In 1815 France, Napoleon Bonaparte the usurper is in exile and a merchant ship comes upon a boat in distress. Against the orders of his brutal Captain Danglars (Patrick Mille), the brave sailor Edmond Dantès (Pierre Niney) rescues a drowning woman. For his chivalry, he receives a promotion to Captain and while it looks like his dreams are coming true, this is in reality the beginning of a nightmare.
Back on land and with his newly elevated title, Edmond proposes to his beloved, the high born Mercédès (Anaïs Demoustier). With his best friend and Mercédès’ cousin Fernand (Bastien Bouillon) by his side, the wedding day comes quickly. Yet so does betrayal, as Edmond is led away by armed soldiers under the accusation of being an agent of Bonaparte and a spy. Confiding in corrupt state prosecutor Gérard de Villefort (Laurent Lafitte), Edmond has no idea of the mess he has fallen into. Expecting to go free immediately, he is instead falsely imprisoned and locked away for a long, LONG time.
This is only the start of Edmond‘s story, however. A chance meeting with fellow inmate Abbé Faria (Pierfrancesco Favino) brings about escape, a change in fortune and with it a perverted form of justice. Imprisoned for years, Edmond only now learns of the true extent of the conspiracy which plagued him. But he has had over a decade to train his body and his mind for his long-awaited revenge, and now he has the finances to see it through. As the mysterious ‘Count of Monte Cristo‘, he won’t just kill those who wronged him, he will rip out their hearts!
Complimenting his most famous work ‘The Three Musketeers‘, French author Alexandre Dumas followed it up with his masterpiece, ‘The Count of Monte Cristo‘ (1846). An epic tale of adventure, love, loss and revenge that was a hit with his readers and has since seen many adaptations to stage and screen. With this recent film being the most ambitious and most expensive film ever produced in France, and its most successful retelling. It is only fitting that following their hit duology adaptation of The Three Musketeers: D’Artagnan & Milady (2023) writers Matthieu Delaporte and Alexandre de La Patellière should follow up with another Dumas adaptation, this time directing also.
Dumas‘ world looks as beautiful as ever with cinematographer Nicolas Bolduc returning, following his work on The Three Musketeers. Although still described as a ‘swashbuckler’, things are much more grounded. So, while not nearly as action heavy, the story features the same sweeping shots of landscapes and intense night-time scheming whispers by candlelight.
The Count of Monte Cristo feels rich and authentic to the period (if perhaps the glossed-up version) and Thierry Delettre‘s costume design are appropriately stunning and at times depressing, depending on the occasion. Really, besides the action sequences, if there is something The Three Musketeers duology did well The Count of Monte Cristo likely has the same creative minds working to live up to that standard!
I know of lead actor Pierre Niney more for his comedic work, yet as one of France’s most accomplished actors, he is well suited to leading this epic. As we are introduced to various dignitaries, spies, criminals and drunks along the way, The Count of Monte Cristo is always Edmond‘s story. Great care has been taken early on to establish him as a noble man thrust into a heartbreaking and evil plot. Still, you may find yourself questioning his morality as vengeance is now the only thing fuelling the man’s survival, with Niney showing that growing anger burning away in his eyes.
The story takes place over the course of 20 years, but also as part of his plan, Edmond makes use of elaborate disguises and prosthetics. With some of the same Academy Award winning artists behind The Substance (2024), the effects are believable and engrossing.
The Count of Monte Cristo portrays Edmond‘s disguises as full-on masks akin to Mission: Impossible which could break immersion. With Pierre Niney always obviously the man under the fake nose and wig, it might be curious how nobody else recognises him. I see this bit of visual dissonance as more a narrative tool as one would see on the live stage. We the audience know it is Edmond behind the scam as we are in on it, but the targets however are none the wiser.
If there’s only one issue with The Count of Monte Cristo, it is in the sheer impossibility of adapting the story adequately in a single film. Alexandre Dumas‘ book is best described as an over 1000-page tome! Even at 3 hours long, elements of the film’s second half feel rushed or generally underdeveloped. Particularly when it comes to Edmond‘s young co-conspirators and their backstory, or the schemes of his enemies in the decade since his incarceration. To put it into perspective, 2024 also saw an 8-hour long miniseries tackling the same story.
But that said, this is quite possibly the best, most accurate single film adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo yet. The story never drags for its runtime, constantly moving and changing with each new twist and turn.
The Count of Monte Cristo is in cinemas now.