One plus one equals none in the 'Iron Mask'

By Oren Murphy

JAKARTA (JP): For those who have tired of seeing Leonardo DiCaprio's face plastered on posters, T-shirts and other Titanic accessories, there might be a natural inclination to avoid seeing the new film in which he stars, The Man in the Iron Mask.

It is, perhaps, not surprising that the caliber of his performance in the film does not match up to the size of his fame. Unfortunately, his double performance as both the cruel King Louis XIV and Louis' twin brother (the man in the iron mask) doesn't persuade, not to mention impress, even when not weighed against his fame. Luckily, the film doesn't consist solely of DiCaprio and the powerful supporting roles are enough to almost let us ignore his shortcomings.

The plot unfolds in the court of a ruthless young Louis XIV who squanders money on wars even as Parisians starve in the streets. We witness various token acts of despotic tyranny before the story begins to move in a decisive direction. The lecherous king is struck by the beauty of Christine (Judith Godreche), but she has already pledged her heart to Raoul (Peter Sarsgaard). Raoul is shortly thereafter sent off to war by the king, where he is killed.

The death infuriates Raoul's father, Athos (John Malkovich), who plans to avenge his death with the help of two friends, Aramis (Jeremy Irons) and Porthos (Gerard Depardieu), by switching the real king with his identical twin who suffers locked away in an iron mask.

Along with the old friends who once served as the original three Musketeers, they rejoin forces to implement their plan. Standing in their way, however, is d'Artagnan (Gabriel Byrne), the fourth Musketeer, who maintains his oath of loyalty to the king.

Byrne gives by far the most fascinating and multidimensional performance in the film, as we watch him attempt to reconcile his disparate loyalties to his king, life-long friends and sense of principles.

In scenes where the camera moves between Byrne and DiCaprio, one almost experiences vertigo, so great is the difference in the range of their performances. The true strength of the film lies in the interaction between d'Artagnan and the former musketeers. It is through the conflict presented in these characters that the deeper currents of honor, nobility and love flow.

Written and directed by Richard Wallace (known for screenplay work in Braveheart), the directorial work does a nice job of keeping the viewer's attention throughout the film. The dialog gives the actors enough material to work, with the exception of a few clunkers that even Byrne couldn't rescue.

In an intimate scene with the queen (Anne Parillaud), he says, "I know that to love you is treason against France, but to not love you is treason against my heart."

Almost all of the dialog when coming from DiCaprio's mouth, unfortunately, sounds flat and unconvincing. The undiluted twang of his American accent also throws the audience directly out of 17th century France and into the 1990s America. In fact, most of his character development comes not through his two-dimensional performance, but from the screenplay itself.

The film offers swashbuckling adventure, trials of honor, and moments of humor through Depardieu's lustful Porthos. For the diehard Leonardo fan, the film has enough to offer and this time you have a choice of a dark Leonardo or a sensitive Leonardo. There should be enough to keep one and all -- not to mention all and one -- interested, if not overly impressed.