Some films are not meant to be meaningful or significant in any way; they are meant simply to be distractions, entertainment, diversions, or, in short, movies. The Count of Monte Cristo works best as a movie, but falters when it tries to be a film.
It's certainly not new territory, the Cristo story. Alexandre Dumas, the author of the classic novel of the same name, is one of those writers, like Shakespeare, whose works have lent themselves to countless adaptations (he also wrote the Three Musketeers tales). There have actually been 105 screen versions of Dumas' various works dating back to a silent adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo in 1913. On top of that, 1998's The Mask of Zorro, intentionally or unintentionally, shares striking similarities with Cristo.
But, director Kevin Reynolds and screenwriter Jay Wolpert do a decent job of telling the story in a way that makes it fresh and vibrant. The film, set in the early 19th century, begins on the island of Elba, where Napoleon has been exiled. Two shipmates, Edmund and Fernand, who are best buds, brave the island in hopes that they can get their ailing captain much-needed medical attention. They manage to get a doctor for the captain, but at a price.
Napolean asks that Edmund return the favor by delivering a letter to an old friend of his in France. Edmund naively agrees and the mistake haunts him for the rest of his life, as Fernand betrays him and has him thrown in prison -- and steals his girl. Edmund, understandably peeved about his situation, starts plotting revenge on Fernand and the others who conspired to have him incarcerated.
Luckily, while rotting in the confines of a hellish prison, Edmund makes a friend. Richard Harris, fresh off his much-lauded portrayal of Headmaster Dumbledore in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, plays a soldier-turned priest, wrongfully imprisoned. Though Edmund and he spend most of their waking hours digging to a distant freedom, the priest spends the rest of the time schooling his uneducated neighbor on literacy, mathematics, business, and, naturally, swordplay. Slowly, they edge toward escape and, after gaining his freedom, Edmund assumes the identity of a mysterious nobleman, the Count of Monte Cristo.
The cast is probably the best reason to see the film. The vastly underrated James Caviezel (The Thin Red Line, Frequency) stars as Edmund Dantes, in a stellar performance that tracks his transformation from an innocent, gawky fool in love to the cold, scheming title role. Guy Pearce (Memento, L.A. Confidential), who is gradually becoming one of my favorite actors, is splendidly sinister as the ignoble Fernand. Dagmara Dominczyk, a relative newcomer (unless you saw Rock Star) holds her own as Edmund's lover/Fernand's wife, Mercedes. Richard Harris is a godsend in the role of the wise, weary, warrior priest, wheezing his way through a prison break at age 70. And, much to my delighted surprise, Luis Guzman -- of Traffic and Boogie Nights fame -- shows up and almost steals the show as Edmund's loyal sidekick.
The film's weaker moments come from its attempt to justify itself as something more than a simple revenge/adventure yarn. This comes in the form of a religious "conversion" which Edmund apparently has either in prison or shortly afterwards; the film is rather unclear about when Edmund's faith is truly restored, though by the end we are led to believe that his thirst for revenge was religiously motivated. It is a betrayal to Caviezel's dark, multi-dimensional performance to excuse Edmund's heartless deeds as noble and even religious.
But, the cast consistently comes through and saves us from the sketchy plot. Pearce is so connivingly cool as the villain that it's a remarkable credit to Caviezel that we're actually rooting for him to win. In another movie, with a less interesting protagonist (read: Robin Hood, Zorro, et al.), I'd have been rooting for Fernand to rise to the top and stay at the top, forever reveling in his dastardliness. But, Caviezel is truly in a zone as Edmund and, particularly, as the Count, and thus keeps us on his side.
As far as revenge tales go, this ranks almost as well as Gladiator, but nowhere near Memento or Braveheart. The swordfights are competently staged and Edmund's scheme is ingenious, but the vengeance angle is underdeveloped and ultimately misused. This is a shame, because Caviezel seems to know exactly what he's doing, wavering back and forth between hero and anti-hero. I wouldn't know whether to blame screenwriter Jay Wolpert or Dumas himself for the incongruity of script and character (I never read the book), but regardless it seems dishonest and unfair to the character.
Despite this, however, I'd marginally recommend the film as a healthy, pleasant diversion.
