Review of Les Misérables (2012) by Stefan N — 08 Dec 2013

"Anne Hathaway is the most overrated actress in here because she won an Oscar for a portrayal that lasted 15 minutes in a 160 minute film! ".

Les Misérables combines the energy of the musical with the themes from the book successfully, but its attention-to-detail technicalities (costumes, production design, makeup, cinematography) supersede a lot of emotional attachment. Adapted from the Victor Hugo classic, the film tells the story of an ex-prisoner named Jean Valjean (Hugh Jackman) who is hunted all his life by Javert (Russel Crowe) who does not believe that he can become an honest man. This is very brief, but it would take me a full page to explain the premise - I suggest you read the book or watch the movie and be surprised. The casting in the film involves big names like Hugh Jackman, Russel Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried, Sacha Baron Cohen, and Helena Bonham Carter. My favorite is Russel Crowe, because even though his singing is not the best, he portrays a villain who is not typical nor predictable and he is the only subtle actor in the movie. Carter and Cohen are our comic relief and they do it very well. Hugh Jackman is quite good, but I wouldn't say Oscar worthy. Anne Hathaway is the most overrated actress in here because she won an Oscar for a portrayal that lasted 15 minutes in a 160 minute film!Tom Hopper, however, directs with an eye for beauty and gets the most out of his actor's performances. After The King's Speech, it is a little disappointing so I suggest he sticks to less bombastic films. The film is, in terms of visuals, the second best film of the year- second to Anna Karenina. The songs are the best part, but I can't credit that to the film except for the two original songs which are alright.

I love many things as mentioned: I love the visuals of the movie, I love Russel Crowe and Hugh Jackman's performances, I love the way it conveys the themes, and I love the songs from the musical!

The film is an epic, but an epic with some faults and although the novel's themes are adapted well yet I shed no tears in Les Misérables; a film that was supposed to be emotionally powerful at many moments. You will leave the film humming the tunes, impressed, but its one of the lesser impressive Best Picture nominees.