If you were left with bated breath in the final moments of The Three Musketeers: D’Artagnan, released just a few weeks ago, you’ll be glad to know its sequel Milady hits theatres this week. The two films – France’s first adaptation of the classic Alexandre Dumas story in many years – were filmed back-to-back in 2021, and although this film doesn’t feel quite as exciting as entering the world for the first time, the characters feel like they haven’t missed a beat.
Relying on having a returning audience, Milady starts with a rather involved “Previously on …” which refreshes the memory but isn’t enough to completely set the scene for a new viewer.
D’Artagnan’s love interest, the queen’s confidante Constance Bonacieux, has been kidnapped and the fourth musketeer is determined to find her. Athos, Porthos and Aramis are on hand to assist, since Athos (Vincent Cassel) was released from prison in the first movie. There’s now a bit more time to flesh out their domestic back stories: principled Aramis is disappointed that his unwed sister is pregnant, Athos grapples with leaving his motherless young son to return to battle and Porthos (of course) just wants to get laid.
But this time, it’s Eva Green’s Milady de Winter who gets to star in her own movie.
We saw Milady in the first film, wearing different wigs and confusing some viewers (me), when it was well established that the lady had powerful relationships, a cold heart and was not for turning.
Here, the bilingual Green engages in some pretty impressive stunt fighting as Milady attempts to seduce D’Artagnan with her heavily corseted décolleté. She deceives, mixes truth with lies and is central to the film’s exciting and unexpected climax.
But the story sends the four swordsmen in different directions across France, interposed with scenes in which the king (an underused Louis Garrel) is pushed into war by his political team. This aspect of the plot gets a bit hard to follow (me again), as all the male characters blur into a mélange of flouncy shirts and moustaches.
It’s still a great-looking film, with glorious landscapes and sea-surrounded castles. There are more of those one-shot fight scenes that were so impressive in D’Artagnan, and the script is subtly humorous, if excessively detailed, but nonetheless well written.
Milady is a solid enough chapter two but beware of a cliffhanger that implies there will need to be another finale.
Rating out of five: ★★★
The Three Musketeers: Milady, directed by Martin Bourboulon is in cinemas now.
