Yes, only three stars! What right? Because, personally, I was quite annoyed. The first half chronicles -after 100 pages of personnages- exposure the most romantic part (that we all remember because view film): the unjust imprisonment, escape, search for treasure and a Dantes times reappeared in the Monte Cristo traits, many meetings of the count with his former relations. If we know the history, a bone of the interest disappears because it must recognize a literary weaknesses: naive (see Morel family), unrealistic dialogue, poverty in the psychological description of the characters (Dantes so bland before his emprionnement, for example), invraissemblances (social and financial success of all the poor characters from beginning or cross-links between the characters), an orientalism of junk, lengths. Finally, it continues playing because Dumas (and his sidekick Maquet), skilled in writing serial novels, depicts his characters as in the theater with surprises, manipulations and twists.
