“The Three Musketeers,”directed by Paul W.S. Anderson, is a very over-exaggerated and cliche teen-oriented remake of the original classic tales. But despite flashy, unrealistic action sequences, the film satisfies with its refreshing comedy and unique characters.
Set in Baroque France, the story assumes that the audience already has a vague idea of the three legendary men, opening with a very hollywood-showered sequence of Athos [Mathew Macfayden], Aramis [Luke Evans], and Porthos [Ray Stevenson] defying all odds to obtain a crucial document for the creation of a war machine that could engulf the entirety of France in flames.
After being brutally betrayed by the double agent, Milady De Winter [Milla Jovovich], the Three Musketeers are humiliated and deprived of their excellent reputation, until a young, aspiring Musketeer, D’Artagnan [Logan Lerman] joins the Three in order to stop the evil Duke of Buckingham [Orlando Bloom], from unleashing his newly-built war machine on France.
Logan Lerman, who plays the young musketeer D’Artagnan, seems to be nothing more than eye candy for young ladies looking for a pretty face. The casting was especially lacking, as the story features mainly French characters, yet most actors lack a French accent, most notably Lerman, who sounds excessively American.
Other cast members also seem over-done and flowery, such as Bloom who plays a very spine-cringingly cliched villain, featuring a sinister mustache and goatee like those of classic cartoon villains.
CG animation and special effects seem to be abundant in this movie as action ranges from a 4-versus-40 sword fight in the city, to a massive airship battle to the death directly over a large cathedral.
And with every teenage blockbuster, there must be a romantic element. In “Three Musketeers,” it occurs between the D’Artagnan and the queen’s mistress, Constance [Gabriella Wilde] along with a spew of cute, comedic drama between the extremely spoiled child-of-a-king, Louis XIII [Freddie Fox] and the Queen [Juno Temple].
Although spotted with cheesy writing and under-developed characters, teenagers will flock to this movie for its driving action sequences, humorous wit, and refreshing imagery – not to mention the majority of the female audience’s attraction to Logan Lerman.
