The Return of the Musketeers

This fun instalment of the Musketeers series (fifteen years after 'The Four Musketeers' was released) reunites the original four cast members (Michael York still looking impossibly young as D'Artagnan, now in the King's army; Oliver Reed on good form as Athos, now with a weedy son Raoul (C Thomas Howell) who really doesn't need to be there; Frank Finlay in a very silly wig as Porthos and still accident prone; and Richard Chamberlain as Aramis, now an Abbe and the Queen's confessor, but ready (eventually) to join in the swordsplay).

Kim Cattrall appears as Justine de Winter, daughter of Milady, and is completely inadequate. Making a return are Christopher Lee as Rochefort, and Roy Kinnear (who died during filming) as long-suffering servant Planchet; and fine additions to the cast include Alan Howard as Oliver Cromwell, Bill Paterson as Charles I, Jean-Pierre Cassell as Cyrano de Bergerac (an idiot who thinks geese will help him fly in a balloon to the moon) and Philippe Noiret as Mazarin.

Is it as good as the 1970s instalments, also directed by Lester? The sword fights are there (and also an hilarious scene involving trapdoors in the rooms of Justine de Winter); there's the usual set of stunts and slapstick; and there's the darker sections - Athos remembering Milady, the execution of Charles I, the young French king imprisoned in the Tower, the gunpowder-laden ship.

For me the cast member who is most memorable (as in the earlier films) is Oliver Reed, in a perfect part which gives him chance to get lots of references to alcohol in there (in one bit son Raoul offers him tea 'a new infusion', which Athos sprays out after a swig when being told there's no alcohol in it!), has him stuck in a castle window, and plummeting into a water tank from the punctured balloon. Aside from the funny bits, he's at home with the serious stuff too - proving yet again that he could act when he wanted to.

There's lots in 'Return of the Musketeers' to brighten your day and it was great to see the boys back for one last fling.

Richard Lester attempts to recreate the magic of his '70s "Musketeer" films, and for the most part he succeeds, but "The Return of the Musketeers" is a bit too episodic at times and occasionally feels rushed, particularly at the end. It's fun to see the foursome back together again, though, and Jean-Pierre Cassel (who played Louis XIII in the earlier films) has a nice turn as a delusional Cyrano de Bergerac. Too bad this turned out to be Lester's last film (not counting the Paul McCartney concert film "Get Back").

French politics always have been a mess. The backdrop of "La Fronde" as the French civil war was known, is difficult to explain. There were no good or bad guys. The country was thrown into confusion and disarray.

The challenge of adapting the second Dumas novel (as well as the third) is that there is no clear cut plot element to hang your hat on. Unlike the race to get the jewels back from the first novel, "Twenty Years Later" is rather episodic and dis-jointed. the musketeers are no longer musketeers and (in the novel) they are not even on the same side of the political fence.

The movie tries. There is an attempt at the levity of the previous two films. The screenwriters attempt to throw in a weird romance between Athos' son Raoul and Lady De Winter's daughter (an evil son in the book). The writers also keep many of the major set pieces from the book (the fire ship plot against the heroes, the execution of Charles I, the escape of the prince of Condé, etc.) but in the end the film has no spirit.

Everyone involved must have dearly wanted to recapture the magic of the first two films. Lester was working under pressure on a television schedule and budget.

In his autobiography Michael York describes how he looked forward to the first day of shooting. The whole thing turned sour when Roy Kinnear had a tragic (and York believes, an unnecessary) accident. Kinnear was asked to ride his horse across a bridge in a long shot and tried to oblige. He fell and was rushed to the hospital where he later passed away. York feels the producers treated Kinnear and his family shabbily.

Any joy the actors may have had going in to the project evaporated after that.

It's nice to see many of the original cast members back for this third "Musketeers" movie, even though 15 years has elapsed since the second film. Usually such a long hiatus would have resulted in changes of personnel and style, but here we have a refreshing example of that NOT being the case. They even have the same director (Richard Lester), which helps to explain why the old mix of slapstick, political intrigue, sex and action is still so effective. Before I actually saw The Return Of The Musketeers, I was foolish enough to listen to all the negative critical buzz surrounding the film. As a result I came to it already prejudiced, expecting it to be a tired, listless, unworthy end to the trilogy (as many reviewers had suggested). Not so.... this is a most enjoyable instalment, and those who say otherwise are, frankly, wrong!

The musketeers as we remember them have long since gone their separate ways. D'Artagnan (perenially youthful Michael York) is the only one still employed as a musketeer, but he now works for the King - and rather less money! He is galvanised back into action when entrusted by the Cardinal Mazzarin (Phillipe Noiret) to deal with the rise of Beaufort supporters in the wake of Cromwell's rise to power in England. However, he soon has more to worry about than a mere rebellion when it becomes apparent that a name from the past has returned to exact revenge on each of the musketeers. That name is Justine de Winter, daughter of Milady de Winter (the female villain that Faye Dunaway played in the earlier films, who was eventually captured and beheaded by the musketeers). With Justine out for revenge, D'Artagnan has to track down his old friends - some of whom are Beaufort supporters and therefore the very people he should be fighting against - and together they ride again into various adventures and dangers.

There are certainly some problems with The Return Of The Musketeers, but none of them undermine the film as much as its detractors would have us believe. Firstly, Kim Cattrall plays Justine in too contemporary a style and this jars with the film's period trappings. Secondly, Richard Chamberlain's character, the musketeer Aramis, is not in the story much and the scripters have tried to compensate for his absence by introducing the character of Raoul, son of Athos. Alas, Raoul is both unnecessary to the story (he was mentioned in the book, but not used whatsoever as a key figure) and rather poorly played by C. Thomas Howell - another actor too contemporary for the surroundings. Apart from that, this is a most enjoyable movie with plenty of exciting sequences and good humour. In particular, there are several action sequences which are given a lovely element of slapstick (check out the wonderfully funny opening sequence, for example). The plot is quite complex and hard to keep up with - as, indeed, it was in the two earlier instalments - but the lively pacing and frequent bursts of action keep the audience engrossed. Many reviewers have already commented that this was Roy Kinnear's last film (he died following a horse-riding accident on the set), so I won't add too much to what has already been said. I will, however, say that Kinnear's performance in the film is comedy at its finest and this whole film is a lovely tribute to a lovely man and his considerable comic talents.

The third installment in the Lester saga ,the fourth ("Le Vicomte De BRagelonne" feat. the iron mask) was never filmed ,because this one was not very commercially successful.

Roughly based on "Vingt Ans Après" ,"the return" was made sixteen years later ,with the same actors (Faye Dunaway ,Raquel Welch and Charlton Heston are not present ,their characters being all dead).Also Louis the Thirteenth is dead,Jean-Pierre Cassel who played his role,returns as Cyrano De Bergerac who comes at the most awkward moment.

The historical background is thin,although dealing with "La Fronde" ,a noble rebellion,and Mazarin's struggle to maintain the absolute monarchy ;and in spite of the musketeers,he was successful ,for the Sun King's reign only began with his death in 1661 ,when he was already 23.

Unlike in the book,it's a daughter (Justine De Winter) and not a son who wants to avenge her mother Milady.It's first surprising but becomes repetitive in the long run.It lacks some imagination:why not an affair with Raoul for instance?

The first movie of the saga remains the most successful:in this one,time has taken its toll,and what could have been another magnificent "Robin and Marion" ,a journey through the past tinged with nostalgia ,remains here a moderately entertaining swashbuckler.