The
lowdown: 'The Three Musketeers' has been filmed many times over
the last eight decades or so,
with adaptations ranging
from the classic French silent film in 1921 to the animated Disney version
of 2001,
featuring Mickey, Donald
and Goofy as the Musketeers. The 1993 version was also made by Disney,
and stars
Charlie Sheen, Kiefer Sutherland
and Oliver Platt as the Muskeeters, members of an elite army that is sworn
to protect the King of France.
It is based very loosely on the novel by Alexandre Dumas, and in fact apart
from
the title and the names
of the characters, the plot bears little resemblance to the book.
The focus of the film is
very much on d'Artagnan (Chris O'Donnell), a young man whose ambition is
to become
a musketeer like his father,
and he travels to Paris for this purpose. However, King Louis has disbanded
the
musketeers, having been
persuaded to do so by the scheming Cardinal Richelieu (Tim Curry), who
plans to kill
the King and take his crown.
The three musketeers - Aramis, Athos and Porthos - refuse to lay down their
swords,
and join forces with d'Artagnan
to foil the plot to kill the King. Meanwhile, d'Artagnan is constantly
pursued by
Girard (Paul McGann) and
his brothers, who want to defend the honour of their sister. Girard has
a habit of turning
up all the time, such as
when d'Artagnan is about to be beheaded. Unfortunately, while Girard is
entertaining,he
comes across as way too
effiminate, and seems to be in the film only to provide comic relief. Nevertheless,
McGann is excellent in the
role, and his facial expressions at the merest hint of danger are a joy
to watch.
The
verdict: This is not a great film for those who are looking
for a faithful adaptation of the Dumas novel. It is a
light-hearted retelling
of the Musketeers story, with fast pacing, sword fights, lots of humour
and a script that never
takes itself too seriously,
as well as a fine cast of actors who are clearly enjoying themselves and
do not take the
script too seriously either.
Tim Curry in particular is superb as Richelieu, although this character
bears no relation
to his namesake in the novel,
and most of the cast does a fine job. This version of the Musketeers is
anenjoyable
romp, but viewers should
keep in mind that it is a Disney film, so it is very much aimed at a younger
audience.
Purists should skip this
film and instead watch the 1973 version, which more closely follows the
Dumas novel.
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