You walk into a movie theater and wonder, “Is this going to be better than the book?” Usually the answer is no, rarely it is yes and sometimes it not half bad but not amazing. This is one of those times. The movie The Count of Monte Cristo is not better than the book but it is still enjoyable and interesting. I think they took advantage of the cinematic opportunity available by changing the end to make it more love story perfect and summarizing the many detailed plots.
Second of all, the movie used music very well. It fit the scene perfectly. It sets the mood and is very effective in give the audience the eerie and ominous feeling. It is also set in is France like it is supposed to be and it gives it a very authentic feel. The characters are believable and the actors play their parts well, but I don’t think they are cast very well. They don’t fit their parts in appearance, physically. I don’t think the man playing Edmond looks like the dashing hero he is supposed to be, Danglars is really old in the movie, and Villefort doesn’t look as evil as I imagined. Lots of the characters are missing as well because the plot is summarized.
Lastly, the theme of this story is very important to the plot. The theme is simply stated at the end of this movie. It is that revenge never solves anything and that the Count feels he was wrong for and getting all of the people who betrayed him arrested and killing a few of the ones he didn’t arrest.
In conclusion, you can see “The Count of Monte Cristo” is a very interesting and entertaining movie. The movie makers took advantage of the cinematic opportunities to make it a rousing success in my book! I give it two thumbs up!