THE MUSKETEER

MOVIE BIASES: Flashy fights, period costumes, nonstop action? C'mon, now. I'm pre-sold!
MAJOR PLAYERS: Justin Chambers (The Wedding Planner), Mena Suvari (American Pie 2), Tim Roth (Gridlock'd), fight choreographer Xin Xin Xiong (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), and director Peter Hyams (End of Days).

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Imagine a movie where the fight choreographer gets top billing. Little mystery what market the Universal/Miramax publicity departments are gunning for (ME!!). After watching those trailers filled with inventive, Asian style fight choreography grafted onto the 17th century tale of the Three Musketeers, I was ready to be entertained. With those expectations in mind, "The Musketeer" does not disappoint.

Out to avenge his former Musketeer father's death by becoming a Musketeer himself, D'Artagnan (Chambers) sets out for Paris, accompanied by his mentor Planchet (Jean-Pierre Castaldi) and a wicked sense of derring-do with the sword. As the Cardinal Richelieu (Stephen Rea) has essentially usurped power away from a weak King Louis XIII and his bright yet culturally restricted queen (Catherine Deneuve) to inflict a reign of terror upon France meted out by lead Cardinal Guard enforcer Febre (a deliciously nasty Tim Roth), D'Artagnan arrives in Paris to find the Musketeers, once the King's elite guard service, outlawed. With Lord Buckingham coming in from England to avert a war with France and the Cardinal up to no good, D'Artagnan ventures to keep the peace, protect the royal family, win the heart of a stunning chambermaid (Suvari), and exact revenge upon his parents' murderer, Febre.

With such fabulous set pieces and action sequences, does anyone really care about the acting? Luckily the actors do. Proving his comedic stretch in "The Wedding Planner" was no fluke, Chambers is charming, dashing, klutzy, and fearlessly athletic as the legendary swordsman D'Artagnan. Suvari is fine as the beautiful, prim, yet quietly resilient Francesca. Their witty banter is amusing and lighthearted. Tim Roth is wonderfully wicked as the bloodthirsty, villainous Febre. When Richelieu says of his Number One attack dog "You can barely wash the blood from your teeth and you're hungry for more," you know that's an understatement. The main Musketeers are played with a refreshing antiquity, totally buying into the devil-may-care attitude of another time. There was never a time when I did not believe in this world or the actors who inhabit it.

A great deal of that credit has to go this movie's production values. The humorous and droll script is merely the mannequin to be dressed up attractively by nice costumes, lush landscapes, and outstanding art direction. Filmed in cool autumnal browns, yellows, and largely at night by Hyams (who also doubled as cinematographer), "The Musketeer" has fully embodied 17th century France with its stunning locales and an old school, sweeping, heroic, '80s style musical score. Don't even get me started on the ridiculous swordplay and fight choreography, featuring an off the hook finale fight that is so complex and acrobatic, it must have taken weeks to shoot.

Although a trifle corny in spots (as movies in this genre must be), "The Musketeer" is a pure, romanticized, swashbuckling crowd pleaser. It is simply just fun. Loud, brassy entertainment, "The Musketeer" is the reason why people buy DVDs. Lord knows I've cleared out space for it in my collection already.

@@@ REELS
(THREE REELS)
It's pretty hot - go give it a shot.

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