So the latest trailer is out for Les Miserables.
The first one had me hooked – I was feeling pretty confident that they weren’t going to stuff it up. This second version is almost a summary of the film. Whereas the first only featured Anne Hathaway singing “I Dreamed a Dream”, this one shows most of the lead actors getting a chance to show their stuff (pretty much the only ones we don’t hear are Sasha Barron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter – though we do get to see them).
And OK. I’m in. I am fully invested in this. If this sucks as a film, then I’m likely to be seen on TV being dragged out of some cinema by the authorities on Boxing Day screaming “You bastards!! You ruined it!!! Damn you!! Damn you all to hell!!!”
Because this trailer has me completely in. All the actors look the goods. Russell Crowe doesn’t sound like Philip Quast but I’m still confident he’ll be fine, and the line we hear him sing from “One Day More” is not a great one to show off any singing – his real test will come with “Stars” and “Javert’s Suicide” (sorry if that title is a spoiler for anyone!).
Lock in Anne Hathaway for a Best Supporting Oscar. Just lock her in. There is no way she will lose. She acts, she cut her hair, she sings and she’ll make every person in the theatre bawl their eyes out. She gets the gold statue.
Amanda Seyfried looks rather like Cosette – which is pretty much means she comes off as perfectly nice and perfect. The role is a tough thing given everyone really loves Eponine, and in that role I’m happy to see Samantha Barks, because if she flubbed “On My Own”, things would get rather sad (and not in a good way). Given she sang the role for the 25th Anniversary Concert, we know she can hold the tune, and when she tells Marius that the girl’s name is Cosette and then looks down and knows all is lost, well, I’m with her.
And I pretty happy with Hugh Jackman as the bloke to carry this film: Jean Valjean spent 19 years in prison so he’s can’t be Mister Nice but you have to like him, and you have to think he could be the type of guy who could spend 19 years in jail and come out not be full of hate. He also needs to do a fair bit of singing. We don’t see much of that in the trailer, and I’m interested to see how “natural” he goes. While I love the idea of the live singing as opposed to miming a standard Broadway cast score, I think there is a danger in going “too natural”. At the end of the day (to quote a song) it’s still a musical.
But anyway. Well done to the trailer makers because you got me. I’m there Boxing Day:
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