, filled with friendship, intrigue, and drama of the human spirit building to a final action packed moment of self-revelation and redemption.

Truthfully, Monte Cristo's most glaring and obvious flaw is its lack of French accents. In fact, I thought someone had decided to toss out Dumas' novel and set it in England, until someone got around to SAYING that these characters were French. I suppose no accent is better than bad accents... still it's a bit odd to hear French soldiers conversing with the British without any sign of difference, only to hear Italians trundling about with hearty pasta bearing tones.

Ethnic silliness aside, Monte Cristo is a smart and unpretentious period swashbuckler with the sense to do more with its screen time than JUST showcase large men in tights running about with flashy swords. Perhaps it's not anything particularly revolutionary, but strength of character and Caviezel charm easily win the day.