The Three Musketeers 3D (Blu-ray) Official AVSForum Review

( Max score: 100 )

93

Film Synopsis:

The young hero D'Artagnan (Logan Lerman) and three of France's most elite warriors battle their way across Europe to save king and country from a conspiracy led by deadly assassin Milady (Milla Jovovich) & the Duke of Buckingham (Orlando Bloom). A modern update to Alexander Dumas' classic story, The Three Musketeers is an explosive action adventure that's fun & entertaining for the whole family.

My Take:

The Three Musketeers are Porthos, Athos, and Aramis three elite warriors who serve the King of France as his best Musketeers. After being disbanded and deemed obsolete by the scheming Cardinal Richlieu the Musketeers have little to do but spend their days hoping for a cause worthy of their talents. That day comes when they come across a young, aspiring hero, D'Artagnan who they take under their wing after discovering an evil conspiracy to overthrow the King. Together, the four embark on a dangerous mission which requires them to face off against the conniving Duke of Buckingham (Orlando Bloom) and the treacherous Milady de Winter (Milla Jovovich) to foil the plot that not only threatens the Crown, but the future of Europe itself.

Alexander Dumas' swashbuckling story of The Three Musketeers has seen its share of Hollywood productions. This telling takes a few liberties and has a contemporary feel that includes plenty of special effects and a rather silly script filled with campy modern dialogue, cardboard cuts for characters and a shallow plot. The attempts at witty humor failed and the romance never achieved lukewarm levels. This left little to care about other than the action which isn't original but is entertaining nonetheless. I didn't much care for Logan Lerman but otherwise enjoyed the cast and found myself wishing that they had more to work with. As a modern day action adventure The Three Musketeers isn't bad per se however as an adaptation of Alexander Dumas' classic tale it leaves much to be desired.

Parental Guide:

The rating is for sequences of action adventure violence.

Audio: 94

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3D Presentation: 92

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The Three Musketeers 3D comes to Blu-ray Disc from Summit Entertainment featuring 1080p MVC encoded video and lossless DTS-HD 5.1 Master Audio sound that has an average bitrate of 4.2 Mpbs.

I have been very pleased with the natively shot 3D films that have come to Blu-ray and The Three Musketeers is no exception. While this presentation doesn't offer continual use of screen popping effects it makes for a natural and visually pleasing experience. Detail is well preserved as the image retains its high level of clarity as objects within the frame are delineated and sharp. Dimension is strong as evidenced by the notable separation of objects or people layered in the foreground/background which serves to draw you in by creating a discernible sense of virtual space occupied by things of various sizes, shapes and distances. There are a few sequences that provide a bit of reach out and touch dimensionality but the strength of this 3D rendering lies in its natural sense of depth. Comparing color and fleshtone reproduction to the 2D presentation I saw no discernible difference. The rendering of detail and clarity is similar although I would give the slightest edge for all around visual pop to the 2D version. I didn't notice any overtly distracting signs of crosstalk/ghosting. For those hoping for all the 3D bells and whistles you won't find them here. That doesn't mean that this isn't a worthwhile viewing experience as I found it to be an excellent 3D presentation.

Action/adventure films like these are tailor made for lossless audio's higher fidelity and this 5.1 channel DTS-HD Master Audio mix doesn't disappoint. This reference quality soundtrack bristles with active surround sound, extended dynamic range, and punctuated, room energizing bass that all makes for an enthralling home theater experience. Whether it's the supple texture of creaking timbers or the involving air to air ship battle the auditory is richly basked in sonic clarity and potent dynamic energy. Surround activity is abundant with purposeful near field and diffused atmospheric placement that creates an immersive sound field. Balance between the front and rear soundstages is spot on so that sounds that pass between the speakers going in either direction is done so in a seamless fashion. Low frequencies are rendered cleanly with a tactile richness that increases in intensity where appropriate. Dialogue is clear, full bodied and tonally descriptive. This is a terrific lossless audio soundtrack that makes for a perfect companion to either Blu-ray presentation.

2D Video Quality:

Video: 96

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The Three Musketeers comes to Blu-ray Disc from Summit Entertainment featuring 1080p AVC encoded video that has an average bitrate of 22 Mpbs.

This is a high quality video presentation that looks spectacular on Blu-ray. Images can be visually arresting and have a rich dynamic quality that highlights a near flawless rendering of detail. The video has excellent dimension and enriching clarity that rarely left me wanting. The stylized visual design features varied aesthetics that mate perfectly with subject matter. The majority of the film boasts deep shades of gray, blue, red, green, white and black. The chromatic range is vividly reproduced and fully appreciable as colors are deeply saturated with lustrous vibrancy that leaps off of the screen. Contrast is strong and blacks are deep without compromise to delineation. Shadowy areas exhibit excellent depth of field and visible gradational stages. Flesh tones are not overtly complex in tone but appear diverse in subtle structure and complexional makeup. High production value expertly blends real imagery with CGI with the end result being a distinguished video presentation that is perfect for showing off your high definition display.

Bonus Features:

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  Disc 1:

  
  
• 3D Blu-ray - The Three Musketeers
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  Disc 2:

  
  
• 2D Blu-ray - The Three Musketeers plus the following bonus material:
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• Audio commentary with director Paul W.S. Anderson and producers Jeremy Bolt and Robert Kulzer
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• Access Three Musketeers - In movie experience that includes cast/crew interviews, insider details and a look behind the scenes
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• (HD) Featurettes (3 segments) :
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  2. Paul W.S. Anderson's Three Musketeers - 2 minutes
     
  3. Orlando Bloom takes on the Duke - 2 minutes
     
  4. 17th Century air travel - 2 minutes
     
  5. Uncovering France in Germany - 2 minutes
  
  
• (HD) 12 deleted/extended scenes

Final Thoughts:

Based on the novel by Alexander Dumas this big screen adaptation of The Three Musketeers is a contemporary telling that includes plenty of special effects and fair action but is hampered by a silly script filled with campy modern dialogue, cardboard cuts for characters and a shallow plot. As a modern day action/adventure it isn't terrible however as an adaptation of Alexander Dumas' classic tale it leaves much to be desired. It makes its way onto Blu-ray from Summit Entertainment in this two disc offering that includes resplendent 3D/2D high definition video, superlative DTS-HD Master Audio sound and a decent supplemental package. If you're a fan this one is a no brainer. If you're curious or just want to check out a terrific high definition audio/video presentation, drop it in your rental queue.