The movie is very different from the book; however, this seems to be one of those instances where they’re both really good, just separately (to me anyway). While the movie takes a lot of leave from the book, such is understandable; the book is insanely long, and trying to fit the whole plot in its entirety into a film-length movie is pretty much impossible. Some cuts and adjustments had to be made, and honestly, I think they did pretty good with what they were given.
Although I love Valentine and Maximilian in the book and their whole story, I don’t really love the ending with Haydee and the Count very much. It was cute, but a little weird with the whole “brother, father, husband” thing. Also, in the movie, it makes Mercedes much more sympathetic to be pregnant with Edmond’s child before he leaves. It justifies her getting married so fast. In the book, I don’t like her much; but in the movie, she’s great. There’s also the difference with how the three villains are punished in turn, and I like that better in the book, though again, there’s only so much information you can stuff into two hours of film. I think the adjustments were fair.
Cinematographically, I loved it. My favorite shot was with the Count and Mercedes at the window with the curtains drawn and the moonlight between them. It was a very beautiful blue scene and I loved it. I also liked the ending scene with the duel (though that part was horribly taken away from the book) with the fighting in the tall grass with the mountains behind. It looked quite nice. I liked how Fernand got the chance to leave, and he stopped, and you can guess what he’s thinking and what his reasoning is, but you can’t know for sure, and you are never told. It’s a nice little thing to think about.
Cinematographically, I loved it. My favorite shot was with the Count and Mercedes at the window with the curtains drawn and the moonlight between them. It was a very beautiful blue scene and I loved it. I also liked the ending scene with the duel (though that part was horribly taken away from the book) with the fighting in the tall grass with the mountains behind. It looked quite nice. I liked how Fernand got the chance to leave, and he stopped, and you can guess what he’s thinking and what his reasoning is, but you can’t know for sure, and you are never told. It’s a nice little thing to think about.
So anyway, to finish up, I thought the movie was very, very different from the book - especially in the second half - but still pretty good and entertaining. I liked it a lot! Warnings for The Count of Monte Cristo: dead rats, revenge, imprisonment, some blood, not too bad