Edmond Dantes’s (Jim Caviezel) life and plans to marry the beautiful
Mercedes are shattered when his best friend, Fernand, deceives him. Edmond is falsely accused of
treason and suffers 13 years of brutal treatment in prison during which he plots revenge against
those that betrayed him. With help from another prisoner, he escapes the island and proceeds to
transform himself into the wealthy Count of Monte Cristo as part of his plan to exact revenge.
Directed by:
Kevin Reynolds
Written by:
Alexandre Dumas
Jay Wolpert
Partial Cast:
Jim Caviezel (Edmond)
Dagmara Domiczyk (Mercedes)
Luis Guzman (Jacopo)
Richard Harris (Abbe Faria)
Christopher Adamson (Maurice)
Henry Cavill (Albert Mondego)
I know this is a favorite among many of Jim’s fans. 🥳
From his interviews, it is also a favorite of his. For me, 🤷♀️ it took a while to see how
wonderful this film is. The first time I saw it years ago, I really didn’t like it at all 😣 –
looking back, I think it was the brutality directed at Jim’s character in the first part of the
movie that fashioned my negative feelings about the film. It wasn’t until I joined this group and so
many raved about the film that I decided to give it a second chance … because, maybe I had missed
something 🤔. Now, I’m so glad I did … because, I had missed something. Maybe it’s because I’m older
- and hopefully wiser 🧐 now - that on this viewing I realized the film wasn’t about the torment
that Jim’s character endured, it was about his ability to overcome not only the physical abuse but,
the soul crushing heartbreak of betrayal by ones he trusted and find his way to love and healing
❤️🩹 …. at least, that’s what I take from it. 😊
The tagline for this film was “Prepare for adventure. Count on revenge.” It is definitely a high
adventure story with a satisfying revenge ending but it is much more than that 🤯 – which is why I
think the story is so captivating. It was filmed mostly in Malta and Ireland. The beautiful estate
that Edmond buys is Powerscourt Estate located in County Wicklow, Ireland. (You can view it at powerscourt.com
– it is stunning 🤩) The film does not exactly follow the book, changes were made to
condense some sections and to enhance others – but then this happens in most movies. If you haven’t
seen it, for sure give it a watch – if you have, I don’t have to tell you watching it again is worth
your time. There are still areas that I fast-forward through 🫨 but overall, I now love this film.
