LES MISERABLES Film Official Reviews- Page 6

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 12/13/12 at 5:42pm

"SPOILER, BUT NOT REALLY TOO MUCH!!!


The film should have faded slowly to black as he walked down the stairs after his last line. That was a beautiful moment and a perfect, bittersweet, and profound way to do it."

Agree. But without what happens just before then: Stephen Henderson's watchful gaze as if he knows what is about to happen. You just knew it was only a matter of time before Spielberg's signature discrete cheesiness would betray the consistent intelligence of Lincoln. The next ten minutes are almost sufficiently imprudent to spoil what came before them.

But, thankfully, only almost. On balance, it's a very fine movie.

[Kad]

Posted: 12/13/12 at 6:34pm

I seriously hope the screenplay for Lincoln gets published, because I would love to just read it on the page.

I think Les Miz may get the Globe, because the Hollywood Foreign Press loves two things: stars and bigness.

[StageManager2]

Posted: 12/13/12 at 6:41pm

Well, they did give it to Evita over Fargo and Jerry Maguire, both Best Picture Oscar nominees, and Madonna over Frances McDormand, eventual Oscar winner, so I can see them giving it to Les Miz and Jackman over Silver Lining's Playbook and Cooper, respectively. (Hathaway goes without saying.)

[Kad]

Posted: 12/13/12 at 7:08pm

Hathaway is the surest award bet right now. Even the film's detractors and doubters are lavishing praise.

[Auggie27]

Posted: 12/14/12 at 7:55am

The Lincoln screenplay has been semi-published. Everyone in the WGA got it this week with the screener. It's a "for your consideration" styled publication (though not marked thus) but suggests a real edition looms large. It's 126 pages, and extraordinarily dense, predictably.

[madbrian]

Posted: 12/14/12 at 8:45am

I think Tommy Lee Jones is about as solid a lock as Hathaway.

[bobs3]

Posted: 12/14/12 at 9:34am

^^
So is Daniel Day Lewis unless John Hawkes or Bradley Cooper pull an upset (like Adrien Brody-"The Pianist" did in 2002 when Day Lewis was considered the frontrunner for "Gangs of New York").

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 12/14/12 at 10:25am

I think Leonardo DiCaprio could pose a major threat to Best Supporting Actor. He's only gaining traction at this point, plus he's been nominated a crapload of times before and generally well-liked in the film community.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 12/14/12 at 10:39am

Isn't DiCaprio going to have competition from his Django costar Waltz?

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 12/14/12 at 4:37pm

I personally don't think so. I think it'll be a bit of a shocker if Waltz is even nominated, actually. With extremely strong competition from Jones, Hoffman, DeNiro, Arkin, Goodman (in both ARGO and FLIGHT), Bardem, and even Eddie Redmayne & Ezra Miller, I would imagine Waltz will be shut out as (based on what I've read and heard) DiCaprio has the flashiest, hammiest, and most entertaining role in DJANGO.

Updated On: 12/14/12 at 04:37 PM

[mpd4165]

Posted: 12/14/12 at 4:58pm

Don't be so sure. As critics awards continue to be announced, the supporting actor winner from Django has been Waltz over DiCaprio. This, plus both being nominated at the globes, gives both traction toward Oscar noms. I'm personally loving this awards season because it's all over the place and surprises may be in abundance when the Oscar nominations are announced.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/17/12 at 1:38pm

Another scathing review, this one from The Wrap:

Jackman over-articulates, over-gesticulates and pretty much over-everythings. Worse still are those moments where, rather than singing all his dialogue, he has to transition from speech to song within the same line. (“We’re leaving now, PACK YOUR THIIIIIIINGS!”) Even his “Bring Him Home” paled next to the version performed by that actor who came to Dallas 20 years ago, raising nary a hair on the back of my neck.

Hathaway, meanwhile, takes every opportunity to suck all the oxygen out of “I Dreamed a Dream,” the number that is this show’s “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going.” Earlier in the film, Fantine sells some of her back teeth to a shady dentist who promises to leave her “enough to bite.” Clearly, he also left her enough to gnash. It’s a ghastly, eyelid-fluttering, self-serving, sympathy-begging performance; Oscar voters are guaranteed to eat it up.

And then there’s poor Russell Crowe, who’s had success as a vocalist with his bands 30 Odd Foot of Grunts and the Ordinary Fear of God, but singing in a bar band and belting quasi-operatic Broadway songs are two very different things. He’s giving it his all but falling short throughout; you can tell from the strain that he’s singing on his tippytoes.

The one performer who stands out is Sasha Baron Cohen, who cuts through the rest of the film’s noble masochism with the grungily cynical “Master of the House.” (Helena Bonham Carter is lazily cast as the innkeeper’s shrewish wife.) But even Baron Cohen wears a bit thin by the fourth reprise or so.
The Wrap

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/17/12 at 1:38pm

Another scathing review, this one from The Wrap:

Jackman over-articulates, over-gesticulates and pretty much over-everythings. Worse still are those moments where, rather than singing all his dialogue, he has to transition from speech to song within the same line. (“We’re leaving now, PACK YOUR THIIIIIIINGS!”) Even his “Bring Him Home” paled next to the version performed by that actor who came to Dallas 20 years ago, raising nary a hair on the back of my neck.

Hathaway, meanwhile, takes every opportunity to suck all the oxygen out of “I Dreamed a Dream,” the number that is this show’s “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going.” Earlier in the film, Fantine sells some of her back teeth to a shady dentist who promises to leave her “enough to bite.” Clearly, he also left her enough to gnash. It’s a ghastly, eyelid-fluttering, self-serving, sympathy-begging performance; Oscar voters are guaranteed to eat it up.

And then there’s poor Russell Crowe, who’s had success as a vocalist with his bands 30 Odd Foot of Grunts and the Ordinary Fear of God, but singing in a bar band and belting quasi-operatic Broadway songs are two very different things. He’s giving it his all but falling short throughout; you can tell from the strain that he’s singing on his tippytoes.

The one performer who stands out is Sasha Baron Cohen, who cuts through the rest of the film’s noble masochism with the grungily cynical “Master of the House.” (Helena Bonham Carter is lazily cast as the innkeeper’s shrewish wife.) But even Baron Cohen wears a bit thin by the fourth reprise or so.
The Wrap

[Dave19]

Posted: 12/18/12 at 6:28am

I have 2 questions for the people who have seen the film;

Is the "lalalala" part, reprise "castle on a cloud" still there? Followed by the reprise of "I dreamed a dream" where Valjean sings "Now her mother is with god, Fantine's suffering is over"?

And does Amanda Seyfried sing the hight note in "A heart full of love"? And how does it sound?

Thanks

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 12/20/12 at 11:25am

Yet another bad review from a critic I usually agree with, Michael Phillips. He gives it 1 and a half stars out of four. These reviews, on top of the very, very disappointing "One Day More" clip are making me very nervous... http://www.chicagotribune.com/entertainment/movies/sc-mov-1221-les-miz-20121220,0,6890419.column

[StageManager2]

Posted: 12/20/12 at 11:31am

Here's the audio of Crowe's "Stars" if anyone wants to dare:

http://ianjonbourgandethanfreeman.tumblr.com/post/38351966936/stars-russell-crowe-no-tagging-reblogging

Frankly, he sounds like he's in a karaoke bar. haha

[SporkGoddess]

Posted: 12/20/12 at 1:01pm

Yeah, a lot of these reviews seem to have issues with the musical itself and even plot points from the original novel. I would also argue that they seem to be misunderstanding some of it (for instance, why Javert commits suicide).

But the concern that Hooper shoots an epic story too intimately is a valid and huge issue to me.

It also sounds like this movie is just a tearjerker, and the way the critics are talking it's like Oskar Gold from American Dad. That kind of concerns me as well because Les Mis should inspire some tears and a lot of emotion, but IMO it shouldn't be a sobfest either.

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 12/20/12 at 4:07pm

http://www.richardroeper.com/reviews/lesmiserables.aspx

Richard Roeper, on the other hand, gives it an A. He calls it a "triumph" and the best movie musical of the decade.

And the NY Post is positive with three stars out of four; basically, he loves Hathaway, Jackman, Redmayne, Barks, etc, but thought the constant close-ups (which many critics seem to be taking issue with) and constantly larger-than-life direction are too overwhelming and hinder the film.

http://www.nypost.com/p/entertainment/movies/les_miserables_may_cause_weeping_Y3Ra6snZsgWBxC0SPhW5vJ?utm_medium=rss&utm_content=Movies

It should be noted that the other NY Post film critic, Kyle Smith, ranked LES MIZ as his #1 film of the year. Updated On: 12/20/12 at 04:07 PM

[all that jazz]

Posted: 12/21/12 at 9:02am

Ok, so I have been literally forcing myself not to watch any of the leaked videos. I'm beyond obsessed with Les Mis!!! But I'm posting because I'm sick of people trashing on movies like RENT, Phantom, Nine and someone even dared to mention Evita! I kind of understand the phantom hate but why Rent? In my opinion it’s a gorgeous film which brings tears to my eyes every time I see it. Evita is just a masterpiece, why would anyone hate on it? (My guess is Madonna, whom I loved) And Nine was the first musical I saw which actually made me cry!!! I was fourteen years old when I saw it and it was the first adult musical I ever saw. It made me solidify my aspirations as an artist, and I still get Goosebumps every time I see it. Why all the hate towards these movie musicals? We should be grateful they're still filming musicals in this era of bad taste and no appreciation for the arts.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 12/21/12 at 10:20am

Why do some people get sick about people disagreeing with them about movies or shows? It comes with the territory. People respond differently to different things and different ways of presenting those things. I'm curious why some can't simply accept this as part of the deal: people who care passionately about performance are going to disagree. There's no way around it and no reason to get sick about it.

If we didn't have different opinions, what would be the purpose of coming to places like bww to discuss our impressions? Or of reading professional critics, who are just as likely to disagree with each other as we are, in reviews?

I disagree with you about the movie of Evita (not that I would trash it, but I don't think it's very good) but it doesn't sicken me to read your rhapsodic review of it or the review of someone who likes it less or far less than I did. Similarly, there are things that I love that many people have trashed. Rather than being distressed by others not sharing my opinion, it's interesting to me to discuss why we came away with different impressions of what we had seen.

It's a movie. Sharing our views should be fun. It's not as if we are discussing going to war.













Updated On: 12/21/12 at 10:20 AM

[My Oh My]

Posted: 12/21/12 at 8:53pm

I have no problem with your love for movie musicals I felt were just OK like Rent, AllThatJazz.

I do wish you'd put a little more effort in explaining why we shouldn't say what we really feel, should settle, and be grateful for whatever bone is thrown at us. You'd think with someone of your passion, you'd at least give a good explanation. As of now, I gather you are upset that we are saying anything negative about works from an art form we obviously love and are more than just a little bit grateful for. And your criteria for determining quality is number of tears? Emotion and tears? Onions make me tear up every time and they make me feel very big emotion (pain in the eye). Of course, I'm being ridiculous. But I know that.

I like my bones with meat on them, btw.

[JP2]

Posted: 12/21/12 at 9:14pm

Rolling Stone is a rave and gives it 3.5/4 stars.

"No one expects gutsy filmmaking in a musical. But that's just what King's Speech Oscar winner Tom Hooper delivers in Les Misérables. The massive 1980s stage smash is adapted from Victor Hugo's even more massive 1862 novel spun around the 1832 Paris student uprising. There's no spoken dialogue! Everyone sings! All the time! For nearly three hours! Think rock opera, like the Who's Tommy. If that drives you nuts, screw off and see the stupid Twilight finale again."

http://www.rollingstone.com/movies/reviews/les-miserables-20121221#ixzz2Fk7flIBR

[jacobsnchz14]

Posted: 12/21/12 at 9:54pm

Love that last part you posted from the review! haha.

[ray-andallthatjazz86]

Posted: 12/22/12 at 1:21am

No one expects gutsy filmmaking in a musical.

Love that Rolling Stones liked it, but this quote bothered me. Have they not seen a movie musical like ever? Off the top of my head WEST SIDE STORY, SINGIN' IN THE RAIN, CABARET, MOULIN ROUGE and CHICAGO all have moments of risky, complex and "gutsy" filmmaking, and that's just to name a few. I hate so much the way that people, particularly film critics who you think should know better, have this completely inaccurate idea of movie musicals as generic, conventional and safe.

[henrikegerman]

Posted: 12/22/12 at 10:29am

Peter Travers likes almost everything.
king of the blurbs