‘The Three Musketeers’ (2011): An Exciting Re-Telling of a Classic

Time and again “classic” literature is re-tooled for the silver screen and re-made into film adaptations. Somehow, no matter what they may look like or the end result turn out as, we still love ’em. Most of the time, the adaptations turn out to be productions on a grand scale even if they do make us fall to the floor laughing at their sometimes absurd nature. Such is the case with this newest (totally awesome) re-imagining of the Dumas classic. the three musketeers (2011)

The Three Musketeers (2011) Film review

France is currently led by a young inexperienced king. Married to a woman he loves but doesn’t know how to romance, King Louis XIII – and France is really ruled by the diabolical Cardinal. When missions by the King’s Musketeers begin to fail, they receive blame for their inaction. When another mission goes wrong following the betrayal of Athos’ lover and partner in crime, Milady De Winter (Milla Jovovich), the brave musketeers are ruined.

A year later, the young and ambitious farm boy D’Artagnan (Logan Lerman) travels a long distance to Paris to become one of these heroic men. Through a series of events D’Artagnan insults a trio of men who, unknown to him are musketeers. In an attempt to save face, he challenges each to a duel. Before they can duel, they must unite when they come under attack by Cardinal’s men.

Athos (Matthew Mcfadyen), Porthos (Ray Stevenson) and Aramis (Luke Evans) don’t like the idea of a young know-it-all tagging along. But when the Queen becomes a pawn in the Cardinal’s schemes, they are lay their lives on the line to rescue her. After all, the cunning Milady has Buckingham (Orlando Bloom) in her sights, and a devious plan in place!

Penned by well-known write Andrew Davies (a name from BBC period drama), this is a movie you will either love or hate. I for one absolutely adore this adaptation. Even at that, I will say, it’s also one that I think will grow on me with time. Since I went in unsure what to expect, another viewing won’t catch me off guard. The plot is familiar to anyone who has a favorite version of this re-told story by Alexandre Dumas but yet this latest adaptation stands on its own. the three musketeers (2011)

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Fun and stylish! This 2011 re-make of a classic costars Matthew McFadyen and Orlando Bloom. Have you seen it? The Three Musketeers (2011): An Exciting Re-Telling of a Classic Share on X

It’s important to know that this version of an iconic classic is not a serious historical piece. It’s this that’s part of the film’s charm. Nothing is really “serious” but yet at the same time, its “stylish” poise blends humor and intrigue. The tongue-in-cheek comical dialogue was witty (especially the hilarious banter of annoyance from the king when Buckingham upstages him). The end sets up a sequel potential (highly improbable), and also inspires a kind of “checkmate” moment between the Cardinal and the musketeers. After the three-plus film variations of this story I’ve seen, in this, the evil cardinal isn’t really evil.

The acting isn’t terrible although most of the actors either slip up in their accents or don’t have one while the queen, for some reason, annoys me (could be in part to her hairstyle, it’s… atrocious). I can think of two actresses’ who play her with more spark and spunk, but fortunately, she isn’t on-screen much. Naturally, the costumes is gorgeous as is all of the marbled palace halls and French scenery. The camera catches some truly breathtaking moments and as a fellow reviewer states, the final battle scene is just epic and… cool!

Fans of Disney’s “pirates” series will be enthralled by this. It doesn’t have the strength of the first film in the franchise but is still a fun time. The frequent comparisons are easy to understand. There are flying ships and high-flying action sequences, most of which are things previous adaptation of this story might not have ever considered. I know one thing: this movie is way more fun than it should be. If you want to see this story told with a bit more “edge” to it, then this won’t be your thing. If you want to have a good time, then this is the version to go with when in the mood for “one for all, and all for one!”

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Content: This is PG13 because of some violence. Characters receive stab wounds [one battle scene takes place on a steep roof leading to a death]; another woman falls off a ship into water. Cannons are fired and men are shot all without much gore or blood shed. There is some revealing period costume. Characters drink themselves into oblivion on one or two occasions. There’s a few crude comments, including a rare profanity.