The Lowdown

Yes, that's right, it's an erotic version of The Count of Monte Cristo.

Some Observations

• Of course, there's a lot of embellishment on the original story. While you might have been able to extrapolate a little bit of sex from the novel, the leap to having everyone constantly at it requires some poetic licence.
• The main focus re-imagines the story as Edmond adding Mercedes to his revenge-list. Only, for her, he has a very sexy revenge in mind....
• In terms of key plot points, it's actually surprisingly faithful to the source material, but most of the action happens off-screen and is explained through dialogue. Danglars, Caderousse and Villefort are only mentioned, but still play the same role in the story and meet the same ends. Fernand has a different role and, in an excellent twist, is still married to Mercedes but is struggling with repressive sexual urges towards men. The scene in which Edmond ties Mercedes to the bed while Fernand masturbates in the corner is particularly striking.
• There is a lengthy subplot in which Haydee tries various schemes to seduce Ali, who is torn between his desire for her and his duty to his master.
• At last, Maximilian and Valentine are given something interesting to do.

The Verdict

Needless to say, this is not the most serious attempt at an adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo, but it's all in good fun. Collette Gale, who wrote this, seems to have made it her 'thing' to re-write classic stories in an erotic style (she's also done Robin Hood, and The Phantom of the Opera). Sounds like a pretty good gig. Although of course much of it is pretty dirty, it has a certain innocence to it, and is at least committed to itself and the idea, so I came away with an affection for it.

Characters and Plot Elements