LES MISERABLES - FILM REVIEW

LES MISERABLES

Release Date: 11 January 2013 (UK)

Director: Tom Hooper

Running Time: 158 Minutes

Starring: Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried, Eddie Redmayne, Helena Bonham Carter, Sacha Baron Cohen

Screening Reviewed: National Press Screening

Reviewed by Kyle Pedley

Given the renaissance of musical movies and adaptations which seemed to kick into gear with Moulin Rouge and Chicago in the early 00’s, it is a little surprising that it has taken so long for the longest running and most celebrated musical theatre production of all to get it’s big screen adaptation. In many ways the show seems a natural fit for the big screen - its ensemble narrative handling both the grandiose and the tender and passing as it does through time and geography at a relatively brisk pace. Yet for all of the cinematic flavourings of the stage show, it also presents a number of curiosities which make this screen adaptation a less atypical affair.

Les Miserables is for all intents and purposes entirely musical, with the majority of its dialogue sung rather than spoken, and there being very little in the way of stopping for set pieces or choreography - from the bombastic opening shipyard sequence through to its tender finale, this is a story told almost exclusively through song. The benefit of this is apparent from the offset, deftly avoiding any of the stop-and-start nature that plagues so many musical adaptations. These are not show numbers attempting to further the story - they are the story itself, the essence of the film and tale being told. The unfortunate downside of this perma-musical approach is that occasionally the more indulgent or frivolous moments from the stage show which could easily have been cut threaten to venture into self-parody or redundancy on screen.

LES MISERABLES - THEATRE REVIEW

LES MISERABLES AT THE QUEEN'S THEATRE, LONDON

Theatre Run: Continual
Performance Viewed: Matinee, Wednesday 10 October 2012 (as press)

Reviewed by Kyle Pedley

Les Miserables is one of those seminal entities already etched firmly into the history of musicals - becoming ‘now the longest running musical in the world’ (according to the show’s official website) and it isn’t hard to see why. This is classic, grandiose and affecting musical theatre at it’s most raw and bombastic, and this original production, now in it’s 28th year and currently residing at the Queen’s Theatre, London, has lost none of it’s relevance, impact or almost incomparable quality.

For a show of so many years the most notable praise must go first and foremost to it’s ambition and spectacle. Where the producers, designers et al could quite comfortably have leant on the shows legacy and repute to acquire it’s audience, instead this current production continually impresses and at times amazes with faultless costume design, remarkable technical artistry and an almost astonishing number of elaborate, complicated sets that surpass practically anything currently on show in the West End. With almost every scene transition comes a moving, turning, growing location; piecing itself together and moving into place, the whole production continually feeling vibrant and alive as a result.  The seamless and utterly convincing sense of place that is evoked throughout, from the hushed chambers of the Bishop of Digne through to the bustling, elaborate slums of Paris and militaristic fortifications of the revolutionaries barricade, displays a craftsmanship and scope that is thankfully met by Les Miserables’ sweeping story, engaging and diverse cast of characters, a now-classical score and a genuinely terrific cast bringing it all to life with power, conviction and heart.