| At Sword's Point | |
| Director: | Lewis Allen |
| Producer: | Jerrold T. Brandt |
| Starring: | Cornel Wilde Maureen O'Hara |
| Music: | Roy Webb Constantin Bakaleinikoff |
| Cinematography: | Ray Rennahan |
| Color Process: | Technicolor |
| Editing: | Samuel E. Beetley Robert Golden |
| Studio: | RKO Pictures |
| Distributor: | RKO Pictures |
| Runtime: | 81 minutes |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
At Sword's Point, also known as Sons of the Three Musketeers, is a 1952 American historical action adventure film directed by Lewis Allen and starring Cornel Wilde and Maureen O'Hara. It was shot in Technicolor by RKO Radio Pictures. The film was completed in 1949 but was not released until 1952.
The sons of Aramis, Porthos and D'Artagan and Claire, the daughter of Athos, are reunited by the aging Queen Anne to halt the villainy of her treacherous nephew, the Duc de Lavalle.[1]
The sons (and a daughter) of the original Four Musketeers ride to the rescue of besieged Queen Anne in 1648 France.
D'Artagnan and his companions are alerted that the terminally ill queen is being pressured by the evil Duc de Lavalle into agreeing to a marriage with Princess Henriette. Unable to respond, the musketeers send their sons (and one daughter) to the royal court to help.
The men are imprisoned and betrayed, and a romance forms between D'Artagnan Jr. and Claire.
In 1947, Republic Pictures announced the purchase of the script Sons of the Musketeers by Aubrey Wisberg and Jack Pollexfen.[2] Eagle Lion also announced a film titled Sons of the Musketeers, a concern for MGM, which was planning the 1948 film The Three Musketeers.[3] Eventually the project went to RKO where it was devised as a vehicle for Cornel Wilde.[4] [5] Lewis Allen was announced as director on November 15, 1949.[6] Filming began on December 14, 1949.[7]
MGM had some difficulties depicting Cardinal Richelieu in The Three Musketeers, so the filmmakers decided to not show Cardinal Mazarin in At Sword's Point although the character was in the original script.[8]