Les Misérables (wedged between tears and yawns)

Les Misérables: A Review

(wedged between yawns)

I decided to ask my dad and husband to take me to see Les Mis, which is why included the subtitle: wedged between my two men, I was crying, the men almost dozing. In fact, I think one did fall asleep at one point. I cannot really blame them. I guess I have never really seen a true musical before, because I kept asking myself when are they going to speak the words instead of sing everything. If only they would have just spoken a few things I wouldn't have had my butt go numb from the three hour long show.

I was not surprised by the tone of the movie--I think 'the miserables' leaves little to question that you are going to leave the theatre much more depressed than when you entered it. There were a few choice songs that left me excited, however. I loved Anne Hathaway's version of "I Dreamed A Dream." She deserves an Oscar and that is why I chose her for the image to this post. The little actress who played Cozette, Isabelle Allen, gave a heartwarming rendition of "Castle on a Cloud."  And the lover's song between Seyfried, Redmayne, and Barks in "In My Life" was moving.

The roles of Helena Bonham Carter and Sacha Baron Cohen also should be commended. Their song was disgusting, but they fit those roles so well. I felt as if I was watching Sweeney Todd all over again and at point, while my face was bathed in salty tears, wishing that was what I was viewing. Hugh Jackman also gave a stellar performance, but I expected nothing less from the wolverine. Russell Crowe, on other hand, someone please pass me some cotton balls my ears are bleeding. I know it was live singing, but he needed some dubbing (or muting). Love you in Gladiator Russell, but the singing shouldn't be attempted again even if you were once wishing to become a rock star.

There were quite a few inaccuracies in the movie. The biggest one being that the setting is in France but everyone was speaking in British accents. Not sure why this happened. I just pretended they were British immigrants in France. I did enjoy the swarthy sounding syllables but it did not remind me of the historical moment in the play, which I thought was half the point of the show. Overall, I give this show an OK. It made me cry, but I wasn't compelled to think about it too much after I left my theater seat.