Product: The Musketeer (2001)
Rating: 3.0
Weak lead drags action-packed MUSKETEER
Alexandre Dumas' classic novel of swashbuckling derring-do, "The Three Musketeers" has long been a favorite of film-makers ever since the silent days of Douglas Fairbanks. From the definitive version with Michael York, Oliver Reed and Faye Dunaway to the extremely campy Disney version with Tim Curry and Charlie Sheen, this tale never ceases to entertain. This latest version uses the old revenge sub-plot in which young D'artagnan (Justin Chambers) not only seeks to become a Musketeer, but avenge his parents' murder at the hands of the villianous Febre' (Tim Roth). In an attempt to "freshen up" the classic adventure, director Peter Hyams uses the classic fight choreography of martial arts specialist Xin-Xin Xiong. In that regard, the movie is a success as the fight sequences are quite amazing. However, the screenplay ignores the rich characters of Dumas' plot while basically reducing the classic trio of Athos, Porthos and Aramis to little more than minor supporting roles. If the role of D'artagnan had been played by a strong actor, it might've worked. However, a rather bland and flat performance by Justin Chambers in the lead as the heroic D'artagnan nearly sinks the entire enterprise. While he looks the part and handles the action scenes well, Chambers seems to have left all emotion on the cutting-room floor. As a result, Mena Suvari tries hard as his love interest, but has nowhere to go. As for the other Musketeers, only Steven Spiers as Porthos comes across with any sense of depth. Jean-Pierre Castaldi provides light humor as the wry mentor/servant Planchet. Catherine Deneuve is a regal delight as the Queen, while Stephen Rea is solid in his role as the crafty Cardinal Richeleu. Tim Roth is sneering perfection as the sinister Febre', despite the fact that his eyepatch has long become a cliche' in Musketeer filmmaking. Hyams directs the whole thing with a sure hand and is mostly successful in presenting the time period of the story. It's a shame that Chamber's performance drags this film down so much as this flick had a lot of potential. If you enjoy fight choreography, I do recommend this film. But if you want to see this story done right in all respects, see the 2 part Michael York films: THE THREE MUSKETEERS and THE FOUR MUSKETEERS.