Review: Les Miserables

A film that may just be longer than the French Revolution itself, Tom Hooper's adaptation of the hit musical is tipped for every award going. Spoilers ahead (but come on the book is over a century old people...)

Poster from here

Firstly it's important to point out that this an adaptation of the stage version of Les Mis, not the original novel so any issues with story and characterisation come from that rather than the filmmakers so I will avoid those.

Let's start with the music since it is ever present and frames everything that happens. Much has been made of the fact that all the performers sung live on set rather than pre recording a soundtrack and miming. Every single interview with the cast I have seen has them going on and on about how much superior this makes the film. What about The Wizard of Oz, Cabaret or West Side Story?

It does work with the solo numbers both Anne Hathaway's rendition of "I dreamed a dream" and Russell Crowe's "Stars" have a lovely quality from being sung life, almost a roughness. However it gets lost in the crowd songs where you can't actually here what is being sung.

Visually, the crew went to town offering up a setting that the West End could only dream on and the cinematography and direction exploit every aspect of this. The cast is solid with no let downs singing wise though it would be nice to see Crowe get more plaudits for his performance as he seems to have been overshadowed somewhat by Hugh Jackman and Hathaway (Who is in the film for all of twenty minutes).

It is worth seeing but if you're not a fan of musicals you may want to steer clear.