The Three Musketeers

MOVIE DESCRIPTION:

Douglas Fairbanks' longest and most elaborate production up to 1921, The Three Musketeers was Fairbanks' first full-blown costume adventure (his modestly produced 1920 The Mark of Zorro was regarded as an extension of his breezy contemporary comedies). Fairbanks assumes the leading role of D'Artagnan, who after challenging musketeers Athos (Leon Barry), Porthos (George Siegmann) and Aramis (Eugene Pallette--yes, Eugene Pallette) to a duel, joins forces with them in opposition of the scheming Cardinal Richelieu(Nigel De Brulier). Plotting to discredit Queen Anne (Mary McLaren) in the eyes of her husband King Louis XIII (Adolphe Menjou) Richelieu dispatches Milady de Winter (Barbara La Marr) to pilfer the diamond brooch given by Anne to her British lover, the Duke of Buckingham (Thomas Holding). With the help of the lovely Constance (Marguerite de la Motte) D'Artagnan and the Musketeers race against time to retrieve the brooch and save their Queen. The film ends with D'Artagnan emerging victorious, a twinkle in his eye and a smile on his lips; the actual, darker denouement of Dumas' original Three Musketeers would be dramatized in the opening reels of Douglas Fairbanks' valedictory silent film, The Iron Mask (1929). ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

DVD FEATURES:

• Number of Discs: 1
• Audio: PCM Stereo
• Screen: Black and White
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1 (Pre-1954 Standard)

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

• Cast:

  
       Douglas Fairbanks - D'Artagnan
       Leon Bary - Athos
       George Siegmann - Porthos
       Eugene Pallette - Aramis
       Marguerite de la Motte - Constance Bonacieux
       Boyd Irwin - De Rocheford
       Thomas Holding - George Villiers, Duke of Buckingham
       Adolphe Menjou - Louis XIII
       Sidney Franklin - Monsieur Bonacieux
       Charles Stevens - Planchet, D'Artagnon's Lackey
       Nigel de Brulier - Cardinal Richelieu
       Willis Robards - Capt. de Treville
       Lon Poff - Father Joseph
       Mary MacLaren - Anne of Austria
       Barbara La Marr - Milady de Winter
       Walt Whitman - D'Artagnan's Father
       Charles Belcher - Bernajoux
       Lon Poer - Fr.Joseph

• Director:

  Fred Niblo

• Screenwriter:

  Douglas Fairbanks, Edward Knoblock, Lotta Woods

• Book Author:

  Alexandre Dumas

• Cinematographer:

  Arthur Edeson

• Composer (Music Score):

  Louis F. Gottschalk

• Art Director:

  Edward M. Langley

• Costume Designer:

  Paul Burns

REVIEW:

• The lavish 1921 production of Three Musketeers is primarily a comic action film, yet it also pays extraordinary attention to detail, insuring that the period piece has a ringing authenticity. Alexander Dumas' novel receives the royal treatment, as villages and courts of the 17th century are painstakingly recreated and costumes chosen from antique dresses of the period. Yet the epic film does not suffer from deadly stateliness or stuffiness; in fact, it is a barrelful of fun, thanks mostly to the energetic and occasionally irreverent direction of Fred Niblo and Douglas Fairbanks Sr.'s acrobatic, enthusiastic performance as Gascon D'Artagnan. As the empoverished noble on a quest for justice, Fairbanks strikes a believable balance between comic shwashbuckler and epic hero. A remarkable athlete, Fairbanks handles the action scenes -- from swordplay to horse riding -- with aplomb while managing to convey his character's unflagging good humor throughout. Even in the more serious dramatic moments, he brings across integrity and great charm. Nigel De Brulier, as the Iago-like Cardinal Richelieu, and the "too beautiful" Barbara La Marras Milady de Winter are both fine villains, well-realized foils for the Royal Musketeers. Three Musketeers was a huge critical and box office success upon its release in 1921, and remains for many the finest screen adaptation of Dumas' novel.
  
  ~ Dan Jardine, Rovi