Three Musketeers has been a favorite of mine since it first came out many decades ago. I loved the opening scene with the sword fight between D'Artagnan and his father...and things just flowed so well thereafter. Only the other day did I finally get around to seeing Four Musketeers. I really did not like it at all. The music was really inferior to that of Three (how important is the soundtrack!), Queen Anne and The Duke had lost any of their sympathetic nature projected in the first, Heston's lines become forced, D'Artagnan devolves into a teenage gigolo, and I just didn't find acid-knives and ice-dueling all that entertaining. (And wasn't the ice-dueling shortly thereafter followed up with an attack by hornets???) I have read a few reviews, and those who like Three seem also to like Four, so maybe it is me. Perhaps I should have seen Four Musketeers 35 years ago.

'The Four Musketeers-The Revenge Of Milady' Is a cracking sequel to the 1973 Classic The Queen's Diamond's) This Picks up where the predecessor left off, The seductive but evil Milday De Winter,(Faye Dunaway, is out for revenge,After her elaborate plot was foiled by the Swashbuckling Foursome, Aided by her equally evil lover, and accomplice Rochfort (Christopher Lee) The pair plot to murder the duke of Buckingham,Charlton Heston,Returns As the menacing Cardinal, who gives the pair his full blessing to carry out their wicked vendetta's The Four who are now blades for hire, soon get wind of this wicked plot and together seek out to stop the villainous pair, 'The Four Musketeer's) is a superb companion piece to the original, Lalo Schifrin, who fills in for Michel Le Grand,contributes a excellent And rousing score,

FINALLY...a DVD release called 'The Complete Musketeers' that does justice to a proper transfer, in widescreen and looking better than when I saw it in the theater.Watching 'The Three Musketeers' without seeing the 'The Four...' is like reading the Alexander Dumas novel; and stopping halfway through. It's a shame that it wasn't released as a roadshow 3 and a half hour film because that was the way it was originally meant to be experienced.Phenomenal DVD package that contains both films...just the way it should be. And some very informative documentaries with the surviving cast.9 out of 10! (Same as my rating for 'Three Musketeers')

I was forced to wait 6 months between watching "The Three Musketeers" and getting an opportunity to watch this "sequel" (shot at the same time) and it was agony, though I was somewhat afraid that the second one would not live up to its predecessor. I am glad to say that I was completely wrong and that this one more than lives up to its companion. The action is just as fast and the characters as endearing (because, as we learn, only Porthos could find "a new way to disarm himself" - and then make it work when it counted!) But comedy aside (such as our heroes eating breakfast in the middle of a battle), the serious turns that had to be taken in order to stay true to Dumas' novel were very well done also. Oliver Reed imparts his loathing for Milady DeWinter not only with his words, but also with the expression in his [gorgeous] eyes and when he holds her at gunpoint in order to get the Cardinal's warrant, several seconds go by in which you as a viewer actually believe that he will kill her right there in cold blood. In fact, Reed is, in my opinion, truly the star of this picture as his character of Athos attempts to mentor young D'Artangan and prevent him from being hurt. Michael York is, as usual, wide-eyed and very courageous and Finlay and Chamberlain continue to be terrific fops but it is Reed that carries them through. Kudos also have to go to Faye Dunaway as Milady - she is truly evil and charming at the same time and you can see how her character manages to be so good at what she does. I encourage everyone to see this movie - especially as a companion to "The Three Musketeer" - and support those in favor of having an edited-together three hour version. It is truly a classic. (And side note to my fellow students - if you don't have time to read the book "The Three Musketeers," rent these two movies and you'll get the gist of what you need to know.)