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This is the very best Musketeer movie ever made, and not just because Richard is in it. Originally destined to be one movie, it was divided into two by the producers the Salkinds, who paid the actors for one movie. The resulting lawsuit led to the “Salkind” cause that now appears in actor contracts.
One of my favorite bits of trivia is that in the book Aramis and the Duke of Buckingham resemble one another. Richard and Simon Ward (who plays the Duke of Buckingham) do indeed look a bit alike! By Geri Maisano
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When
I was in school The Three Musketeers played at the dollar
movie (those were the days) around the corner. My girlfriend ( who was
in love with Michael York) and I attended every performance while it was
there. We would recite lines along with the actors and shout encouragement
to them. Needless to say, we were not the most popular audience members.
The
Three Musketeers was made with exquisite attention to historic
detail and sparkles with humor, both ironic and slapstick. Richard gives
a perfect performance as Aramis. His serene, priestly yet dandified mien
conceals the heart of a vicious swordsman and a dedicated womanizer. He
and the other actors, Michael York, the late Oliver Reed and the underrated
Frank Finley (try to find his performance as Van Helsing in a BBC production
of Dracula) play off each other magnificently. Roy Kinnear (who was later
killed during the making of the Return of the Musketeers) is the bumbling
but surprisingly effective servant Planchet. 
The
Four Musketeers is more serious as befits the story line, but packed full
of action. The sword fights are pretty realistic and look like hard work
went into them. Oh, and Christopher Lee provides a superbly villainous
performance as Rochefort, the Cardinal’s “living blade.”
(Watch for him at Saruman in Lord of the Rings).