Les Miserables - The Musical Movie

[Blueintheface]

Like someone else mentioned, my two favorite numbers were "I Dreamed a Dream" and "Empty Chairs and Empty Tables." Hathaway nailed the role of Fantine. Haters gonna hate. I thought she was outstanding.

Mine too. Hathaway was exceptional and I admit I lost it a bit during 'Empty Chairs and Empty Tables".

[Moliere]

The thing that has blown me away about this thread, more than any other thing mentioned here, is the fact that a guy calling himself Moliere has never read Hugo's book. Shocking. Get thee to a bookstore immediately. And read the unabridged version. For a Francophile its a must.

MJ has three copies, the unabridged (1400 pages) the slightly abridged (800 pages) and the really abridged (450 pages). I'm covered. I plan on reading it, but I'm a slow reader and anything over 500 pages just scares me. It took me a good 4-5 months to get through RSR, which I plan on reading again with the GD focusing on church history. Then I have lined up Steve Jobs' biography and then BY's new biography. That'll keep me until at least next December.

[happyone]

Saw it the day after Christmas with the wife and daughters.

I really enjoyed it - then again it is probably my favorite post Rogers/Hammerstein era musical

Some comments

As others have said - the acting was extrodinary!

I really liked the opening scene and the closing scene with having the Bishop there.

the music less so. I don't know if Jackman was purposely dialed back or not, but the singing definately was not the best

As far as Mr. Crowe - the best I can say is he stayed on key. His acting however was again excellent

I didn't realize Ms Hathway could sing so well. I thought she had the best overall performance in the movie.

When it comes out on DVD, the Happyone home will be getting a copy.

[happyone]

What about 150+ pages devoted to the Battle of Waterloo? The first time I read it I almost gave up on the book at that point.

I thought that was the best part (consider the source)

I am definately going to have to reread it here shortly.

[SteelBlue]

In the end, these projects are tasked with making money and I assume that's why they err toward the side of star power. I think Russell Crowe will probably draw many to the theater who otherwise would have avoided Les Mis at all costs. I consider him one of the greatest actors of his generation, and he is my personal favorite. It's much more palatable for many non theater loving men to see this thing when they know that Maximus Decimus Meridius, father to a murdered son and husband to a murdered wife, is playing a lead role.

[Mrs. Funk]

I thought that was the best part (consider the source)

I am definately going to have to reread it here shortly.

I reread it recently and skipped Waterloo this time. Once was quite enough.

[FMCoug]

Saw it this afternoon. Overall very well done. I went in with pretty low expectations on the vocals and with a one exception those expectations were met. The exception of course being Crowe. Javert was appallingly bad. To the point I cringed whenever he came on screen. The vocal weakness completely ruined the part for me.

[LA Ute]

We saw it tonight and generally loved it. I think the on-set singing worked great. Jackman and Hathaway were excellent. Crowe was a casting mistake, musically, but sang much better than I thought he would. The story felt a little compressed in places but that was to be expected. I thought the death scene was well-done, moving without being smarmy.

Trivia tidbit (probably already noted somewhere - if so I'll gladly pay the fine): Ann Hathaway's first movie was "The Other Side of Heaven," about John Groberg's missionary experience in Tonga. The director (a friend of ours) found her in a casting call. She's become a really fine actress.

[Maximus]

We saw it tonight and generally loved it. I think the on-set singing worked great. Jackman and Hathaway were excellent. Crowe was a casting mistake, musically, but sang much better than I thought he would. The story felt a little compressed in places but that was to be expected. I thought the death scene was well-done, moving without being smarmy.

Trivia tidbit (probably already noted somewhere - if so I'll gladly pay the fine): Ann Hathaway's first movie was "The Other Side of Heaven," about John Groberg's missionary experience in Tonga. The director (a friend of ours) found her in a casting call. She's become a really fine actress.

Wasn't her first the princess diaries?

[LA Ute]

Wasn't her first the princess diaries?

The Other Side of Heaven was made first and came out first, IIRC. Her role was kind of small and the movie was small.

[Jennerstein]

The Other Side of Heaven was made first and came out first, IIRC. Her role was kind of small and the movie was small.

Wikipedia says:

"Hathaway's first role in a motion picture was opposite Christopher Gorham in Walt Disney's drama film The Other Side of Heaven (2001), inspired by John H. Groberg's memoir In the Eye of the Storm. Before production of the film, she was cast alongside Julie Andrews in the lead role of Mia Thermopolis in another Disney production, the comedy film The Princess Diaries (film), based on Meg Cabot's 2000 novel of the same name and directed by Garry Marshall.

Hathaway auditioned for the role of a princess-to-be during a flight layover on the way to New Zealand and was cast on the strength of this one audition.She won the role over 500 other girls. Released prior to The Other Side of Heaven in hopes that its success would increase interest in Heaven, The Princess Diaries became a major commercial success, grossing US$165 million worldwide.Many critics praised Hathaway's performance, with a BBC critic noting that "Hathaway shines in the title role and generates great chemistry." Also released in 2001, The Other Side of Heaven, directed by Mitch Davis, met with mostly negative reviews, but it performed well for a religion-themed film."

So you guys are both kinda right.

[oxcoug]

Not getting the Russell Crowe hate.

Agree.

Hooper made a directorial choice that the story and the acting heft mattered more than the vocal virtuosity for what he wanted to do. Crowe fit the bill and for what Hooper wanted to do he was an excellent fit.

[LA Ute]

Wikipedia says:

So you guys are both kinda right.

Yeah, there was no way Mitch could ever have signed her for his little film after The Princess Diaries hit, so I was thinking that TOSOH must have been released first. I guess it just got made first, or was the first role she got? Anyway, she has become very good.

[DrumNFeather]

Watched it yesterday and very much enjoyed it overall. The music in this show is just so superb that it never felt like we were sitting there for 2.5 hours (3 if you count the previews).

I thought it was cool that the original Valjean from the '85 cast was the bishop, that was a nice touch.

As funny as this sounds, I thought the Tenardie's (sp) would be a little more over the top than they were.

Overall though, no real complaints. It gets right to it from the word go and never slows down.

We did have someone in our theater bring their 1-2 year old in with them...

[scottie]

We did have someone in our theater bring their 1-2 year old in with them...

Are you in Utah for the holidays.