Best From France

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Filmed at least eight times with mixed success, Alexander Dumas's sweeping 1844 tale The Count Of Monte Cristo ranks among the most screen-friendly adventures ever published. Never before, though, has the work been translated so richly as in this four-episode, eight-hour miniseries produced by French public broadcaster TF-1 in 1998 and aired in the U.S. by Bravo in June '99. Gerard Depardieu -- in his TV debut -- brings his hulking Gaulish presence to the lead role as a prisoner who escapes after 18 years, retrieves a huge fortune, and seeks revenge against the men who orchestrated his wrongful incarceration. A master of both disguise and intrigue with a tortured soul bent on both vengeance and righteousness, the Count makes for an extraordinary television character. Director Josdeacute;e Dayan explores his intensity and allows the uniformly terrific cast to plumb the depths of the material. You almost don't notice the costumes and scenery, which, aside from failing in the impossible task of making the big-boned Depardieu look like a starving prisoner, are otherwise magnificent. Mind you, it is subtitled. But the story is so delicious, you'll likely find yourself reaching for the next rollicking episode as each one comes to a close. -- Gregory P. Fagan