The Three Musketeers in Film: A Movieline Timeline

1952: Just four years later, MGM re-adapted the novel, this time with the help of animated directors William Hanna and Joseph Barbera as a Tom and Jerry short. The Two Mouseketeers won an Academy Award for Best Short Subject and because of its success, Hanna and Barbera spun three other Mouseketeers movies off of this original.

1961: The French adapted the Musketeers into a double-feature adaptation with elaborate settings and costumes nearly a decade later. Directed by Bernard Borderie, this foreign adaptation starred Gérard Barray, Mylène Demongeot and Jean Carmet.

1973: Originally pitched as a project for the Beatles to star in, director Richard Lester (A Hard Day's Night and Help!) ended up casting Michael York, Oliver Reed, Frank Finlay and Richard Chamberlain as his sword-wielding leads with Geraldine Chaplin, Faye Dunaway and Raquel Welch making up the female contingent. Charlton Heston joined the fun as the villainous Cardinal Richelieu. This close adaptation, which also featured some bawdy humor, was met by mostly positive reviews from critics and is remembered as one of the best Musketeers in film.

1978: Oh, but what you really wanted was a Soviet musical spin on the novel? The Russians executed this feat with D'Artagnan and Three Musketeers, which stars Mikhail Boyarsky as d'Artagnan. Because of the popularity of this feature (and its soundtrack), three sequels followed.

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