Les Misérables Review

A strapping Hugh Jackman set against a back drop of French political turmoil, heartache and sweet disposition ignites an epic musical drama whilst kick starting a heavy contender for the 2013 Oscars.

I admit to never having seen the stage play and to be honest I was sceptical. I knew a little about the story encompassing rather depressing undertones so the thought of spending a hearty seventy pounds at the theatre to ball my eyes out had never really appealed to me. Let’s face it, of all the musicals you could go to see whilst strutting down Shaftesbury Avenue in high heels with your girlies this would probably be way down the list. I personally would rather sing my heart out to Rock of Ages which at least has a sprinkling everything; Rock anthems, Rebellion and Obscenity… Now that’s my idea of fun.

However, when Les Misérables arrived at the cinema I got to wondering… why has the stage show been the world’s longest running musical? Seen by over 60 million people in 42 countries? Hmmmm……

Hugh Jackman playing a wrongly convicted heartthrob in 1815 is enough of a stereotype to sate the needs of the entire female population. A hard done by hero running from the law who finally escapes and assumes a new identity. His promise to take care of Fantine’s (Anne Hathaway) illegitimate daughter embodies a true sacrificial male love interest. Despite this I was hoping for something more from the film and it didn’t disappoint. Rather than focusing on dear old Hugh to divert my attention from the depressing story I was willingly subjecting myself to, I started to hum along to the songs… damn my low self control! If I wasn’t surrounded by a hundred or so people in the movie theatre I swear I would have constructed a weapon out of drink straws, leapt on my seat, and charged at the first symbol of authority whilst sticking two fingers up to ‘the man’; sorry staff at VUE it’s nothing personal.

The most resonating words of all were;

“Do you hear the people sing?
Singing a song of angry men?
It is the music of a people
Who will not be slaves again!
When the beating of your heart
Echoes the beating of the drums
There is a life about to start
When tomorrow comes!”

Wow! That was intense and I’m not being sarcy like I usually am; some seriously intense stuff was evolving on that screen. Thoughts were racing through my head. What should I be fighting for? What is worth fighting for? And most importantly shall I brave it and spend those seventy sodding pounds to witness the full experience on stage; I have a sneaky feeling I would probably enjoy it!
Summing up Les Misérables, it would be a New Years resolution revolutionary film. But looking to the future take comfort in these words; no matter how many times you may get knocked down, you’re gonna keep coming back stronger and harder. Oh! And a nice added bonus would be to meet Hugh in the flesh… now that would be the icing on the cake.