Les Misérables (2012, Hooper)

[McTeague]

I guess we'll see. Must admit that regardless of the criticism, I have rather liked all the clips I've yet seen of this.

Yeah that’s the odd thing, I thought the “One Day More” clip looked wonderful, a lot like I imagined while reading the script and how it should look. I also think “On My Own”, “I Dreamed a Dream” or “Who Am I” make a lot of sense in a long, one-take close-up, and I liked the clips I saw of them. But the show has many songs like that (soliloquies, “death arias” as some venom critic called them) and you just cannot do it all the time the same way. Mind you, I love Camelot, which has every soliloquy in extreme close-up, but it’s a show that doesn’t have as many soliloquies as Les miz. I can understand how the last third of Les Miz can become a chore if you film every damn soliloquy in close-up.

[erikdean]

You and Erik were fans of the show, so I take your opinion more seriously. I still think it's kind of impossible for me to not be moved at ANY rendition of it (I've been moved by even the most amateur productions I've seen) but yeah "Empty Chairs" in extreme closeu up sounds incredibly stupid. The point is showing the loneliness in an empty café, so you need to show the empty chairs, the empty tables, the phantom faces on the windows and the phantom shadows on the floor.

There's a grief that can't be spoken, indeed!

LOL, now I've remembered that once I was told by an amateur production's director that I had aced my audition in "A Heart Full of Love" but that I sucked in "Empty Chairs". The role went to one of the producer's son, so I decided to think I had aced Empty Chairs too, but he needed an excuse to not choose me.

I am most definitely a big fan of the show but guany's thoughts echo mine; that the whole thing feels claustrophobic. Hooper could have actually used some stagey direction in this. For example, when Marius and Cosette are singing to each other and Eponine is on the side feeling sorry for herself and singing it's great to see the whole thing play out in a single shot (on stage) so that you can decide who and what to concentrate on as well as seeing the physical geography of people. In this, everything is pure close up so you have no sense of that. It's a tragic mistake.

[OscarsFan 2.3]

Listening to some of Crowe's samples on iTunes...

...dear God almighty.

[Mamma Roma]

Ok I will not be seeing this on Christmas Day. Even tough it seems to be the more appropriate film for the birthday of Jesus, I will take my mom to see Django Unchained. I already informed her and convinced her by using Leonardo DiCaprio as bait.

[jjj]

Um, the soundtrack version of "In My Life/A Heart Full of Love" is 3 minutes long; the full version is double that.

For those who have seen the movie, is the soundtrack just missing half the song, or did that Hooper creature really just cut like the only part in which La Seyfried kinda-sorta has a solo-ish bit?

As Moulin Rouge put it: "A life without love, that's terrible!"

[DirkDiggler]

VERY brief thoughts:

This was pretty darn great. Had its problems (which have been addressed here plenty), but throughly enjoyed the heck of it.

Probably in my top 15 of the year haha.

On the two likely nominees:

Jackman was easily my favorite. 'd him. I have total respect for him as an actor now lol.

Hathaway was pretty great, but the performance was overhyped imo.

[veritas]

[nadine]

Completely missed this thread before.

I saw it on Saturday. I wasn't sure if it was a projector problem or how Hooper shot the film but in some of the wide shots, the heads of the actors were cut off - this was evident in particular in the sewer scene. You saw Russell's legs but no head and then the next shot was an extreme close-up.

I'm a fan of Les Mis, saw it on stage multiple times, but haven't seen the 25 Year production live yet (since we're apparently getting it here in a couple of years according to Cam Mac).

In terms of performances, I thought Jackman was the strongest, but then I am majorily biased there when it comes to Jackman and musical theatre since I saw him in his first stage production ever. Hathaway was great but as her character is only in the first 30 mins, I totally forgot about her character until she came back for the finale. Whether that taints the reflection I have her of her in the role, still need to determine. Barks on the other hand and also Huttlestone stayed with me after their characters deaths. Absolutely loved them in the roles. Seyfried was the weakest across the board, while Redmayne and Crowe were admirable in their roles. I didn't have a problem as much as others did with Crowe. Plus unlike some of the reviewers, I didn't mind HBC and SBC in their roles, since they brought the comedic touch their characters are supposed to bring in Master of the House.

The main problem I had was with the technical element (that I mentioned above), overall I enjoyed it!

[erikdean]

I hated this more a second time!

[DirkDiggler]

I hated this more a second time!

You better still be predicting Crowe like you promised. UNTIL OSCAR NIGHT.

[erikdean]

You better still be predicting Crowe like you promised. UNTIL OSCAR NIGHT.

I am predicting Crowe..............for a RAZZIE.

I'm actually expecting Les Mis to get a little handful of Razzie noms lol.

[veritas]

I hated this more a second time!

[erikdean]

That was my response as well, veritas. Like I was pinching off a torrent of diarrhea. But since it was already on the screen...

[GEORGEIII]

I am predicting Crowe..............for a RAZZIE.

I'm actually expecting Les Mis to get a little handful of Razzie noms lol.

You maybe right and this may not be any good but seriously, has any film that Kenneth Turan liked ever been nominated for a Razzie? LOL.

I reserve judgement on Crowe's Razzie worthiness until I see this in a few hours. As for the soundtrack, everything is fine with the exception of Bring Him Home, Stars and Master of the House.

[erikdean]

Jackman's Bring Him Home was a big disappointment since it's one of my favorites of the musical.

[Donezo]

Fuck it. I thought this was great. Yes, Tom Hooper is addicted to close-ups and Dutch angles, but I would be a liar if I said I wasn't totally caught up in the experience. Ultimately, I think the material is just too strong to totally screw up (McTeague, you were right!) I wish Hooper would have let the superb production design shine a bit more, and the chorus numbers (especially "One Day More" and "Master of the House") could have been staged more effectively, but I think some critics came with their knives out and weren't prepared to give his vision a fair chance. This is a big, hulking beast of a musical, yet the film adaptation feels very brisk and exciting. This could have been a slog, but three hours of nonstop singing (without intermission!) just flew by.

Despite his sometimes frustrating visual style, Hooper is an excellent actor's director, and this film is littered with strong performances. Anne Hathaway deserves all of the praise she's getting (no small praise from me since I kind of loathe her), but Hugh Jackman is best in show for me. Valjean is one of the most demanding male roles in musical theatre, and Jackman pushes himself musically and dramatically beyond what anyone has seen from him. Yes, his "Bring Him Home" is a bit labored, but I'll be damned if I didn't tear up anyway. The supporting cast is uniformly strong, though I still wonder where Sacha Baron Cohen's French accent went. Redmayne, Tveit and Barks are vocally best in show, and Seyfried is more memorable than your average Cosette. HBC and SBC do the same thing they always do, but they're perfectly cast. The weak link is Russell Crowe. He is an imposing physical presence, but his wimpy, unsupported vocals really undermine his credibility as Javert. "Stars" is a dud, and his suicide scene lacks the dramatic weight that a more powerful singer would have brought it. He does his best, but he was miscast.

This is honestly one of my favorites of the year, and will probably wind up being the Best Picture contender that I like the most. I would even say that this is the best movie musical since Cabaret.

[Silaron]

Brisk this was not. It felt long especially in the middle of the movie. Hooper's close-up camera work worked best when only one or two of the characters were singing at the same time but more than that, it was annoying especially with "One More Day." Speaking of the camera work, when you specifically frame a shot on the actor's face, it takes away from other technical aspects like the fantastic costumes and production design that this movie had. It's a shame but that is Hooper's vision.

Jackman had a mighty task with his take on Jean Valjean and he did a great job and my favorite out of the cast. Although he strained a little with some of the songs that required more vocal power, he brought the weight on his character's shoulders to a quiet and subtle depth. Anna Hathaway definitely made me feel her pain as Fantine and deserves any win that will come upon her. As for the other supporting characters, Crowe was okay as Javert but maybe because I got used to his vocals that I didn't mind it as the movie went on but goodness when the movie starts with "Work Song", I thought something was wrong with my ears but it was Crowe. His exit was sort of a non-event with no gravitas at all but it was also due to his weak vocals. Redmayne, Seyfried, and Barks all did fine work but nothing awards-worthy.

Overall, Les Miserables was a good movie but hindered by the direction and Crowe being miscast as the antagonist to the brilliant Jackman.

[Donezo]

I forgot to mention that I think the adaptation was superb and the screenwriters should be commended. Several of the added passages and details did wonders to clarify the plot. This flows a hell of a lot better than the stage show, which has always felt like more of a collection of songs to me than a real musical. I also applaud the rearranging of several songs. In particular, moving "I Dreamed a Dream" after "Lovely Ladies" was a stroke of genius that transformed it from a pretty song to a powerful character moment for Fantine. It's so much more effective and tragic after we've seen Fantine go through hell, and it makes the arrest/death scenes more devastating.

[haqyunus]

I actually agree with Erikdrean's initial reaction: it was a chore to sit through, specially the first half. Which is kind of surprising given that how quickly the story moves and without much explanation. I have not seen the play but have read the book and seen the Neeson/Rush Billie August directed version. Some of the transitions were weird and the whole thing came of stagy and overdone. There was no consistent narrative but bunch of scenes and situations chained together. I felt the same issue as with Anna Kareninn which is lack of passion or feeling. Like Fantine's death is supposed to be one of the most tragic moments but I didn't feet much. I was not vowed at all overall and the movie surely was trying to be (and supposed to be too, I guess) an epic with all the sweeping cameras and constant close-ups.

Redmayne, Barks and Jackman were the standouts with Redmayne continuing to show great talent.

[Bob Burns]

authorial.