The Three Musketeers: ...And none for all

The Three MusketeersUA Action AdventureDir Paul WS AndersonCast Matthew Macfadyen Logan Lerman Milla Jovovich Ray Stevenson Orlando Bloom Luke Evans Christoph Waltz Gabriella Wilde Freddie FoxRating u00a012 out of 5 The good news about this pointless adaptation of Alexandre Dumas classic French novel is that it is probably director Paul WS Andersons best work to date Unfortunately that isnt saying much given that Anderson is the director of cinematic atrocities such as Mortal Kombat Death Race and the Resident Evil films Yet Ill be honestu00a0 I walked into this movie with the lowest of expectations and walked out almost pleasantly surprised to find myself relatively calm as opposed to the murderous rage I thought Id feel after watching one of my favourite novels of all time get butchered on screen Having said that The Three Musketeers is hardly great cinema despite the presence of an impressive cast including Oscar winner Christoph Waltz and a smattering of solid British talent However its biggest misstep is that its a Johnnycomelately to an already tired historic rebootadventure genre as it takes obvious inspiration from Guy Ritchies Sherlock Holmes as well as the Pirates Of The Carribean movies Anderson utilises the films 100 millon budget well in terms of CGI explosions and an outrageous airship a liberty taken by the screenwriters but falters in terms of giving the film its own identity Theres promise in the beginning as were introduced to the three musketeers Athos Macfadayen Porthos Stevenson and Aramis Evans in a stylish and pulpy introductory sequence Jovovich plays Milady de Winter and while her modern American accent is jarring she does exude some enigmatic sensuality that suits the character one of the greatest femme fatales in all of literature fairly well The story is more or less faithful to the original involving the powerhungry Cardinal Richelieu Waltz attempting to start a war between France and England in the 17th century by suggesting to King Louis XIII Freddie Fox that his wife Queen Anne might be having an affair with the Duke of Buckingham Bloom Meanwhile a young hotheaded DArtagnan Lerman makes his way to Paris to become a musketeer in the Kings service and ends up challenging all three musketeers to a duel at the same time With such rich source material The Three Musketeers wouldve benefited from a zany and irreverent approach something a Quentin Tarantino or Matthew Vaughn might have successfully pulled off However Anderson attempts to play safe walking that dangerous tightrope between faithful adaptation and modern reimagining He doesnt go the distance However The Three Musketeers isnt an unwatchable movie It boasts of some solid performances and even some interesting characterisation particularly in the way it highlights Louis flamboyant tendencies On the downside however is an uninspiring performance from Lerman and a distinct lack of chemistry between him and his love interest Constance Gabriella Wilde Had this movie been made in 2003 it wouldve stood more of a chance Unfortunately for the filmmakers the audience has already been there and seen that Several times