Top-notch escapism

Review: 'Monte Cristo' knows what counts

By Paul Tatara
CNN Reviewer

(CNN) -- Kevin Reynolds' film adaptation of Alexander Dumas' classic novel, "The Count of Monte Cristo" is an unexpectedly entertaining slice of old-fashioned swashbuckle, the kind of sweeping, periodically absurd picture that was cranked out on an assembly line in the 1940s.

Oddly, the absurdities have nothing to do with Reynolds, who has brought us Kevin Costner as a blow-dried Robin Hood in "Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves" (1991) and cigar-chomping, post-apocalyptic Jet Skiers (and Costner again) in "Waterworld" (1995).

This "Monte Cristo" screenplay -- by Jay Wolpert, a former producer of "The Price is Right" -- proves yet again that what plays brilliantly when you're turning the pages of a good book can look especially silly on a big screen.

Don't be surprised if you're chuckling at this one, even as you're getting lost in Dumas' intricate story line.

Jim Caviezel plays Edmond Dantes, an uneducated sailor who for reasons that are hardly evident has been the lifelong friend of a conniving elitist named Fernand (Guy Pearce). When their ship's captain falls ill from "brain fever," Edmond and Fernand row him ashore at the secluded island on which British soldiers are holding Napoleon Bonaparte (Alex Norton) captive.

Once there, Napoleon hands Edmond a letter that he wants secretly delivered to a friend on the mainland. Edmond, who can't read, accepts the letter, thinking it's an innocent correspondence.

Whoops.

Some call it treason

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With the help of Villefort (James Frain), a devious magistrate who's trying to save his own reputation, Fernand has Edmond locked away for handling a treasonous dispatch. Let that be a lesson to you kids out there -- never trust Napoleon.

Fernand, you see, is a major cad who has long been jealous of Edmond's laid-back bearing, and he has his sights set on Edmond's beautiful fiancee, Mercedes (Dagmara Dominczyk). Edmond's brutal internment in the infamous Chateau d'If prison is the most enjoyable portion of the story, even if it stretches credibility.

Between yearly "anniversary whippings" from a slimy warden (Michael Wincott), Edmond starts looking like Charlie Manson and losing his mind. After four or five years -- and this can officially be considered a surprise -- the slabs on the floor lift up, and out climbs Abbe Faria (Richard Harris), an equally tattered priest who's been tunneling out of d'If for eight years, but took a wrong turn and wound up in Edmond's cell.

Faria nurses Edmond back to sanity, and teaches him how to read, write and fence like a pro. He also teaches him the basics of economics, although it's unclear exactly how Faria managed to get his hand on a leather-bound economics book. This guy gets more mileage out of rock and dirt than the Flintstones.

Edmond, of course, eventually escapes from the prison, and sets out to exact elaborate revenge on Fernand, who has now married Mercedes. After securing a loyal right-hand man (Luis Guzman), in a stroke of luck, Edmond finds a shipload of sunken treasure that Faria told him about, and reinvents himself as the fictional -- and very rich -- Count of Monte Cristo.

Edmond insinuates himself into society life and soon is rubbing shoulders with his archenemy. But he doesn't just kill Fernand; he makes him suffer from every conceivable psychological angle.

Zingy and humorous

Although Pearce, thanks to his remarkable work in "L.A. Confidential" (1997) and last year's "Memento," is the bigger name at this point, this is Caviezel's movie all the way.

A warm, stunningly handsome actor who seems headed for major stardom, Caviezel's unguarded expressions are tailor-made for such a thoughtful character. Edmond's industrial strength naivete is a bit much to handle in the early going, but his transformation into the count has real zing. It's like one of those makeover segments on a talk show, in which an audience member walks off the set homely and comes back a homecoming queen.

His humorously casual hot-air balloon descent during the count's coming-out party is particularly memorable, looking, as it does, like a renegade Cirque du Soleil act.

Given the extremes of the modern box office, "The Count of Monte Cristo" may die on the vine. But this is a top-notch piece of silly escapism. Although it takes forever to finish -- and Andrew Dunn's cinematography is so dark that it's hard to tell the difference between a dungeon and multimillion-dollar French chateau -- it's an enjoyable film. Just don't go in expecting a documentary on prison reform.

There's violence in "The Count of Monte Cristo," including a couple of whippings and some sword fights. Note that Caviezel's teeth are dazzling after 13 years in the can, but Pearce's nobleman choppers look like the "before" picture in a Polident ad. Apparently, good guys floss.