Product: The Musketeer (2001)
Rating: 3.0
Where is the rest of the film?
GREAT FILMS: The director/producers take the time to ensure the movie looks good, plays good, sounds good, and spins the audience into its web of wonder. All scenes are intact, with all pickup shots (close-ups, transitionary moments, shots of what the actor is looking at, shots of things unseen by the regular camera that are neccessary to let the audience know what is going unseen).THE MUSKETEER is not a great film. It is a good film that is missing many elements that could have made it a GREAT film.THE MUSKETEER is an interesting movie with nice - yeah just NICE - action sequences. Much more could have been accomplished as I found that these "action" scenes were fairly predictable.The acting is decent yet could have used a little more gusto. The characters seem to take way too many things for granted, leaving much unexplained in the sense that everyone knows all about the reasoning behind the motivation and why things are happening... This portrays the entire cast as shallow vessels, and opens up the can of worms reminding the audience that this is JUST a movie.I believe the following problems lead to the boredom I found myself enraptured within while viewing the second and third parts of the film (even though the beginning was pretty lame).THE SCORE. Where is the thrill? I believe that with a much better score that drove the action and story, this film could have been much better.THE MISSING SCENES. Near the middle of the film it is hinted that the lead, D'ARTAGNAN, has a history with his horse. We have seen no evidence of this. The writers and directors could have incorporated a short scene showing how D'artagnan bonds with the horse who becomes a companion and friend to him. The first time we see the horse, he is tagged to the back of the wagon fighting to keep up as they race away from the bad guys.There are also several moments - pick ups - that are missing. I think the director went after a "Quick CUT" style for this movie to keep the action flowing. This film, however, is not suited for such a drastic style. Transitions and little things that are missing throw the audience off guard, as we are suddenly in the midst of another scene of dialogue or action. This happens too many times throughout the film and makes me wonder if they just ran out of time/budget and cut together what was done and left it at that. NOT A GOOD THING.THE DVD EXTRAS. Laughable. Redundant. Laughable. Redundant. There is the "Production notes" which are simply a type-up of all the words spoken in all of the video extras which include, "Casting Justin Chambers" - a sixty second clip of the model-turned-actor talking about the movie and how it was a great experience. Then there is "The Stunts" - a less than five minute dialogue with the director talking about the wonders of the Stunt Coordinator, with nearly all of the "Casting Justin Chambers" footage clipped in as filler. The "Theatrical Trailer" is amusing in how they sliced and diced the more interesting aspects of the film into a promo piece that outshines the film itself. And why in the world do they bother to put "Widescreen anamorphic format" on there anyway? It is NOT an extra. It is the format of the film that - in my opinion - should be the only format they allow.A good film? Yeah.A great experience? No.A good plot? Sure.Good sound? Heck NO!A good rental? Maybe...Should you buy it? I do not encourage you.All for one and one for all? Nope.Overall, 3 stars is a generous rating. I enjoyed moments of this film. I am glad I did not waste my money in the theatres watching it. This is a film that had great potential but became a shallow, empty tale due to shoddy sound, editing, and lack of thoroughness.