Les Misérables
Once I had the luck to see Les Misérables performed onstage at the Kennedy Theater in Washington, DC. The actors and that stage production were superb and I don't think they'll ever be matched. Even then, I had my usual thought that the play was too long and there are too many songs. After seeing the movie version, which is good, I still have the same thoughts.
For those who don't know, the story centers around Jean Valjean, our hero, and Inspector Javert, the foe. The two men's paths intersect over the years and both men strive for ideals as they understand their world and each of them is capable of doing wrong. If these two are not cast right, the play or movie will fail. In this production both Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe do a great acting job. I get their singing isn't perfect but it's better than what I can do. Set in France, early 1800's, life centers on the not so fortunate in life and what they do to survive. It's not pretty, in fact grim is the word and if I ever lived a past life in that time, then I'm glad to not remember it.
There's a small girl and Valjean makes a promise to the mother to take care of the girl. Nine years later, the child grows up and enters the story of Marius, a privileged schoolboy caught up in idealism of freedom and being part of a rebellion to change the course of France. Conflict, love, misery, hate, struggle ensues with a lot of song and music and the story is told.
I liked Les Misérables enough. It held true to the spirit of the play in my mind. Jackman and Crowe were fun to watch. There are still way too many songs and toss in 10+ minutes of trailers and you're in that seat for 3 hours. My eyes were dry but the man two seats over was sobbing from the second half onwards. Luckily the audience did not break out into a sing-a-long and for that I was grateful. Leave that for Buffy at Comic-Con.
Who will like this? Fans of the stage production, the PBS special, and if anyone has read it, the book. Music lovers, lost romantics, and theater majors should all enjoy Les Misérables.
For those who don't know, the story centers around Jean Valjean, our hero, and Inspector Javert, the foe. The two men's paths intersect over the years and both men strive for ideals as they understand their world and each of them is capable of doing wrong. If these two are not cast right, the play or movie will fail. In this production both Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe do a great acting job. I get their singing isn't perfect but it's better than what I can do. Set in France, early 1800's, life centers on the not so fortunate in life and what they do to survive. It's not pretty, in fact grim is the word and if I ever lived a past life in that time, then I'm glad to not remember it.
There's a small girl and Valjean makes a promise to the mother to take care of the girl. Nine years later, the child grows up and enters the story of Marius, a privileged schoolboy caught up in idealism of freedom and being part of a rebellion to change the course of France. Conflict, love, misery, hate, struggle ensues with a lot of song and music and the story is told.
I liked Les Misérables enough. It held true to the spirit of the play in my mind. Jackman and Crowe were fun to watch. There are still way too many songs and toss in 10+ minutes of trailers and you're in that seat for 3 hours. My eyes were dry but the man two seats over was sobbing from the second half onwards. Luckily the audience did not break out into a sing-a-long and for that I was grateful. Leave that for Buffy at Comic-Con.
Who will like this? Fans of the stage production, the PBS special, and if anyone has read it, the book. Music lovers, lost romantics, and theater majors should all enjoy Les Misérables.
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