The Three Musketeers (1973 live-action film)

The Three Musketeers
The Three Musketeers
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Richard Lester
Written by	George MacDonald Fraser
Based on	The Three Musketeers; 1844 novel; by Alexandre Dumas père
Produced by	Ilya Salkind
Starring	Oliver Reed; Raquel Welch; Richard Chamberlain; Michael York; Frank Finlay; Christopher Lee; Geraldine Chaplin; Simon Ward; Faye Dunaway; Charlton Heston;
Cinematography	David Watkin
Edited by	John Victor Smith
Music by	Michel Legrand
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release dates	11 December 1973 (France); 26 March 1974 (United Kingdom); 29 March 1974 (United States);
Running time	105 minutes
Countries	United Kingdom; United States
Language	English
Budget	$4.5 million
Box office	$10.1 million (rentals)

The Three Musketeers (also known as The Three Musketeers (The Queen's Diamonds)) is a 1973 swashbuckler film based on the 1844 novel by Alexandre Dumas. It is directed by Richard Lester from a screenplay by George MacDonald Fraser, and produced by Ilya Salkind. It stars Michael York, Oliver Reed, Frank Finlay, and Richard Chamberlain as the titular musketeers, with Raquel Welch, Geraldine Chaplin, Jean-Pierre Cassel, Charlton Heston, Faye Dunaway, Christopher Lee, Simon Ward, Georges Wilson and Spike Milligan.

The film adheres closely to the novel, and also injects a fair amount of humor. It was proposed in the 1960s as a vehicle for The Beatles, whom Lester had directed in A Hard Day's Night and Help!. It was shot by David Watkin, with an eye for period detail, in Madrid and Segovia, Spain. The fight scenes were choreographed by master swordsman William Hobbs. The musical score was composed by Michel Legrand.

The Three Musketeers premiered in France on 11 December 1973. It was both a critical and commercial success and was nominated for several awards, including five BAFTAs. Raquel Welch won a Golden Globe for her performance. The Four Musketeers, a sequel shot back-to-back with its predecessor, was released the following year.

^ Shivas, Mark (5 August 1973). "Lester's Back and the 'Musketeers' Have Got Him". The New York Times. Retrieved 10 October 2010.
^ Sloman, Tony (25 March 1997). "Obituary: Alexander Salkind". Independent. London. Archived from the original on 20 June 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2010.
^ Lester's Back and the 'Musketeers' Have Got Him By MARK SHIVAS. New York Times 5 Aug 1973: 105
^ Solomon, Aubrey. Twentieth Century Fox: A Corporate and Financial History (The Scarecrow Filmmakers Series). Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 1989. ISBN 978-0-8108-4244-1. p232.

[1] Shivas, Mark (5 August 1973). "Lester's Back and the 'Musketeers' Have Got Him". The New York Times. Retrieved 10 October 2010.

[2] Sloman, Tony (25 March 1997). "Obituary: Alexander Salkind". Independent. London. Archived from the original on 20 June 2022. Retrieved 10 October 2010.

[back-3] Lester's Back and the 'Musketeers' Have Got Him By MARK SHIVAS. New York Times 5 Aug 1973: 105

[4] Solomon, Aubrey. Twentieth Century Fox: A Corporate and Financial History (The Scarecrow Filmmakers Series). Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press, 1989. ISBN 978-0-8108-4244-1. p232.

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The Three Musketeers
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Richard Lester^[1]
Written by	George MacDonald Fraser
Based on	The Three Musketeers 1844 novel by Alexandre Dumas père
Produced by	Ilya Salkind^[2]
Starring	Oliver Reed Raquel Welch Richard Chamberlain Michael York Frank Finlay Christopher Lee Geraldine Chaplin Simon Ward Faye Dunaway Charlton Heston
Cinematography	David Watkin
Edited by	John Victor Smith
Music by	Michel Legrand
Distributed by	20th Century Fox
Release dates	11 December 1973 (1973-12-11) (France) 26 March 1974 (1974-03-26) (United Kingdom) 29 March 1974 (1974-03-29) (United States)
Running time	105 minutes
Countries	United Kingdom United States
Language	English
Budget	$4.5 million^[3]
Box office	$10.1 million (rentals)^[4]