What We Think
Reviewed by The North Star
Run Time: 160 minutes
Rating: PG-13
I have been a fan of this musical ever since I heard "On My Own". After listening to the song about 100 times I decided to listen to the rest of the CD and I found that I loved all of the songs and not just the one that I had listened to over and over again. A year or so later I got to see a local production and I fell in love with the show. As the years went by I continued listening to the soundtrack and never stopped loving it. Then about a year ago I heard that they were finally making the musical into a movie. I couldn't wait to see it. For a year I patiently waited for the movie and as soon as I could I went to go see it. I wasn't expecting for it to be just as good as any other movie-musical and that is all that it was. I love the music and the story to this musical a lot more than other movie-musicals but it was nothing that I wasn't expecting.
First off, something that I found out a couple of weeks before seeing the movie was that all of the actors are actually singing. On the set they were recorded singing the song and when editing the film together they used those recordings. Nothing was mixed in the studio after the fact. It would be the same as if you saw it on a stage. The actors are really singing and are not enhanced in any way to make themselves sound better. The was a cool fun fact but it definitely raised the grade for me because it shows that the all-star cast could actually sing instead of just act.
When I first heard about them making the musical into a movie I heard of who was rumored to be the leading roles and I was very disappointed because with the exception of Eponine and Marius all of the actors were household names that people knew. I was especially upset when I heard that Fantine was going to be played by Anne Hathaway. I don't particularly care for her as an actor and Fantine has some of the most famous songs in the show. Going in with that mind set I walked out with the complete opposite thought in my head. After seeing her performance I think that she deserves the Oscar. She played Fantine to near perfection. Her performance was so raw and real. When she started singing "I Dreamed A Dream" I couldn't look away from the screen. She had brought meaning to that song that I never knew existed. She broke down crying in the middle of a line and took a second to catch her breath which is what would really happen if you were in her situation. Most of the times that I saw someone perform that song they would break down at the end of a line which isn't necessarily realistic. In short, Anne Hathaway was amazing and deserves to be recognized for her role.
The other actors were actually pretty good as well. Hugh Jackman was a great Jean Valjean but not amazing. He had an amazing voice and was a great actor and he did better than I expected. Russell Crowe on the other hand struggled. His acting was stellar but his singing not so much. It wasn't horrendous but the character of Javert has some of the greatest songs and he butchered them. He was a better singer than I thought but I wish that it was better. His acting and looks made up for the singing, so that was ok. The girl that played Eponine (Samantha Barks) didn't reach the bar. "On My Own" is one of the greatest songs from the show and it fell completely flat. It didn't feel like she sung her heart out or put any emotion into the song for that matter. Marius (Eddie Redmayne) was another unknown in the cast but he did really well. Usually the character of Marius is kind of a weenie because he is so lovestruck but Eddie played him really well and made the character seem more manly which was a refreshing change. Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter played the expert scammers and they were amazing. Their parts were very small but they were amazing in the few parts that they were in. They are the comic relief of the movie and I am always grateful when they come on because the show is so heavy. Overall, the acting in the film was very strong.
While looking at the Golden Globe nominations I saw that this movie was nominated for best original song and I was confused because this show already had SO many songs. Then I saw the film waiting for the song and it was completely unneeded. I could tell that it was added only so that it could be nominated for that category. Don't get me wrong, the song sounded pretty and was well-written but to me it seemed very out of place. It made me very upset to think they had to add another song just to get nominated for another category. The music has been known as legendary ever since the first showing of the musical, there is no need to add a new song now.
The last thing that really bothered me about this film was the cinematography. The cinematographer only used a couple shots. Extreme close-ups, shots that awkwardly cut off people's boy parts like foreheads or arms and shots where the character was only in one third of the screen and the rest was all just te background. All of these are good shots to use when making a film but they shouldn't be the only shots that you use for the entire film. I wish that they would have broadened the horizons and done something different every once in a while but they didn't. Although, I did appreciate the use of the long shots. Those are very difficult to do and to do well so I applaud the cinematographer for those.
All in all, I thought this movie was very well done and will be remembered and I will probably end up buying it on DVD or even seeing it in theaters again. It lived up to my expectations and nothing more. At points it took my breath away but as a whole it didn't exceed what I was expecting and that is why I can't give it an A.
Real Teen Rating ~ B+ : Worth Watching!
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