The Man in the Iron Mask

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The Man in the Iron Mask

PG-13

1998

2h 12m

Adventure

Action

Drama

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Popcornmeter

33%

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40 Reviews

55%

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250,000+ Ratings

The former musketeer Athos (John Malkovich) swears vengeance after despotic King Louis XIV (Leonardo DiCaprio) causes the death of his son. Summoning his old comrades Porthos (Gérard Depardieu) and Aramis (Jeremy Irons), he hatches a plan to liberate a shackled prisoner rumored to be the king's twin brother, and then install him on the throne. But the three musketeers must also contend with their old friend D'Artagnan (Gabriel Byrne), who has remained in the king's service.

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Critics Consensus

Leonardo DiCaprio plays dual roles with diminishing returns in The Man in the Iron Mask, a cheesy rendition of the Musketeers' epilogue that bears all the pageantry of Alexandre Dumas' text, but none of its romantic panache.

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Sara Michelle Fetters

MovieFreak.com

[There's] just too much great stuff here for this version of the Dumas story to be summarily dismissed.

Rated: 3/4

Oct 20, 2018

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Mike Clark

USA Today

To these nonteen ears and eyes, the kid is no more real in either guise than his phony flowing locks. And the romantic scenes fizzle next to Titanic's steamy roll in a Rolls.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jan 9, 2018

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Roger Ebert

Chicago Sun-Times

Once all the pieces of the plot were in place, I was at least interested, if not overwhelmed; I could see how, with a rewrite and a better focus, this could have been a film of Braveheart quality instead of basically just a costume swashbuckler.

Rated: 2.5/4

Jul 31, 2001

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Felix Vasquez Jr.

Cinema Crazed

Long in the tooth and unfocused and wastes its bang up cast.

Jun 4, 2020

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Brian D. Johnson

Maclean's Magazine

As aging musketeers, Jeremy Irons, John Malkovich, Gérard Depardieu and Gabriel Byrne-each sporting a different accent-all look faintly embarrassed, like serious actors stuck performing at a kids' birthday party.

Oct 30, 2019

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Matt Brunson

Film Frenzy

[UPDATED 2024 4K + BLU-RAY REVIEW] It's an irresistible story, but the movie suffers from clunky dialogue and a barrage of mismatched performances that represent just about every school of acting known to man.

Rated: 2.5/4

Apr 23, 2019

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alan g

Early Leonardo is not up to the task of dual roles. It would have been better if they stuck to the book. Not possible for a musketeer to have fathered the heir to the throne. Too many people watching. Besides the queen was known for her religious chastity.

Rated 1 out of 5 stars

09/22/25

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Colleen R

One of the greatest movies from the 90s! Should be rated much higher. I loved the actors, and ending. Great movie.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

09/21/25

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Bracha I

The first time I saw it was in 1998 and yes in contrast to Titanic, at first glance leaves much to be desired. Watching it again as an adult and knowing how it ends, I think the greatness in this movie is watching it again and appreciating all the details in the script from the beginning to the end. There is a double-entente in almost every line. Ignore the bad accents, ignore that it is not faithful to the original book, but a deep movie about loyalty and friendship.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

09/03/25

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Christine B

Terrific cast and the movie moved fast. I like the costumes as well. The only weakness is the actress they cast for the role of Christine. There wasn't any chemistry between her and any of the actors. They could have found a stronger actress to portray that character.

Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars

07/15/25

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Jerod S

Despite the talent - that was rough. Leo's not a very convincing twin - and all the nasty hair on the old men was the icing on the shabby.

Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars

07/12/25

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Raquel S

I love this movie. It made me feel every bit of the plot. It is not predictable and it is interesting from beginning to end. People normally critique Leo’s accent in this movie, but honestly I believe it is no more than a detail, and definetely does not ruin the movie or the way it portrays the french society and Dumas’s story

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

07/05/25

Full Review

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Randall Wallace

Director

Leonardo DiCaprio

King Louis XIV

Jeremy Irons

Aramis

John Malkovich

Athos

Gérard Depardieu

Porthos

Gabriel Byrne

D'Artagnan

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Synopsis

The former musketeer Athos (John Malkovich) swears vengeance after despotic King Louis XIV (Leonardo DiCaprio) causes the death of his son. Summoning his old comrades Porthos (Gérard Depardieu) and Aramis (Jeremy Irons), he hatches a plan to liberate a shackled prisoner rumored to be the king's twin brother, and then install him on the throne. But the three musketeers must also contend with their old friend D'Artagnan (Gabriel Byrne), who has remained in the king's service.

Director: Randall Wallace
Producer: Russell Smith, Randall Wallace
Screenwriter: Alexandre Dumas, Randall Wallace
Distributor: United Artists
Production Co: United Artists
Rating: PG-13 (Some Sensuality|Some Nudity|Violence)
Genre: Adventure, Action, Drama
Original Language: English
Release Date (Theaters): Mar 13, 1998, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Jun 21, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $57.0M
Runtime: 2h 12m
Sound Mix: Dolby SR, DTS, Dolby Stereo, Surround, SDDS, Dolby A, Dolby Digital
Aspect Ratio: Flat (1.85:1)

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