Sabatini would not be happy.
I know that over the years Hollywood has taken numerous liberties whenever a novel is converted to film, however, why on earth would they take a beautiful plot and twist it into another that did not pack quite the emotional punch the original did? I found that this film presented a watered down story that simply did not do the book justice. I cannot imagine why certain aspects were changed, such as how Madame Plousgatel was completely omitted from the film and how the count's relation to Andre was changed. Somehow I feel that most people would say time constraints, but leaving or changing certain parts made other parts seem out of place. One example would be how Andre's revolutionary speech was left out, which would make people who were not familiar with the story wonder why he was chosen to be a part of Congress, seeing as how Andre was not the best fencer in the academy and his friendship with Vilmorin was not mentioned by the deputy.
There is one aspect of the movie that I did enjoy and that was the costumes.
Oh, and the ending had me crying with laughter, but somehow I still prefer the book's ending. It was not quite as humorous, but it was unforgettable.