An acceptable and clever rendering with a star-studded cast giving good performances throughout, dealing with the famous Victor Hugo novel set in 18th century during a revolution against emperor Napoleon III to overthrow him and proclaim the French Republic. After facing poverty and jail, and subsequent escape, the paroled convict called Jean Valjean :Liam Neeson, is redeemed by the kindness of a bishop : Peter Vaughan. While factory worker Fantine : Uma Thurman, turns to prostitution to survive and maintain her daughter . Nowadays, Jean is a Mayor of a little town and he is attempting to mend his past ways, but he is continually hounded by the obsessed policeman Javert : Geoffrey Rush, who is determined to lock him away. The ending act is set during a student uprising in the 1830s, while Valjean is trying to save his adopted daughter : Claire Danes, and her boyfriend : Hans Matheson, a student who has revolutionary ideas. As Jean attempts to get his triumph against distresses through adversity, sacrifice and hardship.
This exciting story is finely detailed, spectacularly shown, lavishly realized, and well developed, though with no originality. As production design, atmosphere, musical score and cinematography are all top-notch. The plot follows the ordinary canon, as the houndedd ex-criminal Valjean mercilessly pursued by the stubborn, relentless Javert and playing cat and mouse game in 18th century France. It displays a more careful study of the main roles, more than previous versions. This rendition is one of the best of many, though I think the 1935 adaptation with Charles Laughton and Fredric March results to be the best. The main historical events took place ¨the June 1832 Rebellion or the Paris Uprising of 1832 was an anti-monarchist insurrection of Parisian republicans on 5 and 6 June 1832. The rebellion originated in an attempt by the republicans to reverse the establishment in 1830 of the July Monarchy of Louis Philippe, shortly after the death of the King's powerful supporter President of the Council Casimir Pierre Périer on 16 May 1832. On 1 June 1832, Jean Maximilien Lamarque, a popular former Army commander who became a member of the French parliament and was critical of the monarchy, died of cholera. The riots that followed his funeral sparked the rebellion. This was the last outbreak of violence linked with the July Revolution of 1830.. As the famous French author Victor Hugo memorialized the rebellion in his novel Les Misérables
It contains a colorful, adequate cinematography by Jorgen Persson and rousing as well as sensitive musical score by Basil Poledouris. The motion picture was professionally directed by Billie August who assures tension, entertainment and excitement enough, and not a second of the near two-hour actual running time is wasted . It is an allright retelling but doesn't reach the level of the 1935 classic movie. Well worth watching. Better than average.
Other versions are as follows : The classic retelling Les Miserables 1935 by Richard Boleslawski with Fredric March, Charles Laughton, Cedric Hardwicke, Rochelle Hudson, Florence Eldridge. Les Miserables 1952 by Lewis Milestone with Michael Rennie, Robert Newton, Debra Paget, Edmund Gwenn. Italian version, Les Miserables 1952 by Riccardo Freda with Gino Cervi, Valentina Cortese. French adaptation 1957 by with Jean Gavin, Bernard Blier, Serge Reggiani. Les miserables 1995 by Claude Lelouch with Jean Paul Belmondo, Annie Girardot, Jean Marais, Rufus, Philippe Leotard, Alexandra Martines. A recent musical 2012 by Tom Hooper with Russell Crowe, Hugh Jackman, Amanda Seyfried, Anne Hathaway, Sacha Baron Cohen. 1978 Tv series by Glenn Jordan with Anthony Perkins, Richard Jordan, John Gielgud, Cryl Cusack, Flora Robson and 2018 TV series with Dominic West, David Oyelowe, David Bradley, Olivia Colman, Lynn Collins, among others.
This exciting story is finely detailed, spectacularly shown, lavishly realized, and well developed, though with no originality. As production design, atmosphere, musical score and cinematography are all top-notch. The plot follows the ordinary canon, as the houndedd ex-criminal Valjean mercilessly pursued by the stubborn, relentless Javert and playing cat and mouse game in 18th century France. It displays a more careful study of the main roles, more than previous versions. This rendition is one of the best of many, though I think the 1935 adaptation with Charles Laughton and Fredric March results to be the best. The main historical events took place ¨the June 1832 Rebellion or the Paris Uprising of 1832 was an anti-monarchist insurrection of Parisian republicans on 5 and 6 June 1832. The rebellion originated in an attempt by the republicans to reverse the establishment in 1830 of the July Monarchy of Louis Philippe, shortly after the death of the King's powerful supporter President of the Council Casimir Pierre Périer on 16 May 1832. On 1 June 1832, Jean Maximilien Lamarque, a popular former Army commander who became a member of the French parliament and was critical of the monarchy, died of cholera. The riots that followed his funeral sparked the rebellion. This was the last outbreak of violence linked with the July Revolution of 1830.. As the famous French author Victor Hugo memorialized the rebellion in his novel Les Misérables
It contains a colorful, adequate cinematography by Jorgen Persson and rousing as well as sensitive musical score by Basil Poledouris. The motion picture was professionally directed by Billie August who assures tension, entertainment and excitement enough, and not a second of the near two-hour actual running time is wasted . It is an allright retelling but doesn't reach the level of the 1935 classic movie. Well worth watching. Better than average.
Other versions are as follows : The classic retelling Les Miserables 1935 by Richard Boleslawski with Fredric March, Charles Laughton, Cedric Hardwicke, Rochelle Hudson, Florence Eldridge. Les Miserables 1952 by Lewis Milestone with Michael Rennie, Robert Newton, Debra Paget, Edmund Gwenn. Italian version, Les Miserables 1952 by Riccardo Freda with Gino Cervi, Valentina Cortese. French adaptation 1957 by with Jean Gavin, Bernard Blier, Serge Reggiani. Les miserables 1995 by Claude Lelouch with Jean Paul Belmondo, Annie Girardot, Jean Marais, Rufus, Philippe Leotard, Alexandra Martines. A recent musical 2012 by Tom Hooper with Russell Crowe, Hugh Jackman, Amanda Seyfried, Anne Hathaway, Sacha Baron Cohen. 1978 Tv series by Glenn Jordan with Anthony Perkins, Richard Jordan, John Gielgud, Cryl Cusack, Flora Robson and 2018 TV series with Dominic West, David Oyelowe, David Bradley, Olivia Colman, Lynn Collins, among others.