Milos Forman's Valmont is ultimately no better and no worse an adaptation of Les Liaisons Dangereuse than Dangerous Liaisons by Stephen Frears which made it into theaters months earlier. Both are entertaining, yet both dip into tedium around the three-quarter point because the web of aristocratic intrigues they are following gets too tangled for a two-hour screen treatment.

"Valmont" occupies a wider canvas which encompasses visual reminders that the privileged central characters live amidst a largely impoverished society. As soon as horse-drawn carriage gallops away from palace or mansion, the squalid reality of the streets of Paris is revealed. Frears's "DL" is able to show the same difference by closing in on relationships such as the intimate master-servant morning rituals that open his film. Forman's "Valmont" humanizes the main characters by toning down their cruelty and blunting their extremes. By contrast, in "DL" Glenn Close plays the Comtesse de Merteuil with a cold reserve that dissolves into hysteria whereas Annette Bening in "V" exudes a high-wattage, tightly controlled gaiety which remains more or less constant throughout. Colin Firth's Valmont is more dashing and virile than John Malkovich's, but his performance lacks the corrupt menace which Malkovich provides in overly strong doses. Firth's seduction of the young Cecile (Fairuza Balk), is brilliantly conceived, staged and performed. Meg Tilly as Mme. De Tourvel has a simplicity and vulnerability that eluded Michelle Pfeiffer in DL, and Tilly doesn't strain for effects. She and Firth are also a better physical match, and the development of their relationship makes more sense here. Henry Thomas as the music tutor in love with young Cecile has much more screen time than Keanu Reeves in DL, which is all for the better because he has the acting chops to pull it off – a 17-year-old with more principles and purity than all of the adults in his orbit combined. Whereas "Valmont" is a diffuse and leisurely satire, DL is a highly stylized tragedy.

There were two films based on the book "Dangerous Liaisons". The first to come was a great 1988 version. This came out about a year later. It's not as good as the 1988 version but, in its own terms, it's not bad. Valmont (Colin Firth) and Merteuil (Annette Bening) have a deal. He is to seduce a young girl (Fairuza Balk) who is about to marry a much older man (Jeffrey Jones) a former boyfriend of Merteuil. Valmont also sleeps around with every woman he meets but ends up falling for Madame deTourvel (Meg Tilly). There's more going on but it gets complicated.

The original book and 1988 movie show Valmont and Merteuil as vicious evil people who will ruin people just because they can. This movie tones or cuts out all the viciousness, makes sweeping changes in the story and even changes the fate of three different characters. However I didn't hate it. We have a faithful version already so I have no problem with revisions. As it is this is a fun and very playful version of the story. The tone is light and no one seems to be taking it seriously for one moment. It looks great, is never boring (even at 137 minutes) and moves quickly.

However the debits are numerous. Bening and Firth are great actors are totally miscast. Firth is tall, handsome and young and totally unable to show the evil in his character. The same with Bening. She is gorgeous and a terrific actress but she's always smiling and so playful here that you have no idea that she's supposed to be evil. Still it does work if you ignore the original story. Balk is excellent in her role and even Henry Thomas (a VERY limited actor) is good--especially when he faces off against Merteuil at the end. So I liked it a lot. It was fun and cheerful. I know that sounds strange but it's true. Recommended.