- I wonder if 2012 Les Mis would have been better if someone had strapped Tom Hooper down A Clockwork Orange style and made him watch all 280 minutes of this.
- Good lord is this long. I mean, at least it's used to tell a huge story, and it is broken into three distinct parts (you should watch it in parts! I watched it in bits throughout a day and it was still quite exhausting).
- Surprisingly brutal with its violence for a film of its age, too.
- Acting is excellent for a film that's this old- you'd expect things to be hammier than they are (sometimes it's pretty dramatic, but rarely do the actors/actresses go too far).
- Cinematography is also amazing. Some really good use of dutch angles, limited but purposeful camera movement, and a great use of closeups that reminded me of The Passion of Joan of Arc at times.
- First part is the most balanced. Liked seeing much more of Fantine than there was in Hooper's inferior musical adaptation. First half hour or so focusing on Jean Valjean was particularly good.
- Second part was my least favourite, though still good. I get the Thénardiers are supposed to be unlikeable, but they get a lot of screen time and it's rough to watch at times.
- Third part has solid emotional payoffs and the most action/excitement, even while featuring a sequence showing Jean Valjean carry another character through a sewer for like, 20 minutes.
- Unfortunately, Javert never says "AND I'M JAH-VEHRT"
1 out of 1 found this helpful.
Was this review helpful? Sign in to vote.
Permalink
