Running Time: 157 mins Directed by: Tom Hooper Starring: Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried, Eddie Redmayne, Sacha Baron Cohen, Helena Bonham Carter, Aaron Tveit, Samantha Barks
There are some films that are destined to make it huge at the box office, even while it’s still in production. Unsurprisingly, Les Misérables made £2.3M in its opening day in the UK on Friday, being the biggest opening day for a musical. I was one of those tickets and I’m glad to have been.
Review: Victor Hugo’s novel has been adapted to film many times before, and then the novel was adapted to a musical. But Tom Hooper’s adaption of the musical is something new. Live singing (no sound editing), extravagant action and phenomenal acting all in one.
Above anything else, Les Misérables is an actor piece; the entire structure is kept together because of the outstanding acting from a ray of perfectly fitting actors. Anne Hathaway’s brutally heart-breaking but enchanting performance as Fantine is entirely worthy of an Oscar, as she steals the film within the first half an hour. Hugh Jackman’s passion and assertiveness as Jean Valjean follows throughout the whole film, so that every moment on screen is a delight to watch because it’s striking. In fairness, everyone is a delight but the eye opener of the film is Samantha Barks who, in her debut film role, shines. Being one of the only stars of the film to reprise her role from the stage show, it’s clear why she was chosen as her voice and mannerisms as Éponine are charming and graceful.
Visually it’s breath-taking, proving that a film production wouldn’t have worked 10 or 20 years ago, because it would have failed to capture the beautiful buildings and cruel, dirty reality of 19th century Paris. There are more than enough awkward angles and unnecessary pans, but with the focus of Eddie Redmayne’s tears as he passionately sings Empty Chairs at Empty Tables, the good points outweigh Hooper’s excessive use of canted shots.
This is a real musical, with minimal speaking dialogue and everything proclaimed through song, something films do not do enough of now. It’s effective, gloriously adding delicacy to the harsh themes of Les Mis, while the live singing from each character captivates the exact overwhelming feeling watching a musical does. After each number there is a burning desire to stand up and clap, to compliment the actor’s for their fine performances despite the fact it’s not live.
Even with the long duration, plus song after song, the pace of Les Miserables is fast and action packed, with something always to admire about the screen whether it’s the gorgeous voices or visuals. Not only does it come with heart-breaking tragedies, but there is action, romance and the odd bit of comedy (from Bonham Carter and Baron Cohen who give the film a lively boost), so when the final credits appear and the urge comes to clap like a live show, the realisation hits that it has been one big, emotional journey.
Les Misérables is stunning, captivating and beautiful. To find a real flaw is impossible. 4.5/5
Running Time: 108 mins Directed By: Lone Scherfig Starring: Anne Hathaway, Jim Sturgess, Romola Garai, Patricia Clarkson, Jodie Whittaker, Rafe Spall Screenplay: David Nicholls UK Release Date: UK - 24th August
Quick Plot:On July 15th 1988, Emma and Dexter spend their graduation night together promising to remain good friends. Over the next 20 years the films revisits the pair for one day a year- the anniversary of the day they met. The film see's what their lives pan out to be with laughs, losses and a lot of love. -Cheesy synopsis there.
Review: Romantic Comedies aren't exactly rare, but every now and then one comes along that outshines the rest of them. I wouldn't go as far as saying One Day is iconic or rememberable, but it certainly sparkles.
About a year ago, one of my cousins told me about the book he was reading and how it was 'the best book he's ever read' and how I would 'love it' and yes you guessed it, this book was One Day. I found out it was even more successful as I first thought when it was announced it was to be adapted into a film, later being announced to star Anne Hathaway and Jim Sturgess. Of course I gave it a go and it's got to be one of the best decisions I have ever made. I could go on about how good of a book it is and how much it will change your life but this is a review of the film, sadly. One Day is a film about every type of love. The love you have with your family, the love you share with your friends and that one true love those lucky enough experience in their lives. The good thing about this adaption is that the author also wrote the screenplay (David Nicholls also wrote the screenplay for another of his book adaptations Starter For 10), so he knew the key moments that needed to be included and how to keep the beautiful moral, if you will, that the book held. As most instances, it’s not as good as the book, but for a film, it works well as a good adaption. The standout moments are still there as are the witty ethics that the leads have. I wouldn’t really define One Day as a Rom Com, it has it’s funny parts but it’s certainly not a predictable lovey dovey tale. It’s all down to the way Dexter and Emma have been written, they have a bond that is a lot deeper than meets the eye. They constantly bicker with snide remarks to each other, are playfully sarcastic but at the end of the day really care about one another. The other characters are written well for the adaption too, being the secondary characters that really have no likeability neither do they hold any type of dislikablity as they are literally part of the narrative, whereas in the book you have a bigger insight. One Day is directed by Lone Scherfig, who has a knack for capturing the beauty of a friendship and finding your self (similarly with the 2009 film An Education) so it's no surprise the film is utilised in sweetness. Having read the book I hope I am fully entitled to say that I believe Jim Sturgess is in every way possible, the greatest actor to be Dexter. I think he gave the character everything he got and made him the selfish, arrogant yet totally lovable Dexter Mayhew I fell in love with in the books. Sturgess, I already knew was a tremendous actor, but his portrayal of Dexter has me convinced he's got a lot more to show us in the future. I can't give him the credit of making him able to play a character over 20 years appearance wise, but I can say he shows the way his character develops extremely well. Now to Anne Hathaway, who's accent in the film has caused quite a stir. As a a reader of the book, I admit that Hathaway wouldn't have been my first choice to be Emma Morley but I can see why she was cast. Anne Hathaway is an actress who has come a long way in her career and we know she can play roles well. Her accent isn't exactly the best but if you push that aside she plays a good Emma. She's quirky, serious and real. Real enough anyway to be our lead Emma. The chemistry between the pair is apparent on screen and for that I really am thankful that Sturgess and Hathaway have put their all into the film knowing the books has lots of fans.
Now the film does have it's flaws. Hopefully it's not the book in the back of my mind, but I feel as if some days were a lot shorter than they should have been and sometimes the characters didn't get enough screen time to show their full emotions. As much as it's tried very hard to flow well, One Day has it's odd moments when you feel unsatisfied with a scene or not fully understanding what has happened in a certain year but it's definitely done the best it could have achieved in your average film duration. As for the ending of the film, it had nearly the same effect on me as the book. The film is lovable which I think is mostly to do with the leading roles but luckily enough everything else about it is quite simply lovely.
If you don't compare it to the book, forget Hathaway's accent and be patient with it, One Day is a gem which will make you laugh, cry and most of all love. 3/5
Quick Plot: Blu leads a comfortable life in Minnesota with his owner, but when his owner finds out he is the last maleblue macaw in the world and the only known female is Jewel who lives all the way in Rio De Janeiro, they travel there in the hope they will mate. But, after they both get stolen and chained together, Blu has to learn the ways of a bird to survive Rio..
Review: Can I just say how much I love animation right now? I've always liked family/animation films, ever since I was a kid (obviously) but my fondness of them has never gone away. For the past few years Dreamworks and Blue Sky animation have created brilliant animation features. Monsters vs. Aliens, Megamind, How To Train Your Dragon and then the Ice Age trilogy and Horton Hears A Who, all wonderful family animations and Rio is exactly that! I wasn't all that fussed about Rio to begin with, even with the slightly humorous Orange Ad that's been played for all of 2011 so far, I thought it looked alright. But my inner child got hold of me when I watched this and I thoroughly enjoyed it. The music was one part I loved, Will.I.Am and Jamie Foxx were fantastic together, especially the song'Hot wings' which I will link at the bottom like I did with yesterday's review. Rio has a very impressive storyline and the characters are all so special. Jesse Eisenberg fits the character of Blu so well and Anne Hathaway was so enjoyable as Jewel. Even the human characters were great, Leslie Mann as Linda worked prominently. The human storyline, though it obviously run along the birds one, was very cute and just as enjoyable. Rio is definitely a 'stunning film', even though it is of course animation, the city of Rio de Janeiro is gorgeous! In the plot, there is a Carnival taking place on one of the evenings so the City was covered in even more colours, music and beautiful costumes. Because I wrote a review yesterday I'm not in the mood to think of something to write again because it hurts my head too much because I'm not clever, so I'm going to sum up the film right about..now. Rio is one of the funnest family animations of the last decade with brilliant music, lovely storyline, noteworthy voices and stunning visuals. If you don't watch it at the cinema, make sure you buy or rent on DVD because you will not be let down. Yeah it's predictable, but all children's films have to be. Today when watching Rio, I heard lots of delightful laughs from many children, so I think it's a great choice for young ones.
Rio trailer and 'Hot Wings' - Will.I.Am ft. Jamie Foxx
