Le Comte de Monte Cristo

I first saw this at christmas about 3 years ago. I was ill in bed with flu and just wanted to die. I got up for a change of scenery and put the tv on. This was on. I spent the next three days setting the alarm for 3pm and getting up out of my death bed to watch this compelling series. I then found it on DVD, and bought it (the book was included and I have been reading that too). THe story is compelling and the characterisations by all of the actors are amazing. THe detail is fantastic and even though I don't normally "do subtitles" I have watched the entire series several times, finding something new and even more entertaining each time. I would recommend it to anyone - this would make kids WANT to learn french in school so they could watch it without the subtitles.

One could say I am an old coot, geezer, at the age of 71. This wonderful series, starring the great Gerard Depardieu, pulled me back to my childhood at about eight years old. The two librarians in my little home town in Louisiana always pushed me to read books that were at least two grades ahead. At the end of the school year we were given the usual Summer Reading List. Presenting mine to the local librarians, they suggested a novel by Alexander Dumas, The Count of Monte Cristo. I had never actually read a "novel" of that size. I was a bit over- come, but began to read this book right then and there, sitting in a bay window overlooking the little river that flowed past the library's huge windows. That experience changed my life from a casual reader to a dedicated and life-long lover of books. I learned that Dumas was French and had written many other books. I read them all that summer. Then on to Victor Hugo, Balzac, George Sand, and others, all recommended by those lovely ladies in the local library. I have seen almost every film adaptation of The Count, going back to the 1934 version with Robert Donat to the last one with Guy Pierce. THIS one, with Depardieu,is my favorite. Although many liberties are taken, as usual with movie producers and directors, it still is an exciting and involving tale. Dumas' story is so sturdy that any injury visited upon it would be only superficial. I found myself an eight year old all over again. Unlike some adaptations of Dumas' novels, this one had very little swash and even less buckle, being more character driven and fueled by last minute escapes and near fatal outcomes. The ending, as several other comments express, is a bit too up-beat, but so what? Life is full of wonderful and unexpected joys. Watching this made-for-television series was one of them. AND I found it on DVD so I can watch it over and over.

Eight hours allows for a greater presentation of the many subplots and complexities of the storyline. Depardieu (once you get past his size) is excellent as the Count, a man who, as the reviewer from Amazon says, exchanges one prison for another, a prison of his own hatred. The cast is general is very good and convincing, with Ornella Muti certainly the definitive Mercedes. Set design and production values are excellent.

I have only two criticisms. The first and more minor one is that even this long adaptation doesn't have everything. They couldn't, of course, portray everything -- the book itself is well over 1,000 pages and in truth has padded sections -- but some worthwhile aspects of the story were cut, most notably early sequences with the Abbe Faria (who teaches Dante how to read and write) a very famous part that's usually included in dramatizations of the story. The ending, too, is happier than Dumas's. (I should add that some sequences were very sensibly cut).

A more serious criticism is that Dantes's character is too soft. Depardieu is a fine actor but his portrayal allows Dantes to come off far more sympathetic than I think Dumas intended. The coldness and bloodthirstiness of the Count is not emphasized as much as it might (one sequence at an execution has a very different spin from the way it's presented in the book, for example), nor is the extent of his hatred. This is a real flaw, partly because it makes light of the theme of the story, the effect of revenge on the revenger, and partly because the climax is not as effective if we're already on Dantes side. The flaw here is not with Depardieu, who does his job admirably, but rather with the screenwriter and director.

As such, I can't call this the definitive version -- a little more courage on the screenwriter and director's part would've done wonders. Still, it's probably the best we're going to get. It's hard to imagine anybody else lavishing this kind of care and attention on the story.

I'm a big fan of the Alexandre Dumas story' Count of Monte Christo. The atmosphere in as well the book as the 2002 movie directed by Kevin Reynolds is fabulous!! Although in the 2002 movie I would have liked to see more detailed revenge plans, I really liked the part in which Edmond Dantes is educated by his visitor in jail Abbe Faria... In this miniseries the opposite is true.. it's absolutely fabulous in working out the part of revenge (so especially after you've watched the first 1/2 episodes, it gets great). Dantes teached by Faria is less more interesting in this miniseries.. which I think is logical since the French have a totally opposite view on what's interesting in comparison to the Americans. Gerard Depardieu acts great as le Comte le Monte Christo.. and this miniseries sticks better to the original story which I also like... One 2 Watch.. more than 1 time.. :-)

Gérard Depardieu has lavished much care and attention to detail on this production of the famous Dumas story. He is most impressive as Edmund Dantes who is falsely imprisoned by his "friends" in the awful Château d'If for some 18 years, then escapes, finds a vast fortune, and as the mysterious Count takes revenge upon those who betrayed him in a very complex series of intrigues. Bearing in mind the great length of the original novel, simplification of the sub plots are inevitable in any screen version, although the extended running time of this TV series allows much of the text to be brought to the screen faithfully. Using some quite stunning set pieces and beautiful scenes to background the action, the cast perform exceedingly well, dominated by Depardieu's portrayal of Monti Cristo. Although a rather overweight Count, his strength as an actor overcomes this minor flaw, and certainly its unlikely we'll see a better performance of the role for years to come. If you have the patience to view the extended version here, it is a rewarding and finally well crafted adaption of a most difficult subject.