Review of Les Misérables (2012) by Jon T — 10 Dec 2014

Victor Hugo's immortal novel about an ex-convict trying to start a new life while avoiding his cruel, persistent captor has been filmed many times, and is arguably better known as an ever-popular musical.

It also happens to be one of my favorite musicals of all time. In a surprising move, director Tom Hooper opted to have his cast, instead of post-synching to a prerecorded soundtrack, perform each of the songs "live" on camera, since most of these musical numbers are the kind in which the performer is supposed to express pained emotions.

Does this approach work? For the most part, the answer is yes, but I do have a few minor quibbles, but that's more due to casting. The ensemble here consists more of well-known actors rather than professional singers.

Hugh Jackman is fine for the most part as Valjean -- I admit I was doubtful of him initially, but he still sings surprisingly well -- though there are a few moments when he strains his notes or at least one song.

Anne Hathaway fares extremely well as Fantine and she deserved the Oscar for her performance. Eddie Redmayne, Samantha Barks, Aaron Tveit, and Amanda Seyfried all provide excellent performances, but vocally and emotionally.

Oddly, I think my favorite performance may have to be Daniel Huttlestone as Gavroche; he captures the spunk and determination of this little guy brilliantly, stealing every scene he's in. Russell Crowe, unfortunately, isn't quite in the same league.

It's not a bad performance by any means; he does try his best, but he lacks the bite and bitterness from the original Javert. The songs are for the most part carried over very well, sans a few cuts and one new song, but I felt that the Thenadier's big musical number "Master of the House" was too underplayed; both Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter are good choices for these roles, but they aren't over-the-top enough.

In spite of my mixed emotions, this LES MISERABLES, although no substitute for the Broadway show, is still a very commendable effort from everyone involved. Admittingly, this is more of a show for fans of musicals so it will be jarring for some people to see a movie which is mostly sung, but if you can look past that, there's a lot to like in Hooper's flawed but otherwise admirable attempt.