The Count of Monte Cristo is one of the most beloved novels Alexandre Dumas wrote and yet of the many adaptations of the giant novel, few have managed to capture the essence of the novel. At the end of the novel, the work concludes with the line “All human wisdom is contained in these two words: Wait and Hope.” This film, a French adaptation from Matthieu Delaporte and Alexandre de La Patelliere, is perhaps the first to truly grasp what was intended in those words and convey them without needless padding or cruel cutting.
Courtesy Samuel Goldwyn Films
As Edmond Dantes, the titular character of the work, Pierre Niney conveys a range of emotions, but never strays from the patience Dantes uses to achieve his goals, nor the hope in which he eternally lives. This is not a pleasant adventure film. This is not even a Three Musketeers, where there are cruelties interspersed with the action and adventure. This is a story of sadistic selfish acts perpetrated on the innocent and an examination of the response to those acts by those that endured the injustices.
That the film is lavishly mounted is obvious from the start, but the directors manage to keep the nearly three-hour film flowing magnificently by not only having a perfectly cast company of actors, but keeping their camera very active. This is not a frenetic film but even in scenes where two characters are talking, there is a sense of space, place and motion that draws in the viewer. It is also a film that begins with a literal bang, an explosion on a ship at sea, and the rescue of a mysterious woman. It is a scene that demonstrates the visual majesty and lack of budgetary constraints to come.
Courtesy Samuel Goldwyn Films
The period detail is phenomenal but not the point of the film. Instead, the film allows us to get inside the head of Dantes in a way other adaptations have not, and this is largely down to Niney, who gives a full bodied yet not over the top performance. Unlike other versions of the story, you may find yourself wondering if Dantes might go too far. Not because those who acted against him do not deserve terrible punishment, but because you care enough about him not to see him fall, not to see him waste his waiting and hope. It is the first version of the story to never lose sight of the main theme of the novel while also keeping it rooted as the struggle Dantes must have within himself.
As Fernand de Morcef, Bastien Bouillon is a truly hissable villain, and Anais Demoustier is a vibrantly gullible Mercedes Herrera, the love of Dante’s life whom Fernand takes while Dante is away. The film, even more than the book, focuses on her love of her child with Fernand, and the promise she extracts from Dante not to harm the child, Albert. Much of the tension within is based around what might happen to Albert, and will Dante/Edmond. The final duel, in which Edmond makes a fateful decision about Fernand, is rife with tension and edited in ways which draw out the suspense and build character. Leone might be proud.
Courtesy Samuel Goldwyn Films
Yet, this is not a perfect film. It is an excellent adaptation, probably the best yet of the Dumas classic, but it has moments, owing to the source material, in which there are small stretches of boredom. While the film never crawls to a halt, there are times that one might wonder “when will we get on with it?” but that is a relic of the source material. It is difficult to get the sort of interiority in a novel properly displayed on screen. This is a leisurely experience that nevertheless keeps moving and is worth the investment and a little patience.
The Count of Monte Cristo is now playing in theaters.
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