I watch a lot of musicals (mostly because I am a wannabe actor). It started when I was a kid, me and my siblings would watch Grease and Willy Wonka and of course all the Disney movies are musicals. For some reason I never got around to see Le Mis, until this week. This is the only version I have seen, so I can’t compare it with any other versions of the film.
This new film staring Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, and the rest, was pretty epic. I expected Anne Hathaways' character to be in the film a lot longer than she was. I thought she would be more of a main character. It's her memorable song that is why she is so popular. Why did she show up at the end? Was she a ghost, a vision?
Jean Valjeans' journey is amazing. He is a true hero. Probably the most virtuous man I have ever seen in any movie. He fought so hard to help the miserable.
This film is almost all singing, and it wasn’t a problem. At least it was in English or it would have been one of those boring dramatic operas.
This movie felt really long. It is sad. Somehow it is sad in a good way, because you end up caring about all the characters and what they are going through.
There is some good comedy too, thanks to the craziness of Helena Bonham Carter and Sachaa Baron Cohen. They play the innkeepers, Thenardier, and the master of the house song is hilarious. It reminded me a lot of their craziness in Sweeney Todd. I loved their costumes too, they looked like Renaissance festival rejects.
I like how the story is told through a period of time and through the revolution. We see all this stuff going on in the world around our characters but the characters stay true to themselves and the story still focuses on them.
I don’t understand why Russell Crows' character had to do what he did at the end. I know he had a moral dilemma going through his brain. All I could think about during this scene was the Joker and Batman, Neither one could survive without the other.
This is such a popular play and a popular story, I expected the songs too be a little more catchy or memorable. Lots of characters in this film were crying while singing. It makes sense for their characters, but then the songs aren’t as fun. I guess it’s not supposed to be fun though. It’s no Rodgers and Hammerstein.
Overall, I enjoyed it. The characters are what make this movie good. They were real and the audience cared about their miserable lives. All while they are singing. Without Jean Valjean connecting all the characters together it wouldn’t have made much sense. I feel a little more cultured and classy after seeing this dramatic musical.
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