Film Review Les Misérables A grand, touching and inspiring tale of love, sacrifice and salvation that comes highly recommended. Plot 1815: Jean Valjean is released on parole after a sentence of 19 years of hard labour for stealing a loaf of bread for his sister. Valjean is marked a dangerous man, and is forced into the utmost poverty. He is on the brink of ruin when a priest forgives him for stealing from the church, and this turns out to be a #life changing experience. Valjean is filled with love, and all of his hatred is washed away. 1823: Valjean has become the mayor of a provincial town outside of Paris. Here, he encounters Fantine, a young woman facing a tragic destiny. Valjean promises to take care of her daughter, Cosette; however, their problems are not over. The policeman Javert is obsessed with tracking down Valjean, and after eight years their paths cross again. 1832: Revolution simmers as hunger and poverty plague the country. Valjean and Cosette have lived a quiet #life in hiding for several years. But as the beautiful Cosette meets young Marius, love awakens. At the same time, Javert is lurking in the shadows, and the dangers of war and past acquaintances close in. Quality and Theme: Get ready for an epic film. ”Les Misérables” is based on the insanely popular musical, which, in turn, is based on Victor Hugo’s classic novel from 1862. The film is extremely well made, with excellent scenography, great costumes and a large cast of stars who get to demonstrate their vocal skills. All dialogue is sung, and the story is propelled forward by strong and compelling songs. The music is wonderfully written, and the way “One more day” involves all the central character is remarkable. Still, this is no happy story. We get to witness hunger, the utmost poverty, prostitution, abuse, murder and war. They are really miserable, the characters in this story. But the deeper the tragedy, the stronger is the message of the story. Valjean has all the reason in the world to hate, but as he is forgiven he realises that love and forgiveness is the only way to be truly happy and free. Valjean is willing to sacrifice everything to remain an honest and good man, and he makes some choices that put him in the utmost danger; still, they are choices that reflect his exceptionally exemplary ethics. Forgiveness is a central theme, and during the film we really get to see the value of loving and trusting our fellow men, including our worst enemies. By depicting a deep tragedy, ”Les Misérables” shows us the extraordinary power of hope and love in human’s lives – and how it defeats hatred. And this is probably why Victor Hugo’s novel has become one of our most famous and loved stories. Suitability: ”Les Misérables” has a 12A rating. The film is quite realistic, and will make a strong impression on young people. One of the saddest scenes depicts involuntary prostitution, and we get to see large crowds desperate for food, violence, murder and merciless warfare where even children are killed. Now, the filmmakers have ensured that these scenes aren’t too graphic, but we would like to point out that some 12-year-olds might find the film uncomfortable. The fact that this is a musical makes the film feel less realistic; still, the songs are quite touching. Be aware that the film has a running time of more than two and a half hours. Conclusion: ”Les Misérables” tells an amazing story in an excellent way. The film is nominated for eight Academy Awards, including Best Picture. It comes highly recommended. facts: Director: Tom Hooper Genre: Drama, Musical Actors: Anne Hathaway, Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Helena Bonham Carter, Eddie Redmayne, Samantha Barks , Amanda Seyfried, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jonathan Groff, Aaron Tveit, Colm Wilkinson, Ella Hunt and more Language: English Nationality: UK Running time: 2h 37mins Production Year: 2012 Age limit: 12A Suitability: Young people / Adults BBFCINSIGHT: Contains moderate violence and sex, and infrequent moderate language. I recommend les mis to age 10 and over. It is a funny, sing-a-long and will make you cry. The songs are easy to join in and are amazing to listen to. They don't speak the sing there words but some people don't like that because they understand what they are saying. But it is one of the most best films ever to be made. It has been on DVD, stage and cinemas. So I hope you watch it and enjoy it because I know I enjoyed it and seen it about 5 or 6 times. ”Les Misérables” tells an and sex, and infrequelanguage.
