It's easy to get caught in the hype of something, be it a book,
a fashion trend or a movie. When something is buzzed about so much though, it
can quite often fail to live up to your expectations, something I experienced
with a number of things, from Harry Potter to Peplums and 50 shades to wedge
trainers. Tom Hoopers Les Miserables however, proved to be the exception to
that rule and was every bit as brilliant as it was described.
I've never really been into musicals. I mean Grease or Disney is
about as musical as I get and considering that Les Mis was a Hollywood
adaptation with such an amazing ensemble cast I assumed it would be something
along the same lines - a normal movie with a few choice songs taken from
Broadway. However despite the initial dread that set in when I realised I was
only ten minutes into a three hour long musical piece, Les Mis turned out to be
one of the most amazing things I have ever seen.
Set in the backdrop of 19th Century France, Les Miserables tells
a tale of Jean Valjean (Hugh Jackman) an ex prisoner who breaks patrol and is
hunted for decades by policeman Jalvart (Russell Crowe). Valjean agrees to take
care of dying factory workers Fantine's (Anne Hathaway’s) child Cosette and in
doing so, changed his world forever. The film is an emotional rollercoaster
that is a story of passion, hate, vengeance, redemption, revolution and
ultimately a happy ever after.
Anne Hathaway had approximately on 15 minutes of screen time, in
that short time she managed to turn not just me, but most of the audience into
an emotional wreck with her beautiful rendition of 'I dreamed a dream'.
Hathaway had her hair chopped off for the role on screen, meaning that the
scenes where she sells her hair are real and full of the actresses own raw
emotion, rendering the scenes as some of the most powerful in the entire
picture.
Sacha Baron Cohen and
Helena Bonham Carter amazed as Thernardiers, the guardians of Cosette until
Valjean comes to her rescue. The British duo have an onset chemistry to rival
that of Bonham Carter and Johnny Depp who have collaborated on a number of
occasions, and add some light hearted humour to the otherwise heavy movie.
Former Burberry model Eddie Redmayne stars as Cosettes love, Marius and whilst
he isn't the best singer, he certainly is pretty to look at. All in all an
amazing movie, I highly recommend it.
