The Count Of Monte-Cristo (2024) ★★★★

Released: 30 August 2024

Director: Alexandre De La Patelliere

Starring: Pierre Niney

One of Alexandre Dumas’ most prolific works, The Count of Monte Cristo has been adapted for the screen (both big and small) numerous times. Most audiences will be familiar with the 2002 version starring Jim Cavaziel and Guy Pearce, as well as TV show Revenge, which was inspired by the novel. But 2024 will see two new adaptations of Dumas’ novel – a miniseries starring Me Before You‘s Sam Chaflin and an epic film directed and written by Matthieu Delaporte and Alexandre de La Patellière.

Starring Pierre Niney, The Count of Monte Cristo sees sailor Edmond Dantès (Niney) seek revenge against a group of former friends who arranged his imprisonment for a crime he didn’t commit.

After the critical and financial success of Martin Bourboulon’s 2023 two-part adaptation of Dumas’ novel The Three Musketeers, the latest adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo looks set to continue the trend of lavishly produced features from France. Produced with a budget of €42.9 million, The Count of Monte Cristo is the most expensive French film so far this year and fittingly premiered at Cannes 2024. Yet was practically overshadowed by Hollywood features and competition entries – a shame as this new version brings a decadent take on the classic tale.

During a stormy night, Edmond Dantès defies his captain Danglar’s (Patrick Mille) orders, to rescue a mystery woman from a shipwreck. Dantès’ bravery see him promoted as captain and is eager to marry Mercédès (Anaïs Demoustier), who is the cousin of his best friend Fernand de Morcerf (Bastien Bouillon). But on the eve of his wedding, de Morcef and Danglars betray Dantès for being a Bonapartist and is sentenced to life imprisonment by corrupt official Villefort (Laurent Lafitte), who wishes to keep his personal ties with the rescued woman a secret. While incarcerated, Dantès meets fellow prisoner Abbé Faria (Pierfrancesco Favino), who educates his new companion. Helping him to deduce the truth of his predicament and tell him of a long-lost treasure known only to him. Equipped with newfound intelligence, the extent of his betrayal, and the treasure of Monte Cristo, Dantes becomes consumed with revenge.

Split into chapters. Delaporte and de La Patellière’s narrative sticks quite close to the original, with the screenwriters taking time to deliver an elaborate revenge-driven tale. Dantès slowly evolves from a fresh-faced optimist to a closed-off, embittered man – when he begins to put his plan into place, he brings a ruthlessness that sees him toy with innocent parties, heightening the emotional turmoil among the characters. All the while, he rubs his wealth in his enemies’ faces – a fact perfectly captured by a wooden piece of furniture with an elaborate reveal – to play towards the collective greed of the antagonists. As for the villainous trio, their general lack of remorse and shame as they try to erase their past crimes through status and corruption shape them as truly hateful characters – Villefort is a particularly horrible arsehole, with his sneer and narcissism hiding a conniving mind.

However, this adaptation delivers a multi-faceted narrative as it only follows the viewpoint of Dantès but also his accomplices, Haydée (Anamaria Vartolomei) and Andréa (Julien de Saint Jean) – two youngsters who have their own personal pasts to the villains and have been tasked with respectively seducing the children of de Morcerf and Villefort but are forced to deny their mutual growing attraction.

But the filmmakers’ faithfulness to the original novel and them elaborating on the narrative past Dantès’ mission draws out the film’s timeline to accommodate a lengthy runtime of nearly three hours. The occasional time gaps may allow the narrative to brew so the protagonist can ‘develop’ his masquerading skills albeit off-screen but the full force of Dantès’ anger from the realisation of the betrayal doesn’t feel prominent. Instead, we see him act as the puppet master, training his young accomplices and controlling everyone through a myriad of elaborate disguises with no clear goal in mind besides the ruin of the antagonists. Therefore, most of his actions are done indirectly so audiences don’t see the face of the true Edmond Dantès as he is (literally) scarred by his past. In addition, the film ironically takes so long to build up the intricacy of his plan that the ending comes across as rushed, so the satisfaction of his vengeance – especially after nearly three hours – feels dialled down to wrap up the plot.

However, it is easy to become lost in this version due to its beautiful visuals. Nicolas Bolduc’s lush cinematography and the impressive production design emphasise the characters’ seductiveness of the characters, whilst embodying the decadence that feeds the theme of materialism and greed. Along with Jérôme Rebotier’s soaring score, the production’s vast scale is visually and beautifully impressive. It provides a detailed setting for the cast to dazzle – Niney’s compelling performance that conveys Dantès’ weariness with his mission but controls the mechanisations with consistent composure. The actor displays a quiet sense of class and elegance that outshines the male supporting characters, who are portrayed with bravado and barely concealed arrogance. In contrast, the female characters feel like an afterthought as they are either treated poorly or become victims to the mechanisations of the film’s male characters. From Haydée, a former slave whose father was killed by de Morcef, to Madame Danglars (Julie de Bona), who shares a tragic and unfinished past with Villefort, they become pawns who are easily brushed aside. It is not until the film’s last act that a source of girl power comes through as Mercédès takes definitive action and steps out of her husband’s shadow to get to the truth.

Overall, Delaporte and de La Patellière’s adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo is visually lush and dazzling on screen. Audiences shouldn’t be put off by the runtime – it is a compelling cinematic adventure.