If there is Yet another shocker in the dreaded month of January. This one comes courtesy of director Kevin Reynolds (Robin Hood, Waterworld). Actually, this new take on the beloved story Count of Monte Cristo, has been done for quite sometime. For some strange reason, the studio has been reluctant to release it. What a shame, because as it stands, this is quite the rousing adventure.

This old fashioned tale of love, betrayal and revenge is an absolute beauty to look at. And while it doesn't capture every aspect of the novel, it does manage to capture it's adventurous spirit.

Jim Caviezel is terrific as Edmund Dantes. In the early moments of the film, he perfectly captures the child-like innocence of the character. He's equally effective in the transformation to the ultimate revenge seeker.

Guy Pearce does his best as the villain, although he often reminded me of Tim Roth's more effective bad guy in the brilliant Rob Roy. As expected, The Count of Monte Cristo is full of wonderful bit parts, most notably veteran Richard Harris as Dante's all knowing cellmate, and a hilarious Luis Guzman as Edmund's servant and friend.

Reynolds has fashioned a wonderfully exciting film, and although the climactic fight is not quite as big as it should be, it hardly dampens power of the film. This movie is big and delivers more often than not. It's in the tradition of movies like Zorro, and I must confess, I liked this much more than Reynold's take on Robin Hood.

As for The Count of Monte Cristo ,maybe Mark Pellington and Kevin Reynolds should become bowling partners!