In over a century of cinema it’s strange to realise just how few French adaptations of Alexandre Dumas’ THE THREE MUSKETEERS there have been. This version from director Martin Bourboulon is probably the best of any version since the silent era, staying faithful to the elements that matter but modernising other aspects to excite contemporary audiences. Seeking to join the king’s musketeers, D’Artagnan (François Civil) instead ends up fighting three of them before allying and helping to stop an elaborate plot against the French crown. With its punchy action, rich and lived-in production design and engaging performances from the likes of Eva Green as Milady and Vincent Cassel as Athos, this is a thrilling two-part swashbuckler that makes you long for more variety in Hollywood action adventure films and respect but not slavishness in adapting the classics. SSP