“Les Misérables,” the new movie adaptation of the
popular stage musical (which in turn was based off of a 1862 novel by Frenchman
Victor Hugo) is well made, no doubt. I don’t think anyone can watch it and not,
at the very least, appreciate it for the craftsmanship that went into it. Even
if the movie itself is a little jam packed and uneven. Its director Tom Hooper (who
won the Oscar for Best Director in 2010 for “The Kings Speech”) should also be
commended, as “Les Misérables” is a sprawling, gargantuan, period piece. In other
words, not an easy task for any director.
The best thing about the movie is that Hooper and
screenwriter William Nicholson actually adapt it for a movie instead of taking
the stage musical and putting a camera in front of it. The direction of period
pieces in general tends to be flat and stagy (Hooper was a tad guilty for that
in “The Kings Speech”) but “Les Misérables” is not. Instead the direction is
energetic and the cinematography by Danny Cohen is very fluid, bringing out quite
a bit of depth and dimension in story’s dreary environment. The editing by
Chris Dickens and Melanie Oliver is fast, like a ‘Bourne” action picture, which
is admittedly bizarre for something like this, but I’ll take that in a period
piece over flat and stagey.
As far as plot is concerned, it takes place in 19th century
France, post revolution. You’d think it would be a joyous time but there’s
still poverty and more talk of revolution. The main character is Jean Valjean
(Hugh Jackman) who, after stealing a loaf of bread to feed his family is forced
to do slave labor. After he is freed he comes into contact with Fantine (Anne
Hathaway), a poor peasant girl, who is forced to sell her hair and teeth for
money to support her young daughter Cosette who is away. Indeed, it is a
miserable time. Eve Stewart’s production design is spot on in depicting the
harsh gritty reality. The mud, the disease, the gloominess. Not a pleasant
affair, and Cohen’s cinematography further brings out that frigidness.
Anyhow, the movie moves on and at a rather fast pace, a good
thing considering the film is two and half hours and we have much more ground
to cover. After Fantine dies, Jean takes Cosette and looks after her. Time
passes and eventually she’s all grown up (played by the big eyed blonde Amanda
Seyfried) and they’re living together happily. But Jean can’t outrun his past,
as he is still being pursued by Javert (Russell Crowe), a ruthless police
inspector, for breaking parole. At this point the movie warms up a little (not
much though) as there’s talk of a new revolution. In fact one of the young
revolutionaries, Marius (Eddie Redmayne), takes a liking to Cosette.
All of the performances are great across the board. Jackman
gives one of his most powerful and impassioned performances to date; Jean Valjean
is the driving force of the whole musical and Jackman pulls it off. Same goes
for Hathaway, she’s not in it for very much but when she is she makes a lasting
impression. For proof, check out her rendition of “I Dreamed a Dream.” Even
Crowe, who I wouldn’t have thought would be musical material, excels as the
menacing but also misguided Javert. Overall I think the main reason why they
all work so well is because they got to sing their songs live as opposed to
recording before hand and lip-synching. It gives each one a realistic
imperfection; the singing isn’t pristine and overly theatric, it sounds
natural. Amidst all the singing they’re giving actual movie performances.
But then there are some issues. The main one for me being that
just about every word spoken is in song form. Now, I know this is a musical,
which means lots of singing, but does every word need to be sung? There are
plenty of musicals that have breaks, to let us catch our breath; “Les Misérables”
doesn’t. Sure, there are a number of memorable songs but it gets to the point
where a majority of them blend together into an unmemorable musical glop.
Other problems have to do with the fact that story itself is
a little bloated, with some characters and side plots not connecting. For
example, Cosette and Marius’ romance (which becomes a major storyline) feels rushed
and undeveloped. Though, I suppose that isn’t entirely the movie’s fault. I
haven’t read the book, or seen the stage play but I’ve heard from people who
have that it is bloated and uneven. With that said the movie still has to stand
on its own.
In the end though, it doesn’t really matter. Fans of the
musical will see it and will probably be impressed. For everyone else, it’s a
massive slightly uneven period musical. Take it or leave it. But as a nonfan I
can happily say that it is skillfully made and superbly acted.
3/4
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