Cinema Review - Les Miserables (12A, 158 Mins)

Synopsis: In 19th-century France, Jean Valjean, who for decades has been hunted by the ruthless policeman Javert after he breaks parole, agrees to care for factory worker Fantine's daughter, Cosette. The fateful decision changes their lives forever.

Verdict: This film is a truly epic, heartbreaking musical masterpiece. From the opening scenes as we meet Jean Valjean, a convicted criminal (HE STOLE A LOAF OF BREAD!) who's just been released, I was captivated. 

Some people may have their qualms about the fact that there's just about no speaking at all in a film that lasts more than two and a half hours but to add in dialogue would not be staying true to the musical. With a story told so beautifully in the first place without any talking I feel it would've detracted from it. The fact that all of the songs were sung live made the film feel more real and really added an extra emotional punch, particularly for Anne Hathaway's stunning rendition of "I dreamed a dream".

The main highlight of this film though is the performances. I have not seen Lincoln so for all I know Daniel Day-Lewis may have been incredible, but how Hugh Jackman didn't pick up many gongs for his performance is beyond me. He made this film feel so grim, real and absorbing playing a character through the majority of his lifetime perfectly. The real star of the show here though was Anne Hathaway. Despite the fact that she was on screen for all of 25 minutes, Hathaway steals the show as Fantine, the mother to Cosette who becomes penniless after losing her job - resorting to selling her hair out of desperation in a scene that won't leave a dry eye in the house. For me the only slightly disappointing performance here was Russell Crowe as the police inspector Javert. Whilst his acting was very good, his singing was sub-par and for me was slightly distracting.

Whilst I thought that Marius and Cosette's storyline seemed slightly drippy, Eddie Redmayne and Amanda Seyfried brought such passion, hope and love to the story that a little bit of schmaltz didn't seem to faze me - compared to other musicals I suppose this was nothing. Two of my favourite characters however were the Thernardiers. These characters were made for Sacha Baron-Cohen and Helena Bonham-Carter - both bonkers and hilarious they brought a perfect balance of fun to the film along with one of my favourite songs "Master of the house". 

In short this film looks beautiful, was acted wonderfully and had the perfect balance of fun and heartbreak along with some epic violence - there's something for everyone here.

5/5