Do NOT FORGET ME, 24601 — Prisoner 24601 (Hugh Jackman) struggles to forget his past and overcome the foibles of Jean Valjean in the silverscreen portrayal of the Broadway classic, “Les Miserables.” The movie opened in theaters across the country on Christmas day.
Unless you aren’t as cultured as the rest of us at Pepperdine, I’m sure you have heard of that musical where everybody dies at the end. No, not “Rent”; it’s the show that literally has “miserable” in the title.
“Les Miserables” is quite a silver-screen spectacle to behold. Director Tom Hooper captured the intimacy of a stage show while providing us with the marvel of cinema. Outside of a few spots of weak casting, the film is quite an achievement and absolutely worth seeing.
It’s too bad Daniel Day-Lewis played Abraham Lincoln this year, because Hugh Jackman now has no shot at winning an Academy Award, even though his performance is certainly Oscar-worthy. Jean Valjean is such a good man, and Hugh Jackman makes the audience truly love his character. He sings every song with passion and his acting is spot-on; it makes you forget he ever did “Real Steel,” a film about boxing robots.
Another spectacular member of the cast is Anne Hathaway. Her tragic tale helps frame the film’s first act and gives us our first great solo. With some Broadway experience under her proverbial belt, Hathaway’s solo is staged so beautifully that it emotionally rocks the audience. Hathaway injects power into her song not by belting out notes but by crying through them. And she cries. If you’re anything like me, you’ll be crying with her. Natalie Portman made shaving your head hardcore (and weirdly pro-terrorist) — Hathaway makes it just sad. There goes empowerment!
Fortunately, we get a nice break from all the sadness with Sacha Baron Cohen as the “Master of the House.” He seems to be channeling Johnny Depp in this role considering he’s playing opposite Helena Bonham Carter (and does she appear with anyone else?). We see Baron Cohen perpetrating the ridiculous, taking a cue from what he does best in films like “Borat” and “Talladega Nights.” His entire number is choreographed like “Punk’d” meets the 19th century. He has the audience laughing whenever he is on screen.
Finally, the stellar cast is rounded out among our revolutionaries. Marius, played by Eddie Redmayne, has a fantastic voice and his emotions play well across the screen. And Aaron Tveit’s revolutionary leader has that certain “it” factor that you can’t seem to look away from. But the M.V.P. of the revolutionary troop is young Gavroche. He adds soul and smiles to an otherwise dark and somber scene. But don’t worry — he’ll make you cry at one point, too.
Some of these players, however, don’t live up to their hype. Russell Crowe is a critically acclaimed actor who has helmed countless blockbusters and award-winners, but the key word there is actor. In “Master and Commander,” he may have shown us that the world isn’t flat, but most of his singing clearly is. Javert is Valjean’s nemesis — they are rivals playing a game of chess throughout the entire film. I mean Crowe versus Jackman? All we need is Mel Gibson for the Australian trifecta. And to go toe-to-toe, Crowe has to sing very intense and powerful songs — he struggles.
The film does a good job capturing the feeling of 19th-century France. Since this is Pepperdine, it is safe to say that many have been to France, so we can all appreciate it. The iconic barricade from the stage show carries its role into the film as well. For something as simple as a pile of broken wood and idealistic youths, director Tom Hooper brings us right up to the action, as if we are in the front row of the orchestra pit.
And that is what this film does best. It brings the magic that made “Les Miserables” such a long-running and successful Broadway show and puts it in a theater near you. It’s stacked with a nearly perfect cast and will make you bring a few tissues along the way.
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