*** Official "THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO" Discussion Thread (1 Viewer)

[WoodyH]

I just watched this yesterday, and really enjoyed it. I had a rough idea of the storyline, though it was very rough (as far as I can remember, I read the comic book adaption of TCoMC when I was about 7...:b lol), and certainly not enough to pick up on an real discrepancies beyond the basic storyline.
So, from that standpoint, I was quite happy with what I got. A good solid story, wonderful acting all around (it's not often that I've seen someone age themselves as believeably as Jim Cavaziel did, primarily just through mannerisms and how he carried himself, from the boyish excitement at the beginning of the film to the solid, self-assured Count towards the end), and - very thankfully, IMHO - little to no over-the-top fancy FX work.
I've gotten very blase about fight scenes in recent years, as too many seem to use choppy editing and that horrid 'stutter shutter' effect to cover up the fact that the actor's can't actually fight worth squat. However, TCoMC was (for the most part, there was a bit of that 'stutter shutter' in the climactic fight, but thankfully not too much) very free of such tricks, allowing us to actually watch the fights. For me, this added greatly to the believeablity of the Count's progression as a fighter, as he was so clearly overmatched when he tried to challenge Guy Pearce during his betrayal scenes, but was later able to hold his own during the climax. Very nice to see.
(I think this was more discussion than review...lol...if not, nuke it I guess? )

 

[Mark Palermo]

I liked it. Good, old-fashioned adventure film, helped by strong storytelling and production design.

 

[GerardoHP]

What's the aspect ratio of this movie, anyone?

 

[Mark Palermo]

1.85:1

 

[Aaron Reynolds]

I quite enjoyed it. I did not go in expecting accuracy or faithfulness, so I wasn't disappointed on that front.
It was fluffy, had some good fights, had some great acting (I'd pay to see more of Guy Pearce as a sneering villain -- I wanted him to have a little mustache so he could twirl it), had some funny lines...but I think that what I enjoyed most about it was its simplicity. A friend and I were discussing it yesterday, and we decided that we were both very happy that TCoMC didn't feel the need to have the longest fight/biggest explosion/loudest soundtrack/fastest car-chase/most dangerous stunt/whatever, the way so many other movies have, of late. It told its story and then got off the screen.
I disagree about Luis Guzman as Jacopo -- I thought he was quite funny, especially in the scene where he "accidentally" uses the word 'gold' instead of 'shipment'.
Oh, and the costumes...oh, the costumes! I MUST HAVE that outfit that the Count wore to Pearce's kid's birthday bash.
I had a really good time at TCoMC. No, it is not faithful to its source material, but so what? The book is a classic on its own, and is still there. A good number of excellent films have been made that are complete corruptions of their sources.
Personally, I feel that this film of The Count of Monte Cristo stands on its own as a solid entertainment.

 

[Patrick Sun]

I thought it was average, not downright mediocre, but not quite a brilliant piece of work either. I thought the movie was most interesting while Dontes was in prison. The other stuff did not have enough angst given the amount of vengeance Dontes should have had in his plan for revenge.

 

[ikiru]

I caught this movie last night and I must say that while I did enjoy it, I absolutely hated the ending.



I felt that the character didnt experience a very good redemption. Throughout the whole move, God was a central part of his struggle with revenge. In the end, he only succumbed to the power of God AFTER he got his revenge. I would have liked to see him show some mercy towards the antagonist (the antagonist would have to have killed himself to have proper closure...it could have been a desperate act to avoid being arrested) and the count would have walked away a changed man. It seemed to me that the teaching of the priest didnt do anything for him.

-ikiru

 

[AJ Johnson]

I saw TCOMC last night and I would say it's average. The beginning all the way to the escape from prison was good and after that it just kind of drops off and everything is wrapped up too quickly. There was no real payoff during the revenge scenes. Guy Pearce's limited screen time was long enough that I could only get a mild contempt for him so the fight in the end was a big yawn to me. The revenge on the prosecutor was pretty good and funny though. Just as I suspected there were many similarities between TCOMC and Mask of Zorro. I thought Zorro was done a lot better and definitely more fun. Speaking of that, does anyone know if Zorro is a loose adaptation of TCOMC...I'm thinking there are too many similarities to be a coincidence.

 

[Mark Pfeiffer]

Ikiru,

I made the same comment in my review. It is rather convenient and contradictory.

 

[David Lawson]

I was drawing parallels between this film and Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves the entire movie, and it wasn't until I got home that I remembered that Kevin Reynolds did indeed direct both films. I guess there's something to be said for having a readily apparent signature style, but when your style happens to suck...

You know a film is bad when you even stop to think that A Walk To Remember might have been the better choice.

French people speaking with British accents were bad enough, but the pirates took the cake, having been reduced to nothing but comic relief. I almost wondered why they weren't wearing sombreros. I quickly grew tired of the one-liners and catchphrases, along with most of the dialogue, although Caviezel's delivery of the toast was well done.

It does irk me when novels are butchered this much. This one ranks right up there with The Scarlet Letter and Moll Flanders.