Les Miserables [Includes Digital Copy] [Blu-ray]

Director: Bille August Bille August

Overview

Bille August directed this Rafael Yglesias adaptation of the 1862 classic by Victor Hugo (1802-1885) about the quest of Inspector Javert to capture escaped convict Jean Valjean, originally an honest man who was jailed for stealing a single loaf of bread to feed the family of his starving sister. This new interpretation of Hugo's epic begins with Valjean (Liam Neeson), released after 20 years of cruelties and hard labor, reporting for parole in Dijon. Stopping at a bishop's house, he's treated with respect, but even so, he steals silverware, flees, and is captured. However, the bishop says the silverware was a gift, proving Valjean's innocence by giving him two silver candlesticks. Valjean is free, but the bishop asks him to treat others with equal kindness. By 1822, Valjean has risen to mayor of the village of Vigau, where he also maintains a successful factory. Joining the local police, Inspector Javert (Geoffrey Rush) is suspicious of Valjean's identity and eventually recognizes him as a former convict, but Javert has no proof when he carries his accusations to Paris. Valjean develops a relationship with Fantine (Uma Thurman), who lost her factory job because of local attitudes about her illegitimate daughter. The starving Fantine turns to prostitution, is arrested and tortured by Javert, and becomes ill. As she dies, Valjean promises to raise her daughter Cosette. Focusing on Valjean's life with Cosette (Claire Danes), the story is set amid the action of the July 1832 Revolution, a time when Cosette falls in love with a militant student, Marius (Hans Matheson). On the banks of the Seine, Valjean and Javert have their final confrontation.

Product Details

Release Date:	12/11/2012
UPC:	0043396415195
Original Release:	1998
Rating:	PG-13
Source:	SONY PICTURES HOME ENTERTAINMT
Region Code:	A
Sound:	[Dolby Surround]
Language:	English
Time:	2:14:00
Sales rank:	25,333

Special Features

A First Look at Les Misérables

Cast & Crew

Performance Credits

Liam Neeson	Jean Valjean
Geoffrey Rush	Javert
Uma Thurman	Fantine,Actor
Claire Danes	Cosette
Hans Matheson	Marius
Reine Brynolfsson	Capt. Beauvais
Peter Vaughan	Bishop
Mimi Newman	Cosette (age 8)
Christopher Adamson	Bertin
Tim Barlow	Lafitte
Timothy Bateson	Banker
Veronika Bendova	Azelma
David Birkin	Courfeyrac
Patsy Byrne	Toussaint
Kathleen Byron	Mother Superior
Vaclav Chalupa	Andre
Ian Cregg	Feuilly
Ben Crompton	Grantier
Zdenek David	Peasant
Paola Dionisotti	Forewoman
Edna Dore	Old Woman
Louis Hammond	Letter Reader
Gillian Hanna	Mme. Thenardier
Janet Henfrey	Mme. Gilot
Shane Hervey	Gavroche
Zdenek Hess	Foreman
Gerard Horan	Digne Gendarme
Kelly Hunter	Mme. Victurien
Lennie James	Enjolras
Toby Jones	Doorkeeper
Jon Kenny	Thenardier
Pavel Koci	Coachdriver
Sylvie Koblizkova	Eponine
Jan Kuzelka	Furniture Dealer
Peter MacKriel	Doctor
Margery Mason	Nursing Nun
Shannon McCormick	Redheaded Gendarme
John McGlynn	Carnot
Philip McGough	Judge
David McKay	Informer
Alex Norton	General
Ralph Nossek	Clerk
Frank O'Sullivan	Brevet
Zoja Oubramova	Old Woman
Jiri Patocka	Old Man
Petr Penkava	Beggar Child
Julian Rhind-Tutt	Bamatabois
Milan Riehs	Priest
James Saxon	Chabouillet
Petr Strnad	Young Homeless Boy
John Surman	Stonemason
Miroslav Taborksy	Gendarme
Terry Taplin	Prosecutor
Richard Toth	Gendarme
Edward Tudor Pole	Landlord
Zdenek Vencl	Messenger
Tony Vogel	Lombard
Pavel Vokoun	Sergeant
Jan Unger	Officer
Joshua Wren	Old Homeless Boy
Libor Zidek	Wig Maker
Edna Doré	Old Woman
Basil Poledouris	Composer

Technical Credits

Rafael Yglesias

Bille August	Director
Leonora Davis	Casting
Terry Glass	Special Effects
James Gorman	Producer
Gareth Milne	Stunts
Sarah Radclyffe	Producer
Jaroslav Stolba	Special Effects
Rafael Yglesias	Screenwriter
Caroline Hewitt	Producer
Michel Siksik	Producer
Ross Adams	Sound Effects
Jonathan Bates	Sound Effects
Tomas Cervenka	Sound Effects
Paul Conway	Sound Effects
Jean-Francois Casamayou	Executive Producer
David John	Sound/Sound Designer

Editorial Reviews

When dealing with a source material that's been adapted so frequently into film, it's extremely difficult not to compare and contrast any new effort with what's gone before. Taken on its own merits, however, this version of the Victor Hugo classic is a solid and entertaining adaptation, if too cold and austere. Liam Neeson is a thoroughly credible Valjean, especially during the opening sequences when the protagonist is still a criminal. With his looming physicality, the actor pulls off a palpable sense of threat that makes accepting him as a public menace that much easier. Neeson's interpretation of the role is a reminder of how many of the actors who have filled Valjean's shoes in the past have portrayed him as a tragic victim of unavoidable circumstance so that his later transformation seems more believable (and their own personas remain heroically intact). Here, the star goes for a sense of his character as a genuine thief, and it's a small but important thrill. If his later, reformed Valjean is too brittle and removed, it's understandable in contrast to his earlier incarnation. It also makes way for the searing performance of Geoffrey Rush as Javert, one of the finer depictions of the role. Rush brings to life the ramrod steel of his villain's outer shell, but manages at all turns to remain sympathetic. This is no small feat in a part that could easily be played by someone less subtle as a teeth-gnashing demon. Elements such as music, costuming, set design, and location are first rate, combining with the two lead performances to make a mostly successful production. Les Miserables (1998) weakens when the female characters are onscreen. Neither the tragic scenes involving the death of Fantine (Uma Thurman) nor the burgeoning romance of Cosette (Claire Danes) with a political dissident ever really become emotionally engaging. It looks fantastic and its male leads are doing some of their best work, but Les Miserables (1998) doesn't evoke the feelings that it should. That's a flaw in such a sweeping, ardent tale.

All Movie Guide - Karl Williams