The Three Musketeers – Part I: D’Artagnan
Director: Martin Bourboulon
Starring: François Civil, Vincent Cassel, Romain Duris
Genre: Bonjour
Nearly everyone knows the phrase “Three Musketeers” without knowing what, where, when or who. Now’s your chance to find out. It’s also your chance to find out how many Musketeers (three is just the simple version), what language (not just French), how stylish, how passionate and how deadly.
The film is set mostly in France, is historical and is mostly in French. So, while it would help understand the film if you can speak French and know your French history, the complexity and clever choreography of the intense arguments and battles big and small adds to the impression of legitimacy. And that is important, because while The Three Musketeers is a work of fiction, it is based on historical facts. The Musketeers were a thing early in the 17th century, bodyguards to the King and fought in local battles.
The film’s other legacy, style and elegance, is notably and traditionally French, even today. If you believe all things cinema, then you’d believe that the French have always been incredibly stylish. Every Three Musketeers, Napoleon, and French Revolution film features beautiful and fashionable people, delicious flamboyant food, passion and fun.
So, whether you want to learn about the intricacies of French internal, external and religious battles, or whether you just want to sit back and observe the extreme personalities, their relationships and their fights, The Three Musketeers – Part I, is the film for you. As is Part II which was filmed at the same time and is coming soon.
Rating: (Spoiler alert) Four Musketeers
