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104-570: The film features Tsui Hark 's regular actor Xin-Xin Xiong as a stunt choreographer and performer. Released days before the September 11 attacks , it was moderately successful in North America but did not perform well in other countries, and received largely negative reviews from critics. It is recognized by the department of Gers as the first Musketeers adaptation to incorporate authentic scenery from

208-411: A Seven Swords 2 . Rumors has it that due to lack of interest by the filmmakers of finishing the hexalogy lead the project into being cancelled. In August 2008, Tsui provided art direction for the direct-to-video anime feature titled Kungfu Master (a.k.a. Wong Fei Hong vs Kungfu Panda ), an apparent unofficial sequel to Kung Fu Panda , featuring Chinese folk hero Wong Fei-hung . He also directed

312-441: A Universal Music subsidiary, on 11 September 2001. The soundtrack has been a fixture of Universal Studios Florida and could frequently heard in the park's entrance. Tsui Hark Tsui Hark ( Chinese : 徐克 , Vietnamese : Từ Khắc , born 15 February 1950), born Tsui Man-kong ( Vietnamese : Từ Văn Quang ), is a Hong Kong filmmaker. Tsui has directed several influential Hong Kong films such as Zu Warriors from

416-441: A French work, the film did not get any subsidies from France's national film support fund, as it was viewed as a commercially-oriented production. It did, however, receive some from the regional governments whose territories were showcased in the picture. Despite interest from the local population, casting agents struggled to find suitable extras to portray a bygone peasantry, as most modern inhabitants of rural Southern France lacked

520-729: A castle on the outskirts of Monpazier figure in another revisionist take on Dumas, Revenge of the Musketeers . The Cité de Carcassonne provided some wide shots of the French capital's now demolished fortifications. Some specific Paris locations were based on buildings in Toulouse : the Royal Palace is the redecorated Capitole , while Richelieu's residence is the Convent of the Jacobins . The Toulouse part of

624-523: A craze for Heroic bloodshed movies, and Ching Siu-tung's A Chinese Ghost Story (1987), which did the same for period ghost fantasies. Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain and The Swordsman (1990) birthed the modern-day special effects industry in Hong Kong. In fact, Tsui's "movie brat" nostalgia is one of the main ingredients in his work. He often resurrects and revises classic films and genres:

728-530: A darling of film critics with writers describing it as "one of those very rare films in the history of Hong Kong cinema that brims with accusation and subversion" and saying that it described "man as trapped animals — this is the popular theme of the New Wave and the one enduring image in their narratives." In 1981, Tsui joined Cinema City & Films Co. , a production company founded by comedians Raymond Wong , Karl Maka and Dean Shek . Cinema City & Films Co.

832-626: A difficult marital relationship, exacerbated by her miscarriages and the anti- Habsburg stance of Louis' first minister, Cardinal Richelieu . Despite a climate of distrust amidst the Franco-Spanish War and twenty-three years of childlessness in which she suffered four miscarriages, Anne gave birth to an heir, Louis, in 1638 and a second son, Philippe two years later. When Louis XIII died in 1643, Anne outmaneuvered her opponents to become sole regent to her four-year-old son, Louis XIV, and appointed Cardinal Mazarin as chief minister. The Fronde ,

936-452: A gift given by Heaven in answer to their prayers. Despite a climate of distrust, the queen became pregnant once more, a circumstance that contemporary gossip attributed to a single stormy night that prevented Louis from travelling to Saint-Maur and obliged him to spend the night with the queen. Louis XIV was born on 5 September 1638, an event that secured the Bourbon line. At this time, Anne

1040-498: A great amount of her favorites as punishment for a plot in which the queen had cooperated with queen dowager Marie de' Medici in an attempt to depose Cardinal Richelieu, and among those fired were Madame de Motteville and Madeleine du Fargis. Queen Anne asked the Cardinal to intervene so that she might keep du Fargis. When he refused, she swore that she would never forgive him. Du Fargis left for Brussels, where her spouse had sided with

1144-569: A hundred films. In 1993, rumors circulated about Tsui's affair with Sally Yeh , allegedly causing a temporary split with Shi. In 1996, Tsui and Shi married in Beverly Hills , California . In 2008, Tsui was reported to have been living with Seven Swords (2005) actress Chen Jiajia in Beijing . When asked about their status of marriage, Shi then responded, "Let me give you a standard answer. I've been saying this for years: what happens between two people

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1248-435: A major contribution to the well-known Tsui style. Film Workshop releases became consistent box office hits in Hong Kong and around Asia, drawing audiences with their visual adventurousness, their broad commercial appeal, and hectic camerawork and pace. With Tsui having been called the 'Steven Spielberg of Asia', Film Workshop became the 'Amblin of Hong Kong'. He produced John Woo 's A Better Tomorrow (1986), which launched

1352-414: A major revolt by the French nobility against Anne and Mazarin's government, broke out but was ultimately suppressed. In 1651, Anne's regency formally ended when Louis was declared of age. Accounts of French court life of her era emphasize her closeness to her son, and her disapproval of her son's infidelity to her niece and daughter-in-law Maria Theresa . She retired from active politics in 1661 and moved to

1456-695: A music judge in A Better Tomorrow and a phony FBI agent in Aces Go Places II . In the face of an industry downturn in the '90s, he produced two expensive movies. Green Snake (1993) was a poetic and lyric movie based on a favourite Chinese fairy tale. The Blade (1995) was a gory, deliberately rough-hewn revision of the 1967 wuxia classic The One-Armed Swordsman . In the mid-to-late '90s, Tsui tried Hollywood with two films starring Jean-Claude Van Damme : Double Team (1997) and Knock Off (1998). In 2002, he made Black Mask 2: City of Masks , an American market sequel to Jet Li's 1996 film . It

1560-410: A non-domestic gross of just $ 7 million for a combined worldwide gross of $ 34 million, against its $ 36 million production budget. Nonetheless, sales of the film's rights, combined with efficient tax optimization , made The Musketeer a positive venture according to MDP, contributing $ 27 million to the company's revenue and helping it back in the black after several difficult years. Universal also called

1664-561: A noted documentary film by Christine Choy on the history of the city's Chinatown. He also worked as an editor for a Chinese newspaper, developed a community theatre group and worked in a Chinese cable TV station. He returned to Hong Kong in 1977. Tsui returned to Hong Kong in 1977 and worked for TVB, the dominant local television station, then moved to its rival, CTV, lured by its general manager Selina Chow. Viewed as having an eye for talent (numerous future New Wave directors got their first directing gigs under Chow) she put Tsui in charge of

1768-469: A number of reviewers singled out Tim Roth's unhinged performance as Febre as the most enjoyable aspect of the film. Ebert remarked that "when Tim Roth vows vengeance on the man who blinded him, I for one believe him." The more modern characterization of Planchet and his portrayal by Jean-Pierre Castaldi also received praise, with the Chicago Tribune calling him "a ton of fun". A few critics have defended

1872-615: A segment based on Hong Kong history. The completed film, Septet: The Story of Hong Kong , was shown at the Busan International Film Festival on 21 October 2020 and at the annual Hong Kong International Film Festival in April 2021. In 2021 Tsui co-directed The Battle at Lake Changjin with Chen Kaige and Dante Lam . The film is the most expensive film ever produced in China, the highest-grossing Chinese film of all time , and

1976-476: A special effects action movie. The pattern is also seen in perhaps Tsui's most successful work to date, the Once Upon a Time in China film series (1991–97). Jet Li played the role of Chinese folk hero Wong Fei-hung in the first three films and the sixth, Once Upon a Time in China and America . This series is the clearest expression in his oeuvre of Tsui's Chinese nationalism and his passionate engagement with

2080-469: A television series counterpart ( Seven Swordsmen ), a comic book series, a cellphone game, clothing brand, and an online multi-player video game. The film was relatively successful, and in February 2006 Tsui announced plans to begin filming the second late in the year. As of 2008, Tsui continues to work on the script for Seven Swords 2 in between filming projects. In 2011 there has been no news nor plans about

2184-684: Is a re-imagining of his 1992 film New Dragon Gate Inn starring Tony Leung Ka-Fai , Maggie Cheung and Brigitte Lin . In 2011 Huayi Brothers announced that Tsui will be making a prequel to Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame ; shot in 3-D, it was released in 2013 as Young Detective Dee: Rise of the Sea Dragon . In October 2011, Tsui received the Asian Filmmaker of the Year Award at

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2288-540: Is absent, as is Richelieu's spy Milady De Winter . The Cardinal's scheme is more straightforward and entails the staging of public incidents that will sap the King's credibility. Rochefort is an elegant character who seems to obey Richelieu out of deference for his political stature, rather than outright malevolence. Perhaps due to the invention of Febre, Rochefort's rivalry with d'Artagnan in The Musketeer remains gentlemanly. It

2392-422: Is holding Francesca. D'Artagnan returns to Paris and convinces the surviving musketeers that their responsibility to the crown remains their highest priority, and they join him at the castle where Francesca, the queen, and Lord Buckingham are being held. They charge the castle on horseback, losing several of their number in the process, but the diversion they create allows Planchet to drive his carriage in front of

2496-500: Is most often compared, with many feeling that the integrity of the source material had been compromised in an effort to cater to a younger, casual audience. The Chicago Tribune 's Michael Wilmington called it "even worse" than that film, and made for people "who think that D'Artagnan is a men's cologne ". Stephen Holden of The New York Times argued that " The Musketeer conflicts with itself by trying to blend grand old-school costume drama and MTV -style rhythm and attitude in

2600-474: Is private and doesn't concern a third party." By 2011, Tsui began dating his assistant, Lele, whom he had met online during the filming of Flying Swords of Dragon Gate (2011). Shi announced their divorce in 2014, adding that Tsui and Lele had been together for some time. Television Anne d%27Autriche Anne of Austria ( French : Anne d'Autriche ; Spanish : Ana de Austria ; born Ana María Mauricia; 22 September 1601 – 20 January 1666)

2704-447: Is somewhat truer to the book than his outright villainous portrayal in many other adaptations, even though he meets a different end. Both Richelieu and Rochefort are blindsided by Febre's ruthlessness and by his direct attack on the Queen. Gene Quintano sold the film's script to Moshe Diamant , a producer at Mark Damon 's Vision International, in 1992 for $ 750,000. Quintano aspired to direct

2808-610: Is viewed as a major figure in the Golden Age of Hong Kong cinema and is regarded by critics as "one of the masters of Asian cinematography ". In the late 1990s, Tsui had a short-lived career in the United States, directing the Jean-Claude Van Damme –led films Double Team (1997) and Knock Off (1998). He returned to Hong Kong to continue his career, where he found commercial and critical success with blockbusters such as

2912-581: The Detective Dee film series , Flying Swords of Dragon Gate (2011), and The Taking of Tiger Mountain (2014). Tsui was born and raised in Saigon , Vietnam , to a large Chinese ( Hoa ) family with sixteen siblings. Tsui showed an early interest in show business and films; when he was 10, he and some friends rented an 8 mm camera to film a magic show they put on at school. He also drew comic books, an interest that would influence his cinematic style. By

3016-464: The Fronde . In 1651, when her son Louis XIV officially came of age, her regency legally ended. However, she kept much power and influence over her son until the death of Mazarin. In January 1648, while acting as regent, Anne received a request on behalf of artists who were affiliated with the crown or aristocracy. The artists, led by painter Charles Le Brun , wanted independence from the monopoly control of

3120-571: The Musketeers , the loyal protectors of Louis XIII . Fourteen years later, the adult d'Artagnan finds on his arrival in Paris that the musketeers have been disbanded by order of Richelieu, who plots to usurp the king's authority and render him a powerless figurehead. Richelieu is also trying to foment hostility between France, England, and Spain to gain more political power for himself. D'Artagnan convinces two veteran musketeers, Porthos and Aramis , to free

3224-523: The guild , which fined the artists or seized their work. The painters and sculptors petitioned Louis XIV and the Queen Regent to form a new organization. They wanted to found an academy that would be for the visual arts what Académie Française was for French literature ; this was to become the Académie Royale . Anne's regency formally ended in 1651, when Louis XIV was declared of legal majority at

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3328-437: The highest-grossing non-English film . Tsui Hark has been married twice. He was briefly married during his time studying in the U.S. in the 1970s, but the marriage ended in divorce. In 1977, he met Nansun Shi while working at Commercial Television , Hong Kong and they began dating a year later. In 1984, they founded a film studio, where Shi was responsible for financing, distribution, and promotion. The couple co-produced over

3432-403: The real d'Artagnan 's home region. The young d'Artagnan witnesses the murder of his parents at the hands of Febre, a cruel swordsman in the employ of Cardinal Richelieu . D'Artagnan is nearly killed after using his dead father's sword to attack Febre, who is then left with a permanent scar and the loss of his left eye. The wounded boy is taken in by Planchet, a family friend and former member of

3536-452: The 16th Busan International Film Festival for his contributions to Hong Kong cinema. He is the fifth Chinese filmmaker to receive this award at Busan. His film The Taking of Tiger Mountain premiered in China in December 2014. Tsui worked on a film with Milkyway Image alongside Ann Hui , Ringo Lam , Patrick Tam , Johnnie To , Sammo Hung and Yuen Woo-Ping . Each director created

3640-489: The 1993 version—as a prospective co-star. Michael Lonsdale was in talks to appear as well. Ultimately the latter two did not participate. Catherine Deneuve was in negotiations to star for several months, but only signed on shortly before filming. The film was originally announced under the banner of Behaviour Communications, the film branch of a Canadian multimedia conglomerate , into which Mark Damon had merged his company MDP Worldwide in 1998. But after another restructuring,

3744-571: The 2008 thriller Missing starring Angelica Lee and the 2008 romantic comedy film All About Women featuring comic graphics and extensive ADR dubbing. Tsui's latest work in 2010 is Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame , a rare but successful blend of wuxia, suspense-thriller, mystery, and comedy, which was in competition for the Golden Lion award and was also nominated and won numerous other awards. In 2010 he announced his first 3-D film, The Flying Swords of Dragon Gate , which

3848-452: The 27th Deauville Festival , where it held its European premiere out of competition on 7 September 2001. The launch trailer started with a condensed preview of the film's tavern fight, exempt of any dialogue or voice-over , and later proclaimed "This fall, Alexandre Dumas' classic is completely reimagined with fight choreography by Hong Kong legend Xin-Xin Xiong." None of the director and stars' names were mentioned. Industry professionals saw

3952-578: The BBC series The Musketeers (2014–2016). She first appears as a character in the Dinosaur King season two episode "The French Conniption" as a young teen along with a young King Louis and others. She appeared in Legends of Tomorrow ' s season two premiere episode "Out of Time", played by Rebecca Roberts. She appeared in final episode of the third season of series As If , played by Yeşim Ceylan. She

4056-506: The Fronde when Anne was Queen Regent. In 1662, Anne acquired the heart of her ancestor, Anne Elizabeth of France, and placed it in the Chapel of Saint Anne. She, herself, was interred in 1666 in the Chapel of Saint Sacrament, alongside the body of Marguerite d'Arbouze. They saw in the arms of this princess whom they had watched suffer great persecutions with so much staunchness, their child-King, like

4160-475: The Habsburgs, who surrounded France on two fronts, inevitably created tension between Louis and Anne, who remained childless for another sixteen years. Under the influence of Marie de Rohan, the queen let herself be drawn into political opposition to Richelieu and became embroiled in several intrigues against his policies. Vague rumors of betrayal circulated in the court, notably her supposed involvement, first, with

4264-482: The Magic Mountain (1983), the Once Upon a Time in China film series (1991–1997) and The Blade (1995). Tsui also has been a prolific writer and producer; his productions include A Better Tomorrow (1986), A Better Tomorrow II (1987), A Chinese Ghost Story (1987), The Killer (1989), The Legend of the Swordsman (1992), The Wicked City (1992), Iron Monkey (1993) and Black Mask (1996). He

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4368-679: The Spanish court stipulated that she would return to Spain with her dowry, jewels, and wardrobe if he did die. Prior to the marriage, Anne renounced all succession rights she had for herself and her descendants by Louis, with a provision that she would resume her rights should she be left a childless widow. On 18 October 1615, Louis and Anne were married by proxy in Burgos while Louis's sister, Elisabeth of France , and Anne's brother, Philip IV of Spain , were married by proxy in Bordeaux . These marriages followed

4472-585: The Walt Disney adaptation. The character's eyepatch actually dates all the way back to the 1973 film . In the book, he only has a scar. Also similar to the 1993 film, d'Artagnan's father was a former musketeer and was murdered—this time alongside his wife—by the man in black. In this version however, the parents' murder is a gratuitous crime to which a young d'Artagnan bears witness. It is not part of Richelieu's conspiracy and neither Athos, Porthos nor Aramis, who have greatly reduced roles throughout, are aware of it. In

4576-507: The Wolf , a contemporary Universal release that mixed romanticized European history and Asian martial arts. Both films were shot in close locations, with some actors, local extras and crew members taking part in both films. The film's score was composed and produced by David Arnold , and conducted and arranged by frequent collaborator Nicholas Dodd. It was released on CD by the Decca Records ,

4680-642: The age of 13, he and his family immigrated to Hong Kong. Tsui started his secondary education in Hong Kong in 1966. He proceeded to study film in Texas , first at Southern Methodist University and then at the University of Texas at Austin , graduating in 1975. He claims to have told his parents he wanted to follow in his father's footsteps as a pharmacist , and that it was here he changed his given name to Hark ("overcoming"). After graduation, Tsui moved to New York City , where he worked on From Spikes to Spindles (1976),

4784-635: The age of thirteen. In 1659, the war with Spain ended with the Treaty of the Pyrenees . The following year, peace was cemented by the marriage of the young king to Anne's niece, the Spanish Habsburg princess Maria Theresa of Spain . In 1661, the same year as the death of Mazarin, an heir to the throne was born, Anne's first grandchild Louis . Many other children would follow, but all in the legitimate line would die except for Louis. Sometime after, Anne retired to

4888-428: The castle gates below the field of enemy cannon fire. This enables him to fire a concealed mortar and create an opening. The remaining musketeers easily deal with Febre's men, while d'Artagnan engages Febre himself in an intense duel, finally killing him and avenging the death of his parents. D'Artagnan and the three surviving musketeers are given medals for their service, and d'Artagnan covertly threatens Richelieu. At

4992-598: The company changed its name back to MDP Worldwide in May 2000. The film was an international co-production between the United States , the United Kingdom , Germany and Luxembourg . It was part of a trio of films co-produced by MDP/Behaviour, Luxembourg's Carousel Picture Company and German tax shelter fund AppolloMedia. The others were FeardotCom and Extreme Ops , the second of which Quintano helped write. While based on

5096-486: The conspiracies of the Count of Chalais that Marie organized in 1626, and then those of the king's treacherous favorite, Cinq-Mars , who had been introduced to him by Richelieu. In 1626, the Cardinal placed Madeleine du Fargis as Dame d'atour in the household of the queen to act as a spy, but she was instead to become a trusted confidant and favorite of the queen. In December 1630, Louis XIII reduced Anne's court and purged

5200-479: The convent of Val-de-Grâce , where she died of breast cancer five years later. The couple had the following children: She is one of the central figures in Alexandre Dumas 's 1844 novel The Three Musketeers and its sequels Twenty Years After (1845) and The Vicomte de Bragelonne (1847-1850), and has thus been portrayed in numerous film adaptations . Her lady-in-waiting Madame de Motteville wrote

5304-595: The convent she had commissioned, Val-de-Grâce , where she died of breast cancer five years later. Born at the Benavente Palace  [ es ] in Valladolid , Spain , and baptised Ana María Mauricia, she was the eldest daughter of King Philip III of Spain and his wife Margaret of Austria . She held the titles of Infanta of Spain and of Portugal (since her father was king of Portugal as well as Spain ) and Archduchess of Austria. Despite her Spanish birth, she

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5408-530: The convent to Paris in 1621. She was named the new foundress of the convent in the same year. Her patronage included the building of a small church and an apartment for herself between 1620 and 1625, against the wishes of both Louis and Cardinal Richelieu. The Val-de-Grâce was commissioned by Anne in 1645, which was undertaken initially by Francois Mansart, who was dismissed in 1646 and succeeded by Jacques Lemercier. The Val-de-Grâce became Anne's main place of worship and would later gain dynastic significance during

5512-463: The country in the weekend before the 9/11 terror attacks . In its second weekend the film made $ 5.3 million. The decrease was not necessarily due to the terror attacks, as overall box office intake was actually higher year-on-year. The Musketeer went on grossing $ 27 million in Canada and the United States. Internationally, The Musketeer struggled, sometimes for reasons beyond the film itself. In France,

5616-413: The country of top billed Catherine Deneuve, it opened on a modest 341 screens for a career tally of 228,037 admissions. In Germany, which contributed much of the film's budget, theatrical release was compromised by a falling out between distribution partners Helkon and Buena Vista , and eventually cancelled in favor of a home video premiere nearly two years after its U.S. debut. The film is credited with

5720-470: The couple together under amiable circumstances. Anne began to dress in the French manner, and in 1619 Luynes pressed the king to bed his queen. Some affection developed, to the point where it was noted that Louis was distracted during a serious illness of the queen. A series of miscarriages disenchanted the king and served to chill their relations. On 14 March 1622, while playing with her ladies, Anne fell and suffered her second stillbirth. Louis blamed her for

5824-410: The end, d'Artagnan and Francesca are seen to be married. The film is a broad reimagining of Dumas' work, which deemphasizes political machinations in favor of a revenge plot typical of modern action films. A new antagonist, Febre, who has psychopathic traits, takes precedence over the book's historical figures. Febre's portrayal as a one-eyed man in black bears strong similarities to that of Rochefort in

5928-456: The film "a very successful acquisition". Xiong would work for Diamant on a few more international films after The Musketeer . The film was released on DVD on 26 February 2002. It reached number 4 in Billboard' s national DVD sales chart . In Germany, distributor MC One issued a limited and numbered 2-DVD Digipak special edition with a hologram cover and 24-page booklet. On Rotten Tomatoes ,

6032-859: The film "robust and handsome". The Musketeer' s art direction was praised, with Boxoffice touting "lavish production values" and Ebert calling the banquet scene "a marvel of art design". The film also earned notice for its photography relying primarily on natural light, which Thomas and the Houston Chronicle 's Louis B. Parks compared to a painting. However, like many of Hyams' previous works, some found it too dark. Justin Chambers' interpretation of d'Artagnan elicited particular disdain, with several reviewers comparing it to soap opera acting. Many found Catherine Deneuve wasted as Queen Anne, with Hollywood.com calling her "completely underused". Despite some pushback over his character's unnecessary inclusion,

6136-420: The film has an approval rating of 11% based on 96 reviews, with an average rating of 3.5/10. The website's consensus states that "Hong Kong inspired action sequences take center stage in this latest Three Musketeers adaptation. Unfortunately, the oversimplification of the story and an uncharismatic lead character leave the movie flat." The Musketeer received similar criticism to the 1993 version, to which it

6240-419: The film the Musketeers are framed for the murder of a Spanish envoy and disbanded, which too is broadly similar to the 1993 version. In the book, the Musketeers have frequent skirmishes with Richelieu's guards, but they are still in activity. The novel's court intrigues have been simplified. While the Queen has a volatile relationship with Louis XIII, Lord Buckingham is not her lover and the diamond studs subplot

6344-411: The film would perform respectably in U.S. theaters, but would find more favor in international markets. The Los Angeles Times thought otherwise, suggesting that the film's independent producers would find it hard to break even internationally after selling the U.S. rights for a modest amount. The film debuted with a $ 10.7 million opening ahead of Two Can Play That Game ; it was the number-one film in

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6448-522: The film's North American and U.K. rights for $ 7.5 million. Universal would release it in North America, and Miramax in the United Kingdom. Around the same time, the film's English-language version was renamed The Musketeer . It retained its intended title in select foreign territories, such as France. The Musketeer held its world premiere in Los Angeles on 5 September 2001. The film was selected for

6552-500: The film's action focus, arguing that it could be seen as an evolution of the acrobatics seen in Douglas Fairbanks ' 1921 and 1929 films. In a retrospective review, genre film website The Action Elite deemed that the film was "not that memorable" but "arguably [had] the best action scenes of any incarnation of these characters, making it a fun ride." The Musketeer has drawn some—mostly unfavorable—comparisons to Brotherhood of

6656-478: The government to the chief minister, Cardinal Mazarin , who was a protégé of Cardinal Richelieu and figured among the council of the regency. Mazarin took up residence at the Palais Royal near Queen Anne. Before long he was believed to be her lover, and, it was hinted, even her husband. With Mazarin's support, Anne overcame the aristocratic revolt, led by Louis II de Bourbon, Prince de Condé , that became known as

6760-554: The help of Porthos, Aramis and another musketeer, Athos , saves King Louis, the queen, and Lord Buckingham from being hurt or killed. Afterwards, Francesca recruits d'Artagnan to make a clandestine trip to the north coast of France with the queen to meet with Buckingham in an effort to keep peace between the two countries. However, d'Artagnan's landlord overhears them and tells Febre. During the trip, d'Artagnan fights off repeated attacks by Febre's henchmen. He and Francesca become intimate, only to have Febre discover them and kidnap her and

6864-412: The imprisoned head of the musketeers, Captain de Tréville , thus earning their trust. He takes a room at a Paris boarding house , where he takes a fancy to the chambermaid, Francesca, who is the daughter of the late seamstress to the queen . Febre, on orders from Richelieu, incites a mob to attack the royal palace during a state dinner for Lord Buckingham, a visiting English dignitary. D'Artagnan, with

6968-619: The incident and was angry with Marie de Rohan, now the Dowager Duchess of Luynes, for having encouraged the queen in what was seen as negligence. The king's already strained relationship with the duchess worsened after the incident, leading him to demand her departure from the court. However, Rohan returned just a few months later with her new husband Claude, Duke of Chevreuse . Louis turned now to Cardinal Richelieu as his advisor, who served as his first minister from 1624 until his death in 1642. Richelieu's foreign policy of struggle against

7072-546: The influence of his mother in a palace coup d'état and had her favorite Concino Concini assassinated on 26 April of that year. During the years he was in the ascendancy Luynes attempted to remedy the formal distance between Louis and his queen. He sent away Inés de la Torre and the other Spanish ladies and replaced them with French ones, notably the Princess of Conti ( Louise Marguerite of Lorraine ) and his wife Marie de Rohan , with whom he organized court events that would bring

7176-421: The king's brother Gaston, Duke of Orléans against the monarch. After the invasion of Gaston in 1632, letters were discovered from du Fargis to people in Paris describing the plans of a marriage between Gaston and Anne after the death of Louis XIII. Anne was questioned and confirmed that the letters were written by du Fargis, but denied any knowledge of the plans. In 1635, France declared war on Spain , placing

7280-434: The martial arts drama, The Gold Dagger Romance , which marked him as a talent to watch. Producer Ng See-yuen saw Gold Dagger Romance and hired Tsui to direct his first feature, The Butterfly Murders (1979), a technically challenging blend of wuxia , murder mystery and science fiction / fantasy elements. His second film, We're Going to Eat You (1980), was a blend of cannibal horror, black comedy and martial arts. He

7384-564: The mission to examine whether there was any truth to the rumor of an alliance between France and England , as this would force Spain to cut off diplomatic connections to France and disturb her network of couriers between the Spanish embassies of Paris and Brussels. On 11 August 1637, Anne came under so much suspicion that Richelieu issued an investigation. Her courier La Porte as well as the abbess of Anne's favorite convent Val-de-Grâce (where Anne had written many of her secret letters) were questioned and admitted to having participated in channeling

7488-487: The more notable are Château de Cassaigne , which is used as the domain where the Queen seeks shelter after escaping from Paris, and Château de Caumont in Cazaux-Savès , which stands in for the Musketeers' headquarters at Monsieur de Tréville's. During filming in the area, Hyams, Diamant, Chambers and Castaldi attended a ceremony at fr:Cathédrale Saint-Pierre de Condom where they were made honorary "musketeers", although this

7592-768: The murder mystery in The Butterfly Murders (1979); the Shanghai musical comedy in Shanghai Blues (1985). Peking Opera Blues (1986) plays with and pays tribute to the traditions of the Peking opera that his mother took him to see as a small boy and which had such a strong influence on Hong Kong action cinema. The Lovers (1994) adapts a retold, cross-dressing period romance, best known from Li Han-hsiang's 1963 opera film The Love Eterne . A Chinese Ghost Story remakes Li's supernatural romance The Enchanting Shadow (1959) as

7696-495: The novel, d'Artagnan leaves his father in good health. The senior d'Artagnan was never a musketeer, but his son is encouraged to enlist due the family's noble Gascon background, which it shares with many members of the guard. The character of Planchet is not a mere servant d'Artagnan hires in Paris, but a sidekick and mentor to the d'Artagnan family, who raises the boy after his parents' death and arms himself with concealed pistols. Whereas d'Artagnan romances several women at once in

7800-438: The novel, the film's version is inexperienced with the ladies. Constance Bonacieux, his older love interest, is replaced with Francesca Bonacieux, a younger and more upbeat figure. She is the daughter of a Spanish seamstress who followed Infanta Anne to France when she married Louis XIII. Rather than being married to d'Artagnan's landlord, she is his niece, although the older man tries to extort sexual favors from her. Early in

7904-469: The press in the spring of 2000, with Peter Hyams—who had helmed two films starring Diamant's usual leading man Jean-Claude Van Damme —now directing. The swashbuckling tale's wire fu makeover was Diamant's idea too, as he had previously worked with Xin-Xin Xiong on Tsui Hark 's two Van Damme vehicles, Double Team and Knock Off . Early coverage named Mena Suvari as the lead actress, but also mentioned Gary Oldman —who had previously been approached for

8008-411: The production company Film Workshop with Nansun Shi . He also developed a reputation as a hands-on and even intrusive producer of other directors' work, fuelled by public breaks with major filmmakers like John Woo and King Hu . His most longstanding and fruitful collaboration has probably been with Ching Siu-tung . As action choreographer and/or director on many Film Workshop productions, Ching made

8112-488: The project, then titled D'Artagnan , himself. It was one of several Three Musketeers adaptations in the works at the time: others were being pitched at Columbia (by Damon's former Vision associate Jon Peters ), Disney and Tri-Star . Eventually, the attention received by Disney's film put a damper on rival projects. Quintano's version was put on hold, and would later be revived at Vision's successor company, MDP (Mark Damon Productions) Worldwide. The project resurfaced in

8216-400: The promotional focus on martial arts and the trailer's extensive rotation ahead of Universal's teen comedy American Pie 2 as the main factors behind the film's relatively successful launch. IGN felt that Universal's hyping of Xiong as a "legend" was exaggerated, as his style owed much to some of his forebears like Yuen Woo-ping . Upon release, trade publication Variety projected that

8320-545: The queen and her household under control. As part of her role as a member of French royalty, Anne visited churches and convents across France, where she met Marguerite de Veny d'Arbouze at the Notre-Dame-de-Grâce de la-Ville-d'Evêque. As well as securing from the King the position of Abbess at the Benedictine Val-de-Grâce de Notre-Dame-de-la-Crèche for Marguerite in 1618, Anne purchased lands and transferred

8424-561: The queen in an untenable position. Her secret correspondence with her brother Philip IV of Spain was not the only communication she had with the Spanish. She also corresponded with the Spanish ambassador Mirabel and the governor of the Spanish Netherlands . With the assistance of Anne's servant La Porte, who acted as courier, Madeleine du Fargis and Marie de Rohan acted as agents for her secret correspondence and channeled her letters to other contacts. In July 1637, Anne gave du Fargis

8528-462: The queen's secret correspondence. Anne initially swore on the Holy Sacrament that she had participated in no illegal correspondence, but finally admitted her guilt on 15 August. On 17 August, Queen Anne was forced to sign covenants regarding her correspondence, which was henceforth open to inspection; she was further banned from visiting convents without permission and was never to be left alone but

8632-521: The queen. Febre forces the queen to write a letter to Buckingham asking him to meet her at a heavily fortified castle of his choosing, using the queen's ring to convince him of the authenticity of the message. Richelieu realizes that the jingoistic Febre intends to incite full-blown war between England and France. Knowing that he has lost control of his chief henchman, Richelieu secretly visits d'Artagnan and tells him of Febre's plans and pleads for his help to stop Febre. D'Artagnan agrees, but only because Febre

8736-675: The rough facial features desired by production, and looked too urban. Shooting commenced on 17 August 2000, and took place in Luxembourg, Belgium and France. The streets of 17th century Paris were recreated in Sarlat-la-Canéda . The Dordogne town claims to be the 3rd most requested filming location in France after Paris and Nice , as its well preserved architecture makes it highly sought after for historical films. Another Dordogne locality, Monpazier , stood in for downtown Brionne . Sarlat and

8840-467: The same movie." Quintano's mix of modern and classic phrasing was criticized as an "awkward melange" by Boxoffice , while IGN said that it "can't make up its mind at to be either somewhat Shakespearean sounding or emulating modern vernacular." The teen romance between d'Artagnan and Francesca was equally poorly received: The Washington Post 's Michael O'Sullivan equated it to "a child's idea of romantic love". Boxoffice Magazine did not object to

8944-410: The shoot was briefly disturbed by a dispute between local extras and Auzielle -based Capitole Productions, who had hired them on behalf of the film's main producers. At least one scene was cancelled as a result. The production also incorporated locations from Gascony , the actual region where d'Artagnan grew up, although they do not necessarily represent their real-life counterparts in narration. Among

9048-474: The story of the queen's life in her Mémoires d'Anne d'Autriche . She was portrayed by Geraldine Chaplin in The Three Musketeers (1973 live-action film) and The Four Musketeers (1974 film) . She appears in a French film based on the life of Louis XIV, Le Roi danse , portrayed by Collette Emmanuelle, and King Louis portrayed by Benoît Magimel (2000). She was portrayed by Alexandra Dowling in

9152-705: The story's reimagining, judging it "less disgraceful" than Disney's film and 1998's The Man in the Iron Mask , but contended that Hyams and editor Terry Rawlings were out of touch with the requirements of Hong Kong choreography in terms of coverage and clarity. Some scenes, like the ladder fight, were also criticized for their similarities to Xiong's past work. While Roger Ebert said that he "can not in strict accuracy recommend this film", he conceded that "the action scenes are wonders to behold". The Los Angeles Times ' Kevin Thomas , an exponent of popular action cinema, called

9256-458: The structure still carries. Upon Louis' death in 1643, Anne was named regent , despite his attempts to prevent her from obtaining the position. With the aid of Pierre Séguier , she had the Parlement of Paris revoke the will of the late king, which would have limited her powers. Their four-year-old son was crowned King Louis XIV of France. Anne assumed the regency but to general surprise entrusted

9360-579: The supervision of the royal governess Françoise de Lansac , who was disliked by Anne and loyal to the king and the cardinal. Richelieu made Louis XIII a gift of his palatial hôtel, the Palais Cardinal , north of the Louvre, in 1636, but the king never took possession of it. Anne left the Louvre Palace to install herself there with her two small sons and remained as regent, hence the name Palais-Royal that

9464-1126: The time, Anne had many admirers, including the handsome Duke of Buckingham , although her intimates believed their flirtations remained chaste. Historian Desmond Seward alleges that during his 1625 visit to France, when the French court took official leave of the English embassy at Amiens , "Buckingham climbed into a private garden where the Queen was taking an evening walk", and "may even have tried to rape her", although "Anne's shrieks summoned her attendants." Anne and Louis, both fourteen years old, were pressured to consummate their marriage in order to forestall any possibility of future annulment , but Louis ignored his bride. Louis's mother, Marie de' Medici , continued to conduct herself as queen of France, without showing any deference to her daughter-in-law. Anne, surrounded by her entourage of high-born Spanish ladies-in-waiting headed by Inés de la Torre , continued to live according to Spanish etiquette and failed to improve her French. In 1617, Louis conspired with his favourite Charles d'Albert de Luynes to dispense with

9568-533: The tradition of cementing military and political alliances between France and Spain that began with the marriage of Philip II of Spain to Elisabeth of Valois in 1559 as part of the Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis . Anne and Elisabeth were exchanged on the Isle of Pheasants between Hendaye and Fuenterrabía . She was lively and beautiful during her youth. She was also a noted equestrian , a taste her son, Louis, would inherit. At

9672-538: The upheavals of Chinese history, particularly in the face of Western power and influence. Tsui also dabbled in acting, mostly for other directors. Notable roles include one-third of the comic relief trio in Corey Yuen 's film Yes, Madam ! (1985) and a villain in Patrick Tam 's darkly comic crime story Final Victory (1987), written by Wong Kar-wai . He also made frequent cameo appearances in his own productions, such as

9776-457: Was Queen of France from 1615 to 1643 by marriage to King Louis XIII . She was also Queen of Navarre until the kingdom's annexation into the French crown in 1620. After her husband's death, Anne was regent to her son Louis XIV during his minority until 1651. Anne was born in Valladolid to King Philip III of Spain and Margaret of Austria . She was betrothed to King Louis XIII of France in 1612 and they married three years later. The two had

9880-452: Was 37. The official newspaper Gazette de France called the birth "a marvel when it was least expected". The birth of a living son failed to re-establish confidence between the royal couple. However, she conceived again fifteen months later. At Saint-Germain-en-Laye on 21 September 1640, Anne gave birth to her second son, Philippe I, Duke of Orléans , who later founded the modern House of Orléans . Both of her children were placed under

9984-488: Was Hong Kong's first combination of live action and Pixar -style 3D computer animation . Era of Vampires (2002; US title, "Tsui Hark's Vampire Hunters") reworked a subgenre popular in the '80s, hybrid martial arts / supernatural horror films featuring the "hopping corpses" of Chinese folk legend. In 2005, Tsui launched the multimedia production Seven Swords , a film adaptation of Liang Yusheng 's novels Saiwai Qixia Zhuan and Qijian Xia Tianshan . The film came with

10088-512: Was Tim Roth's stunt double . The film was shown at the American Film Market in the form of a sizzle reel in March 2001. It was successful with foreign buyers, but faced a tentative domestic market towards large independent productions. Hyams finished assembling his first print in mid-April 2001. The same month, MDP entered final negotiations with Universal and Miramax, who teamed up to buy

10192-472: Was always to be in the presence of one of her ladies-in-waiting. This was soon followed up by a purge of her household, where those officials loyal to the queen were replaced by those loyal to the king and the Cardinal. Consequently, count Jean de Galard de Bearn de Brassac, known to be loyal to Richelieu, was appointed chamberlain of her household, and his spouse Catherine de Brassac replaced Marie-Catherine de Senecey as her Première dame d'honneur to keep

10296-694: Was instrumental in codifying the slick Hong Kong blockbuster films of the 1980s. Tsui played his part in the process with pictures like the crime farce All the Wrong Clues (1981), his first hit, and Aces Go Places 3 (1984), part of the studio's long-running spy spoof series. In 1983, Tsui directed the wuxia fantasy film Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain (1983) for the studio Golden Harvest . Tsui imported Hollywood technicians to help create special effects whose number and complexity were unprecedented in Chinese-language cinema. In 1984, Tsui formed

10400-468: Was not a military function, and rather a banquet organized by a cultural association only loosely related to the old Musketeers of the Guard . Vianden Castle in Luxembourg became the fictional Duchamps Castle, where the film's climactic action scene takes place. Vianden's mayor was apparently displeased with damage the castle suffered during filming. In addition to choreographing the fight scenes, Xin-Xin Xiong

10504-429: Was often taken to visit monasteries during her childhood. In 1611, she lost her mother, who died in childbirth. Despite her grief, Anne did her best to take care of her younger siblings, who referred to her with affection as their mother. At age eleven, Anne was betrothed to King Louis XIII of France. Her father gave her a dowry of 500,000 crowns and many beautiful jewels. For fear that Louis XIII would die early,

10608-579: Was quickly typed as a member of Hong Kong's "New Wave" of directors. Tsui's third film, Dangerous Encounters of the First Kind (1980), was a nihilistic thriller about delinquent youths on a bombing spree. Heavily censored by the British colonial government , it was released in 1981 in a drastically altered version titled Dangerous Encounter – 1st Kind (or alternatively, Don't Play with Fire ). The movie out-grossed Tsui's previous two films, however and made him

10712-560: Was referred to as Anne of Austria because the rulers of Spain belonged to the senior branch of the House of Austria , known later as the House of Habsburg, a designation relatively uncommon before the 19th century. Anne was raised mainly at the Royal Alcazar of Madrid . Unusually for a royal princess, Anne grew up close to her parents, who were very religious. She was raised to be religious too, and

10816-489: Was released direct-to-video in the United States in December of that year before being theatrically released the next month in Hong Kong. Tsui returned to directing at home in 2000 after not having made a local film since 1996. Time and Tide (2000) and The Legend of Zu (2001) were action extravaganzas with lavish computer-generated imagery that gained cult admirers but no mass success. Tsui continues to push technical boundaries and revise old favourites. Master Q 2001

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