A history of the The Three Musketeers' films

Oliver Good reflects on the history of The Three Musketeers as the latest film hits UAE cinemas today With all-new adventures from both Robin Hood and Sherlock Holmes setting box office tills ringing in recent years, as well as a seemingly never-ending run for the Pirates of the Caribbean films, there can be little doubt that period action movies are back in a big way. So it was only a matter of time before Alexandre Dumas's classic swashbuckling tale, The Three Musketeers, fought its way back on to the silver screen. The 1844 French novel, set against the backdrop of Louis XIII's reign, has been adapted for the cinema more than 20 times, as well as inspiring dozens of television series, spin-off novels and even video games. The latest take on the legend is released this week; titled simply The Three Musketeers, it is not only the most expensive retelling to date, but the first to arrive in 3D. With a cast that includes Matthew McFadyen, Milla Jovovich, Orlando Bloom and Christoph Waltz, the story has been transformed into a glossy action-adventure. As well as adding giant zeppelins and flamethrowers, it also features the kind of slow-motion "wire-fu" fight sequences seen in Kill Bill. But despite the changes, its director claims the film is still in-keeping with the "all for one, and one for all" spirit of Dumas's adventure. "Every generation has their Three Musketeers, and I'm very happy that we're going to be this generation's Three Musketeers. We're going to tell it in a slightly different way, but it's going to be the classic story," the director Paul WS Anderson told the entertainment website Collider. The filmmaker is best known for the Resident Evil sci-fi horror series, starring his wife, Jovovich. Set in the 17th century, Dumas's novel tells the story of the young D'Artagnan, who travels to Paris to join the musketeers, a company of elite soldiers. But things don't go well for the poor nobleman. After accidentally offending three of their order - Athos, Porthos and Aramis- he is made to face each highly experienced fighter in separate duels. His salvation comes when they are attacked by the guards of megalomaniacal holy-man Cardinal Richelieu and the four decide to flee and unite. The musketeers then become embroiled in an illicit affair between France's queen and her lover, the Englishman the Duke of Buckingham. When the cardinal learns of her treachery, he seeks to expose her, in a bid to spark war with England. The musketeers then race to prevent the conflict, but their path is obstructed by Athos's villainous ex-wife, Milady de Winter. Although the story is fiction, Dumas based many of the characters on historical individuals. His primary source was Mémoires de Monsieur d'Artagnan, a real-life account of a young Frenchman joining the company, and even meeting a trio whose names were Athos, Porthos and Aramis. In the post-revolution France that Dumas inhabited, tales of Richelieu's gross excesses of power were well known, so the cardinal was an obvious choice for the villain. Although today thought of as swordsmen, the Musketeers of the Guard were founded in 1622, when King Louis XIII armed a cavalry company with muskets. Unlike Robin Hood tights or horned Viking helmets, the wide-brimmed hats and high boots typically worn by the characters onscreen are not inventions of overzealous Hollywood costume fitters, but historically accurate attire. Furthermore, as part of the military branch of the French Royal Household, all members would have been adept at sword-fighting. Dumas's story was translated into English in 1846 by William Barrow, but its romantic elements were toned down to better suit the conservative tastes of Victorian Britain. Despite many believing Barrow's version to be dry and confusing, it is still in print today. Another popular translation of the story was written by the US author Tiffany Thayer in 1939. Although true to Dumas's work, Thayer changed the order of the narrative and added backstory for many of the characters.