The Count of Monte Cristo

This adaptation of the Alexandre Dumas novel has it all. Pirates, swordfights, buried treasure, a sadistic prison warden, revenge, some very funny situations and a love story all rolled up into one. Combine this with some breathtaking background scenery from Ireland and several outstanding acting performances and you have a great film. James Caviezel (Edmond Dantes) plays a naïve sailor who delivers a letter for the exiled Napoleon. Betrayed by his best friend, Fernand Mondego (Guy Pearce), who seeks to possess his beautiful fiancée Mercedes (Dagmara Dominczyk), Edmond ends up spending 16 years in the Château D’If prison. While incarcerated, he meets Richard Harris, who becomes his teacher and mentor. When he escapes prison, he meets Jacopo (Luis Guzman) who plays his sidekick and puts on a very amusing performance as his devoted servant. Together, they plot revenge on the people who wrongly imprisoned him.