Les Misérables Review
After hearing all of my friends gush over how great this, I watched it. I was expecting quite a lot from this musical considering how many Academy Awards this was nominated for. Did this actually ring as a great film for me or was it a flop?
Well, let's start with the story. Apparently, after the French Revolution, these under-represented poor people want to lead another revolution. The film never made it clear whether it is another revolution or just a continuation. Since I barely know anything about the French Revolution, I had no idea what was going on. Then there's the other storyline following a convict arrested for stealing bread. He goes on and helps people to prove his worthiness, but alas, the officer sees no good in him. As someone who never read the book or watched the musical, I didn't see how this had to do with France itself. I think the movie expects that the viewer would read the book to actually know the plot, but doesn't explain what actually happens. All it focuses on is the characters. This is a seriously annoying part that I can't ignore. This movie only follows the characters' plight throughout this horrible time. Which brings me to my next point.
The characters. There's Hugh Jackman, Russel Crowe, Anne Hathaway, and others. To me, they were all very forgettable. I can't even remember half of their names anymore. Hugh Jackman plays as the convict. His performance was pretty solid. In fact, all of the actors were decent except for Russel Crowe. He could never act and didn't show any expression at all. He really detracted from the movie and I could never engage myself with his character. Anne Hathaway was probably the best of the bunch, but she was only in the film for ten minutes. The brunette was also great, but everyone else was bland. Which only made me bored of the two hours and a half it was crawling through.
Then, there were the songs. I could definitely see that these were very good ones, but the actors traded up their singing for their performance which made most songs forgettable. But there were great songs mixed in there as well. But, seeing as my friends lauded the songs so much, I couldn't help but feel disappointed. Did every line have to be sung, though?
Finally, I have some nitpicks. I wished there would be more shots of the entire land of France. I wanted to see the scope of the land. It seemed as though we were just stuck in someplace that was dank and depressing. Also, did anyone in this movie die of anything? All they do is lie in their deathbeds and pass away. How did Anne Hathaway die? STDs? How did Hugh Jackman die? Convenient old age that allowed him to live just enough to see his daughter and her lover come in the nick of time? This entire movie seemed like it wanted to convey emotion, yet I could never get over these flaws.
Overall, it felt like a boring movie that I could never enjoy. There were good moments, but the mosaic it made felt very rushed and messy. I'll give it 6.5/10
Well, let's start with the story. Apparently, after the French Revolution, these under-represented poor people want to lead another revolution. The film never made it clear whether it is another revolution or just a continuation. Since I barely know anything about the French Revolution, I had no idea what was going on. Then there's the other storyline following a convict arrested for stealing bread. He goes on and helps people to prove his worthiness, but alas, the officer sees no good in him. As someone who never read the book or watched the musical, I didn't see how this had to do with France itself. I think the movie expects that the viewer would read the book to actually know the plot, but doesn't explain what actually happens. All it focuses on is the characters. This is a seriously annoying part that I can't ignore. This movie only follows the characters' plight throughout this horrible time. Which brings me to my next point.
The characters. There's Hugh Jackman, Russel Crowe, Anne Hathaway, and others. To me, they were all very forgettable. I can't even remember half of their names anymore. Hugh Jackman plays as the convict. His performance was pretty solid. In fact, all of the actors were decent except for Russel Crowe. He could never act and didn't show any expression at all. He really detracted from the movie and I could never engage myself with his character. Anne Hathaway was probably the best of the bunch, but she was only in the film for ten minutes. The brunette was also great, but everyone else was bland. Which only made me bored of the two hours and a half it was crawling through.
Then, there were the songs. I could definitely see that these were very good ones, but the actors traded up their singing for their performance which made most songs forgettable. But there were great songs mixed in there as well. But, seeing as my friends lauded the songs so much, I couldn't help but feel disappointed. Did every line have to be sung, though?
Finally, I have some nitpicks. I wished there would be more shots of the entire land of France. I wanted to see the scope of the land. It seemed as though we were just stuck in someplace that was dank and depressing. Also, did anyone in this movie die of anything? All they do is lie in their deathbeds and pass away. How did Anne Hathaway die? STDs? How did Hugh Jackman die? Convenient old age that allowed him to live just enough to see his daughter and her lover come in the nick of time? This entire movie seemed like it wanted to convey emotion, yet I could never get over these flaws.
Overall, it felt like a boring movie that I could never enjoy. There were good moments, but the mosaic it made felt very rushed and messy. I'll give it 6.5/10
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