Musicals are a crapshoot in Hollywood. While “Rent” and “Rock of Ages” were failures, the good ones are more than enough reason to keep creating them. After all, the dazzling “Hairspray” and the masterpiece “Mamma Mia!” are massive money-makers, relative to their tiny costs. Following in their footsteps is the epic musical “Les Miserables”, which attempts to gain Oscar love and all your money through an all-star cast, gigantic musical numbers and enough melancholy moments to put “The Notebook” to shame. So is this the masterpiece of a movie we all dreamed a dream about, or a flop that is always a slave to poor quality?
Jean Valjean (Hugh Jackman), imprisoned for nineteen years for the stealing of bread, finds himself at a crossroads in his life. With Officer Javert (Russell Crowe) consistently waiting for him to slip up once, thus ensuring him permanent residence in prison, he soon undertakes a new life of goodness and forgiveness. This leads him to Fantine (Anne Hathaway), a woman who has been decimated by the struggles of life. His favor to her, taking care of Fantine’s daughter Cosette, will soon change Valjean, Javert and the entire country of France, forever.
In terms of acting, “Les Miserables” dazzles, with an all-star roster that amazes constantly through scenes of elation and mourning. All show off exceptional singing ability, as well as acting talent. Hugh Jackman guarantees an Oscar nomination with his portrayal of Jean Valjean, a man who’s one mistake haunts his entire life despite all the good he gives. His opposite, Anne Hathaway, will leave you spellbound as Fantine, especially after her showstopper of a tune “I Dreamed A Dream”, which will reduce even the most stalwart fellow to a sobbing mess.
OK, people, why all the hate for Russell Crowe? He sings fantastically and does a surprisingly good job of conveying the mixed emotions bubbling up inside the character. Good stuff, even if he’s not quite as good as Hugh or Anne.
Director Tom Hooper, who previously won an Oscar for directing “The Kings Speech” , does some nice stuff here, though I couldn’t help but notice he had some odd camera angle choices throughout the flick, settling for one too many close ups instead of using a wider range of camera angles. Still, he does a great job capturing this grand story in similarly grand style.
One problem that keeps the film from achieving true masterpiece status: the love story between Cosette and Marius felt forced and rushed. I mean, maybe I’m too cynical (being in high school will do that) but after a few hours of knowing each other, they’re belting out tunes that declare how they were made to love each other? I don’t buy it, especially since the rival romance between Marius and Eponine feels more fleshed out and logical. It’s briefly forgotten about during the tremendous third act, but it’s by far the weakest part of an otherwise wonderful movie.
These days, Hollywood rarely does movies that can be clearly classified as 21st century Epics. “Les Miserables” can be easily added to that small list (which also includes “Australia” and “Gladiator”), as a marvelous piece of cinema. A poorly constructed love story drags it down a bit, but amazing music and acting more than make up for it. A movie of colossal proportions, “Les Miserables” is a great achievement.
