Rating: 
Summary: The (now) Complete Musketeers
Review: Of course these are 5 star films so I'll just comment on the new release 2 DVD set. The picture and sound quaity is GREATLY improved over the fox/lorber release and both films are presented in their CORRECT widescreen with The Four Musketeers offering a choice of pan n scan or widescreen. Includes great current day interviews with Heston, Lee, Welch, York, Salkind among many others on the making of the film. Even the 'two movies' dispute is discussed in detail by all!! Nice packaging, great interviews and improved transfer makes this a must for upgrade. Too bad Return wasn't included. If you havent seen these films get set for a real treat. I wish I could go back and see them for the first time again. They don't make 'em like this anymore...
Rating:
Summary: "Take One More Step, D'Artagnan...and We Shall Cross Swords"
Review: When I was growing up in the early '70's, I saw the original theatrical premieres of both Musketeer movies.To a suburban nine year old, there is nothing more rousing then seeing someone shout "one for all and all for one" and then go off and kill half the evil Cardinal's guard in a sword fight. But seriously, as a kid I loved these two movies.Now, nearly thirty years later, director Richard Lester's 1973 "The Three Musketeers and it's sequel, "The Four Musketeers" more then hold up as the best film versions of the often told classic, Alex Dumas tale. Richard Lester (director of the classic Beatle's movie "A Hard Day's Night")has created two rousing movies that are equal parts humor, pathos and adventure. The well known story moves on at a fast and furious clip without any detriment to the well rounded characters. The movies feature a marvelous 1970's international cast. The young and niave, D'Artagnan is wonderfully played by Michael York. His Musketeer cohorts are also well played with distinct personalties and good characterizations (Oliver Reed, Richard Chamberlain and Frank Finlay). Reed is particulary good as the drunken, dark and melancholic musketeer, Athos.On the other side of of the coin is is the cunning and politically motivated, Cardinal Richelieu (Charlton Heston) and his nefarious underlings Rochefort (Christopher Lee) and Milady d'Winter (Faye Dunaway).I mean how can a movie not be great with these three actors as the bad guys???? The story is not treated as some musty old tale from bygone days.The script is very fast, funny and witty. The characters are not wooden with thees and thou's coming out of their mouths.They act like you or I, with many human foibles and for the most part, are motivated by normal needs (such as love, sex, money, and power).Besides some great acting, the films also feature some of the greatest swordplay and stunt work ever put to film. The second film's last sword fight between D'Artagne and Rochefort in a cathedral, keeps my pulse beating hard no matter how many times I've seen it! The two films are now together under the DVD title "The Complete Musketeers". The picture and it's remastering is a lot better then previous DVD incarnations.The sound quality is just fair. The extras on the DVD are excellent. Both films feature wonderful documentries, that include participation and comments from many of the actors and production people. For great adventure and comic entertainment, I highly recommend the "The Complete Musketeers".
Rating:
Summary: Easily the Best Version but what about the Region!
Review: I love these films! Pure joy! They differ a little from the books but the spirit is spot on! What annoys me is that I cannot buy this pack because it is not in my region (Australia)!!! This whole region thing is a cruel joke. It is especialy unnessesary when it is an old film like this. When will these distributors wake up to themselves???
Rating: 
Summary: Grand Entertainment on a large scale.
Review: The Three and Four Musketeers I recommend to anyone who loves swashbucklers and the writings of Alexandre Dumas.These films remain pretty faithful to the original novel.Michael York does an excellent job as D'Artagnan.The musketeers excellently played by Oliver Reed(not as attractive as Athos in the book),Frank Finlay (not as tall or large as Porthos in the book or other screen versions),Richard Chamberlain (perfectly cast as Aramis).Raquel Welch did a great comedic turn as Constance but did not fit the characterization in the book.Faye Dunaway perfect in her acting ability as Milady de Winter.Christopher Lee and Charlton Heston great in their rolls as Count de Rochefort and Cardinal Richelieu.Simon Ward,Geraldine Chaplin,Jean Pierre-Cassel,Roy Kinnear and Spike Milligan also very good as the Duke of Buckingham,Queen Anne,King Louis,D'Artagnan's servant Planchet and Constance's cuckold of a husband Monsieur Bonancieux.The costumes,acting and scenery excellent for this period swashbuckler.I highly recommend it.Be sure to watch both parts to get the full story.Part 1 deals with D'Artagnan and the musketeers saving the Queen's honor from the machinations of Cardinal Richelieu and his agents "The bad and beautiful Milady de Winter and her lover Rochefort two birds of prey in fine feathers".Part 2 known as the Four Musketeers deals with the Cardinal and agents going for revenge against D'Artagnan and the Musketeers and viceversa.To fans of this version Ursula Andress was also considered for the part of Milady de Winter (an excellent choice,good actress and a real blonde beauty) and Charlton Heston was first wanted for the part of Athos but demanded the part of Cardinal Richelieu and got it.For those who love this version also be sure to see the sequel The Return of the Musketeers:The Musketeers 20 Years After.It has the same cast as the Three and Four Musketeers filmed 14 years later and also might add it has some new character additions.It's ashame that Oliver Reed and Roy Kinnear are gone.There could have been a fourth film about the Musketeers final days.If you want full film treatments of this novel I recommend The Three Musketeers-Gene Kelly version,The two part French version of 1961-62(quite similar to this one)the 1999 145 minute made for video stageplay and the Douglas Fairbanks 1921 version and its sequel the Iron Mask which not only deals with the Man in the Iron Mask Story but with the second half of the Three Musketeers novel (Fairbanks versions were Richard Lester's (Director of the Three,Four and Return of the Musketeers)favorites.If you've never seen these see them.If you have seen them and love them-BUY THEM!
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Summary: ANCHOR BAY DOES IT AGAIN!!!
Review: You can tell that the folks at Anchor Bay Entertainment love movies. It shows in every disc they release (like last years wonderful "MAD MONSTER PARTY" DVD). And this new release of director Richard Lester's delightfully enjoyable 70's comedy/ swashbuckler's "THE THREE MUSKETEERS" and "THE FOUR MUSKETEERS" in one 2-disc set is yet another example of their care and love. This is a wonderful release and a superior job over the DVD's Fox-Lorber have had on the market for the last couple of years. No one ever mentioned it (maybe nobody noticed it), but the Fox-Lorber DVD of "3 MUSKETEERS" was missing about 1 minute of footage in a scene between Charlton Heston and Christopher Lee. These new discs have the complete versions of both films and they look and sound great! For the first time they are presented in anamorphic widescreen in their proper aspect-ratio (full screen versions are also included but I haven't yet viewed them so I can't comment on them). The extras are also very nice. Two half hour documentaries on each disc includes interviews with stars Raquel Welch, Christopher Lee, Charlton Heston, Michael York and Frank Finlay and producers Ilya Salkind and Pierre Spengler. Trailers, tv spots, radio spots, photo & poster galleries and star biographies (that are actually informative and worth reading) round out this very pleasing package! Buy it, watch it and enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: ALMOST PERFECT
Review: Almost, but not quite. Too much unnecessary slapstick, especially in Part One, and the Spanish locales used in both films (well, three films actually, if you include THE RETURN OF THE MUSKETEERS, 1989) cannot possibly pass for France. But still, very lavish, handsome and entertaining films the whole family can enjoy. I was especially impressed with the costume designs and period detail, and I never tire of watching Raquel Welch in just about anything, but the entire cast was equally excellent. A definite must for Dumas aficionados. Peace, bro.
Rating:
Summary: A Swashbuckling 2 DVD Set!!! Awesome!!! 5 Stars!!!
Review: This is the ultimate collection of these two classic movies!!! Two Thumbs Up!!! Anchor Bay does another quality job with this "Complete Musketeers" 2 DVD set!!! You get both full and widescreen versions of both movies(The Three Musketeers and The Four Musketeers!!! Excellent picture and sound quality!!! And the extras are top notch too!!! A five star package!!! AWESOME!!! A+
Rating:
Summary: Incomplete Musketeers
Review: This is the best version of Dumas' "The Three Musketeers", not only by virtue of the cast and script -- it also, despite the heavy doses of slapstick, is the most faithful to the novel. At the time it was a daring move to have one long movie released as two. In retrospect, it was a bad idea, since the movies should be seen as a whole. Seen as two, they make up a slapstick ("The Three Musketeers") and a dark drama ("The Four Musketeers"). Seen together, the two blend well as one.Richard Lester, who is an interesting if not always good director, does a superb job here. He handles the slapstick well, and he and the writer Geo. MacDonal Fraser (yes, the "Flashman" guy) do a great service by not only making each sword-fight scene interesting, but keeping them individual (there's a sword-fight on the ice in "The Four Musketeers" that has to be seen to be believed). In 1989, fifteen years after these movies, the same cast, director and writer came together again for an abbreviated, single-film version of "Twenty Years After" called "Return of the Musketeers" (it's too bad Roy Kinnear and Oliver Reed are gone so they can't do "The Man in the Iron Mask"!). This film is not included, but it's a small loss. It's interesting to devotees of the original movies, but not necessary viewing for everyone. The cast of "The Complete Musketeers" is awesome. Michael York, years before he was Basil Exposition, was a the promising young actor of the time. The three musketeers (Oliver Reed, Richard Chamberlain and Frank Finlay) are wonderful (although one may carp about Finlay's Porthos). And though it was the movie that proves she could act, Raquel Welch, the reigning sex goddess of the day, also has her more prominent assets on display in low-cut bodices. Christopher Lee, who has recently added "Star Wars","Lord of the Rings" and Mervyn Peake's "Gormenghast" to his credits, here makes a threatening Rochefort. Charlton Heston, Faye Dunaway and the rest are uniformly excellent. This is one of the best movie treats of the 1970s.
Rating:
Summary: The Best Musketeers Ever!
Review: If you're young and you've only seen Disney's Hollywood schlock version of this swashbuckling classic, you still haven't seen the real Musketeers. And if you just got your first taste of great comic acting in the historical action genre this past summer when you saw Johnny Depp upstage millions of dollars of special effects in 'Pirates', you will definitely like this! The production is gorgeous, the dialog is witty, the acting is wonderful, the fight scenes are thrillingly choreographed, the sight gags are worthy of the slapstick masters of silent film, and oh yeah, did I mention its funny? With this two disc set you get the whole story, very faithful to the book, and you get the whole picture, with the widescreen option. Extremely recommended!
Rating:
Summary: Ultimate Musketeer collection finally on DVD
Review: The Complete Musketeers finally arrives on DVD! This ultimate edition of the classic Lester films are finally given the royal treatment they deserve. It's a modern take on a classic tale and although there was at least three more films inspired by Dumas' novel (among them the so-so Bratpack version with Keifer Sutherland, and Peter Hyams horrible The Musketeer), these two films (actually shot as one film back-to-back much like Superman and Superman 2 were to save money). Presented in the original widescreen aspect ratio, with a nice print (though the picture does occasionally look a bit too soft) and with no edge enhancements, Musketeers is presented in very close to pristine condition. While the sound is a bit dull and flat (not a surprise due to the fact that its a mono recording), I would have preferred to have Lester do a remix to stereo or a 5.1 surround mix (although the elements may be lost so that might not be possible), the soundtrack sounds pretty good given the time (1973)when the film was made and the age of the masters. Everyone involved gives terrific performances from Michael York to the marvelously underrated Frank Finlay. Richard Chamberlin is at his swashbuckling best. Oliver Reed brings a brooding, dark quality to his performance. Lester's inspired casting of Charleton Heston as the villan was a stroke of genius. Christopher Lee, Rachel Welch and Faye Dunnaway round out a strong international cast. There are a few flaws. 1) Richard Lester is alive and well and could have provided a very interesting commentary. The question is was he willing or asked to do so? 2) The surviving cast members (York, Dunaway, Chamberlin, Lee and Heston)could have provided an interesting and enlightening commentary. While the documentary is interesting, there's always something missing. Watching the film and commenting on it at the same time usually makes for an interesting and fun time. It's like seeing the film all over again with a fresh set of eyes. All for one and one for all, this is a marvelous package and Anchor Bay has done a terrific job putting together these two great movies. A 4 star rating for the packaging and a 5 star rating for the the two movies. Well done!
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