The Count of Monte Cristo - M1141.05 | Music

In the year 1815, a few days before Napoleon - who had been living in exile on the island of Elba - invades France, the ship Pharaon sails under commander Edmond Dantes into the harbor of Marseille. Impressed by Dantes' skills, ship owner Morrel promotes him to skipper, as the captain has died during the journey. But some people are jealous of Dantes: the auditor, Danglars; the friend, Fernand Montego (who is in love with Mercedes, Dantes' fiancee); the sailor and previously convicted thief, Caderousse; and public prosecutor, Gerard de Villefort. These jealous men accuse Dantes of spying for Bonaparte, because he stopped the journey at the island of Elba. During the celebration of Dantes' engagement with Mercedes, he is arrested and transported to the dreaded prison island Chateau d'lf where he stays imprisoned for nearly fourteen years. One day, he hears a scratching on the wall of his cell. Abbe Faria, an Italian scholar who lives in the next cell, has mistakenly dug a ditch to Dantes' cell. Faria educates Dantes in etiquette and philosophy, and finally passes on to him a map for a treasure on the island of Monte Cristo. After Faria's death, Dantes sews himself into the shroud that serves as a sack to carry out the corpse. He is flung into the sea and is saved by two smugglers. He then finds the treasure, raises it, and returns to Paris as the ominous "Count of Monte Cristo." The time has come for his revenge. Carefully, Dantes plans the destruction of those who imprisoned him. He gains the goodwill of the traitors, who have meanwhile become rich, and makes them dependent on him. Over time, they commit suicide, die in sword fights, or are expulsed from the country. Finally, his revenge is fulfilled, but Mercedes, the love of his life, is lost forever.