Les Miserables

The acting was phenomenal for the most part, but in acting it out they sacrificed quite a bit in the singing. Hugh Jackman is a convincing Jean Valjean, and Anne Hathaway was fantastic as Fantine. The guy playing Marius had a great voice. That being said, Jackman doesn't have the vocal range intended for a songs like "Bring Him Home". The biggest disappointment was Russel Crowe. I usually love his movies (yes, I even loved his Robin Hood) but he seemed really out of place here. He really can't sing well, even though Javert's part is not that broad in range. He just didn't seem to get the character. Even worse, though, was Thenardier (ala Sacha Baron Cohen). He seemed more depressed to be in the movie rather than being his character. Helena Bonham Carter should have been excellent, but didn't really seem to work well with Cohen. There was no charisma. The sets, props, and locations were stunning as was the orchestra behind everything. If you're a fan, you need to see it to say you've seen it, but if you're going for the vocals, prepare for some disappointment. Again, it's not a flop. With the acting, sets, and the team of Hathaway and Jackman it's worth seeing, but I feel some of the actors were chosen for their names (like Crowe) rather than their vocal abilities. Even performances like those by newcomer Samantha Barks - who has sung her part on stage before in the 25th anniversary special and was absolutely stunning in her performance - seemed a lot more vocally restrained here. She has much more talent than she let on in this rendition. I think 3.5 sums up the rating as a whole.