Revenge Is a Dish best Served Cold

Assuming that most people probably have not read Alexander Dumas' The Count of Monte Cristo since high school--if at all--they still won't be at any loss going into this most recent adaptation. The film is much more in tune with visually obsessed American culture than any sense of duty towards its source. Much like the novel, this is a film about revenge--except with violence, sword-fights and a happy ending that goes beyond just taking liberties with the novel.

Fortunately, the new adaptation is graced with acting talent that enjoys capitalizing on Dumas' high drama. Highlighted by the fresh and promising Jim Caviezel (as main character Edmond Dantes), the casting scores more points for being the first American film in recent memory not to cast Gerard Depardieu in the lead French role.

Guy Pearce (of Memento fame) continues to impress as Dante'' best friend and later rival Fernand Mondego. In addition, the sporadic comic relief provided by Luis Guzman proves that homeboys do not fly with nineteen-century frill and lace.

Bypassing many of the subplots that make the novel so dense, Reynolds concentrates on the intrigue and highly dramatic elements of Dumas' writing. The film falters when he awkwardly attempts to incorporate history and additional thematic content--better to stick with the goods.

Surprisingly, the film is firm proof that American blockbuster entertainment can be aesthetically pleasing without special effects. The Count of Monte Cristo's ball beams with extravagance only as Dumas could have imagined it.

The intricacy of the novel and its moral messages quickly melt away and, in the end, the brilliantly choreographed and gruesome battle scenes are too much fun to raise objection.

The picture gives us what we want from an otherwise boring historical epic, and is firm proof that high-concept product can entertain without lavish special effects. The adolescent boy in me was easily more entertained by the cinematic interpretation than by any literary dissection during high school English class.