Rating: 
Summary: Swashbuckling, Romantic....
Review: "The Count of Monte Cristo" is a swashbuckling tale of love and betrayal, isolation and liberation, revenge and justice.
This captivating story pulls you back deep into the heart of Napoleonic France, where duels are an everyday occurrence and romance and intrigue abound. James Caviezel portrays young Edmund Dantes, a sailor who is betrayed by his best friend, Fernand Mondego (Guy Pearce), a wealthy son of a count. Dantes is convicted of treason, even though he is innocent, and is thrown into a dank cell at France's worst prison, Chateau d'If. Left in solitary confinement for years, the only time he comes in contact with other humans is when the ward of Chateau d'If comes in to give Dantes a beating every year on the anniversary of his imprisonment. Isolated and despondent, Dantes slowly loses his faith in God. The hope of freedom from his unjust imprisonment is gone. He has no room left in his heart for anything but hate and despair. Meanwhile, Abbe Faria (Richard Harris), a priest and fellow inmate at Chateau d'If, is digging a tunnel in hopes of using it to escape. Fortunately for Dantes, Faria digs in the wrong direction, leading him right into Dantes' cell. In exchange for Dantes' help digging a new tunnel, Faria teaches Dantes how to read and write, economics and mathematics, fencing and knife-fighting and even more subjects and skills. Faria showed Dantes how to make his adversities work in his favor. Before Dantes' daring escape from Chateau d'If, Faria gives him a treasure map. Dantes enters the prison as an uneducated sailor, and escapes as a wise, educated and confident man. He locates the treasure on the island of Monte Cristo, and uses his newfound wealth to help him assume a new identity, the dashing Count of Monte Cristo. Dantes, using his new identity, is determined to wreak revenge on everyone who betrayed him. Throwing opulent parties for Parisian society, he awes them with his wealth and splendor, all the while setting traps for his enemies, especially the smarmy Mondego. This film combines everything needed for the perfect movie -- romance, adventure, intrigue and even a little comic relief sprinkled throughout the movie. However, fans of the book beware: As usual, with any movie, parts of the story have been changed, added to or deleted.
Rating:
Summary: Great Movie!
Review: I just rented this for the first time and I thought it was fantastic! Everyone in my family enjoyed it. It's similar to the book but with all the unnecessary details taken out. Absolutely worth buying!
Rating:
Summary: Truly excelent movie!
Review: Dazling costumes, brilliant script, a swashbuckling hero, a sneering villain, and incredible rapier play. This movie has it all!!
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful
Review: It's a classic story but the re-make is so visually stunning that you will enjoy it again and again. PLUS James Caviezel is a real HUNK of a man! Loved the period costumes and the stunning scenery!
Rating: 
Summary: Great...until the ending
Review: I read the 'Monte Cristo' book a few months before the movie came out and I adored it, so I was really pumped up to see it on screen. First off, the actors were perfectly casted and the director did a great job adapting the book to film. BUT,I have to take points off for the ending. Whenever a book is made into a movie, the plot is tweaked and molded to be more entertaining visually. My issue was not just that the ending was changed, it was the COMPLETE OPPOSITE of what happened in the book! It was totally ridiculous! It was exactly what you would expect to happen, even though it was totally unrealistic. That's why I gave it only three stars. If you're speaking in terms of overall cinematic experience, it's a wonderful film. I suggest that you read the book first, see the movie, and judge for yourself. Or if you've already seen the film, go read the book anyway and see what you missed.
Rating: 
Summary: Not the Story, but Enjoyable Nontheless
Review: If you have never discovered the wonderful world of Alexandre Dumas, I urge you to run, not walk to the local library or bookstore and obtain a copy of "Le Comte de Monte Christo." I also recommend reading the unabridged version of this classic tale about a man who takes revenge on his enemies. One thing is certain: do not attempt to take the lazy way out by watching this adaptation of Dumas's novel. Two hours will never be enough time to adequately express the majestic beauty of this novel written by a phenomenal storyteller. Having said that, I enjoyed immensely this version of the story starring Jim Caviezel, Guy Pearce, and Richard Harris. Period pieces are often fun to watch, and this one is no exception. With a few problematic exceptions, "The Count of Monte Christo" is an entertaining film. The tale, if you are not familiar with it, focuses on a French sailor named Edmond Dantes. On a trading trip back to Marseilles, Dantes had the misfortune to stop at the island of Elba, the home of the exiled emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. With his captain dead, Dantes arrives in port and is promptly promoted to become the new captain. This step up in status angers several people around Dantes, specifically Danglars, Villefort, and Mondego. The three conspire to have Edmond arrested on charges of treason and thrown into a political prison called the Chateau D'If. Dantes spends years suffering in solitary confinement, although he eventually meets an elderly prisoner named Faria who educates him while they plan their escape. Moreover, this prisoner tells Edmond about a fabulous treasure that could be his for the taking. Eventually, Dantes escapes and embarks on a series of adventures that finds him returning to seek revenge against his enemies under the name "Le Comte de Monte Christo." This very short description of Dumas's novel obviously leaves out much of the plot. It also highlights the inherent difficulties in translating "The Count of Monte Christo" into a two-hour film. There is just too much detail, characters, and sub-plots in the novel to work with. The revenge plots Dantes formulates against his enemies alone are of such length and complexity that it would take hours to encapsulate them on the silver screen. Throw in the sub-plot of the Italian bandit Luigi Vampa (who does appear in the film), which is of immense importance in the novel, and it is impossible to adequately convey the full majesty of this classic on celluloid. Fortunately, this film manages to entertain while retaining key elements of the written story. The first part of the movie hews closely to the novel with a few notable exceptions. The film begins with Edmond and his friend Mondego landing on Elba, where they have a shoot out with British security forces before personally meeting the deposed emperor. Back in Marseilles, we meet Mercedes, Dantes girlfriend and a character who plays a big role in the written story. The filmmakers do insert a warden for Chateau D'If, played by actor Michael Wincott, who does not appear in the book. If you are familiar with Wincott, you will remember his voice and his presence. He makes a great addition here and has the best lines in the film. By the time Dantes returns to society as the Count, the film diverges wildly from the story. The revenge Edmond seeks here is too pat and too easily resolved. In the book, his vengeance is intricately planned and executed slowly over many, many pages. By shortening this sequence, the filmmakers sacrifice the suspense of the novel to time constraints and a waning attention span common in today's moviegoers. To be fair, the movie never tries to be a literal interpretation of the book (or so says screenwriter Jay Wolpert in an interview on the disc). In some ways, deviating from the book does make the story more compelling. The sword fights are great fun to watch, especially the final showdown between Dantes and Mondego. The scene where Dantes provides a way out for Villefort and then pulls back at the last second is a nice touch as well. Overall, although I think more elements of the book should have been kept in the story, the movie succeeds. Many extras on the disc make this well worth picking up. There is a short documentary about Alexandre Dumas, a location documentary, four deleted scenes with commentary, a film commentary from director Kevin Reynolds, a detailed explanation on how the sword fights were shot and choreographed, and an interview with writer Jay Wolpert. The picture quality and sound is top notch. I recall that this film disappeared from the theaters quickly, perhaps due to an aversion for period pieces or competition from one of those effects laden clunkers they foist on us every few months. I found "The Count of Monte Christo" entertaining and technically well done, and would certainly view it again.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: Being a big fan of the book and also of the great French mini-series starring Gérard Depardieu, I was very excited about this new movie. Well I must say that I was crestfallen, this movie should not have the title "The Count of Monte Cristo" it diverged from the original story that much that I had to hit the stop button before the memory of this wonderful tale was destroyed. Don't get me wrong, I am sure that this is a good movie in its own right, but it should be more than just loosely based on the original material.
Rating:
Summary: an ol' fashioned swashbuckle...
Review: "they dont make em like this no more..."
well... you can throw that phrase out the window, because they DID!!!
this is the movie, that if i were still a kid, i'd be done tied a bath towel around my neck like a cape, dashing thru my mama's house pretending the broom was a sword... making swooshin' sounds as i hacked a man down! this movie is so good, it brings back memories i aint never had! ahhhh, what coulda been! but it's not too late for us... we got this movie to fuel our imaginations... this is original-star-wars-type-classic... you gotta get this. sum.
Rating:
Summary: An entertaining swashbuckler
Review: From the producers of RUSH HOUR and the director of WATERWORLD comes this handsomely filmed adaptation of the Alexandre Dumas novel.
Edmond Dantes (Jim Caviezel) is betrayed by his friend Fernand Guy Pearce)and wrongfully imprisoned. While locked up he is educated and instructed in swordsmanship by an elderly man (Richard Harris) in the neighboring cell. Soon Dantes hatches an escape plan and sets off to exact revenge on his former friend. Dantes transforms himself into the mysterious nobleman, The Count Of Monte Cristo in order to get closer to Fernand and win his trust, thus setting his plot in motion.
COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO is an entertaining movie, though the first 20 minutes are a bit of a bore. Pearce and Cavizel are good and the fight sequences are well done; but the pace is a bit stodgy in parts and may try the viewers patience. It's also not that faithful to the book, but this is a Hollywood movie. The people who give these movies the green light have probably never read a full length novel in their lives. It's all about the $BOX OFFICE RETURN$!$. That said, this is still far superior to previous Dumas films 1993's THREE MUSKETEERS; and 2001's inexplicably bad THE MUSKETEER and a decent way to kill a couple of hours.
Extras include Director's commentary, deleted scenes, dailies comparisons and an interesting feature where the viewer can play a selected scene from the movie and watch it with the dialogue, foley or music tracks playing separately.
Rating:
Summary: Revenge at its most satisfying
Review: Starts out slow but stick with it, it gets much better. This movie is for anyone who enjoys seeing powerful people fall.
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