How wonderful it is to see this fine actress carry a film and carry it so beautifully.

The first must-see film of the year.

The acting in this movie is really good.

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

The Three Musketeers (1948): Dir: George Sidney / Cast: Gene Kelly, Lana Turner, Van Heflin, June Allyson, Angela Lansbury: Pure swashbuckling action that is often corny but also entertaining. I never understood the title since Gene Kelly shows up and ends up becoming a fourth Musketeer. Why not call it The Four Musketeers? At any rate he shows up and ends up in confrontation with the original three Musketeers but after they are nearly arrested, they fight the odds and tick off a lot of high rise officials. There are two lovely femme fatales in this film. One of course, he cannot seem to trust, and the other one risks herself while Kelly follows her around in deep suspicion. There is no point to this spectacle but it is entertaining with its sword play and its lame kill scenes where people drop without any puncture wounds. One can say that children would not be able to watch it then. Kelly is in top spirit as the new Musketeer. Van Heflin plays a fellow Musketeer who seems more experienced with the sword. Lana Turner and June Allyson are the two ominous women and there are jewels involved here as well. Angela Lansbury plays Queen Anne who acts as one of the film's symbols of authority, which the Musketeers make little regard for. This is the typical version of the classic story and it represents it effectively right down to the point of the fourth sword. Score: 7 / 10

This MGM lavish production of "The Three Musketeers" rivals the very best of the swashbucklers. Others have noted the traditional three heroes of this genre – Douglas Fairbanks, Errol Flynn and Tyrone Power. They starred in many of the best of this film genre, playing Zorro, Robin Hood and a host of pirates and cavaliers. A couple of other top swashbucklers come to mind, mainly for the two films they excelled in – Stewart Granger in "Scaramouche" (1952) and Ronald Colman in "The Prisoner of Zenda" (1937). I mention all of these because the name Gene Kelly doesn't as readily come to mind when thinking of swordplay with lots of acrobatics. But this film firmly plants him in "The Three Musketeers" as among the best of the genre. As other viewers have commented, this movie shines on all levels. It's especially excellent for its great color, for an excellent screenplay adaptation, and for a huge cast of talented performers who delight and entertain in their roles. I think three roles stand out. Lana Turner seems to exude evil in her portrayal. A masterful job, indeed. Vincent Price had a much smaller part, but no one could better portray the sinister, conniving, scheming and crooked Richelieu. One word comes to mind for this part as played by Price – dastardly. The third, of course, is Gene Kelly in the starring role as D'Artagnan. What he may have lacked in suave appearance compared to Errol Flynn and Ty Power, he more than made up for in his sheer athletic and acrobatic abilities. All the great swashbuckler actors had good moves and sword play, but Kelly's performance here outshines them all. The word that comes to mind for the swiftness, deftness and agility in his moves is "smooth." He made it look effortless. And no other movie I can think of had any better sword play than this one. Kelly excelled at that as well. Throw in a good amount of humor with such an affable character and we have a perfect D'Artagnan.It all adds up to one immense piece of entertainment and fun. This great film's suitable for the whole family.

I really liked this version of the Three Musketeers. Then again I have liked a vast majority of the adaptations of the novel, even the 1993 version which is admittedly my least favourite of the ones I liked, but it still entertained me. The novel itself by Alexandre Dumas is superbly written and a truly entertaining read. This adaptation does deviate from it, but considering how beautiful it looked and how entertaining it was I am past caring.I only have two real complaints of this movie. The film does suffer from being overlong at over two hours, consequently I did feel some scenes dragged but only slightly. My other complaint was that I wished Angela Lansbury and Vincent Price had more screen time. Lansbury is a fine actress, but because she is given very little to do, she failed to make an impression. Price is another fine actor, chiefly remembered for his performances in films like Pit and the Pendulum, Great Mouse Detective, Witchfinder General and Fall of the House of Usher. Sadly, as Cardinal Richelieu he is only in three or four scenes, but he was still good.On the whole, this 1948 film has its good points. The music score is superb, and the cinematography magnificent. The scenery is splendid and I thought the costumes were truly lavish especially Milady's dresses. The film is shot in dazzling Technicolour that still looks amazing even by today's standards. The sword fights are constantly energetic and lively, and don't feel clumsy at all. The script is on the whole good, same with the acting. Although I did worry that Gene Kelly would be out of character, as I associate him mainly with musicals, he was wonderfully athletic as D'Artagnan. Van Heflin, Gig Toung and Robert Coote all gives spirited turns as Athos, Porthos and Aramis. But who impressed me most were Lana Turner who was both beautiful and haunting as Milady and June Allyson as the lovely Constance.Overall, this 1948 film does have its flaws, but what mattered to me was who stunning it looked, it was energetic and entertaining. In these areas, that's where the film succeeded. It isn't completely faithful to the book, but I do think despite its length it is one of the better adaptations of the book out there though the 1973 film gets my vote as the definitive one. 8.5/10 Bethany Cox

The Three Musketeers is such a terrific adventure story, and one the great Hero Journey stories, that it's very hard to mess up. The Musketeers themselves are hugely appealing characters, drinking, brawling, romancing much of the time but fiercely loyal and devoting their lives to their king. This 1948 is perhaps the best version, and there are many versions. The 1993 Disney version with Charlie Sheen and Keifer Sutherland and the 1973 version with Oliver Reed and Michael York both entertain, but this version has the spirit of fun and wonder that only golden age Hollywood can supply. The actors don't just act, the entertain. Gene Kelly shines. The action is dynamic, spectacular and outshines every other musketeer movie. The visuals are bold and colourful. The script is witty captures the slightly whimsical, boisterous approach of Dumas without the slapstick of the Lester movies.Simply, one of the most entertaining movies you will ever see.