The Count of Monte Cristo (2002)

Fun Time in the Theater

Now this is a fun way to start out 2002. Take a classic Alexandre Dumas novel and give it the Hollywood treatment, complete with period costumes and a lightweight script. The tone for the movie is set by its advertising, which employs the cheesiest tagline ever -- "Count on revenge." You know you're in for a good ol' popcorn-munching time when the movie's tagline is a bad pun on the title of a piece of fine literature.

The Count of Monte Cristo is the well-worn story of a wrongly imprisoned man who escapes to exact vengeance on those who did him wrong. Edmund Dantes (James Caviezel) was a leading a good life in early 19th century France with a good job, a loving fiancee (Dagmara Dominczyk), and a years-long friendship with Fernand Mondego (Guy Pearce). Unfortunately, Mondego's jealousies lead him to betray Dantes, who is sent to an island prison. He languishes there for years until fortune brings him a friend in a prison-mate (Richard Harris) who is digging a tunnel to escape. This man also lets Dantes in on the secret of a hidden treasure, which Dantes will eventually use to finance his elaborate scheme to ruin the lives of Mondego and his conspirors.

This movie is standard fare, with good-looking sets, plenty of action, and clear-cut good guys and bad guys. It is well-paced -- the slightly-over-two-hour running time goes by smoothly and quickly. It has swordfights, pirates, treasure, a love story, and revenge. What more could you ask for in your escapism?

How about Caviezel turning in a convincing performance as a man who is gullible and guileless in the early scenes and is cold and confident in the later ones? And then there's Pearce, who traverses this movie wearing only one expression -- the one that says I'm-am-the-embodiment-of-slime. Naturally, Dominczyk gets all the cheesy lines as the love interest ("This ring will never leave my finger!"). Harris gets to be the Gandalf/Obi-wan of the story; Albie Woodington plays that crusty, oafish French bad guy with bad teeth; and Luis Guzman provides some comic relief as Dantes's loyal sidekick.

After sitting through so many films of "importance" and so many weighty dramas in the last month, The Count of Monte Cristo was a relief. It's a packed adventure that feels like a familiar bedtime story. I'm not sure if it will offend Dumas loyalists, but, as someone who hasn't read the book, I had fun. Is it a good time in the theater? You can count on it.

Rating: 7/10

©Jeffrey Chen, Jan. 29, 2002

Home