In the novel upon which this film is based, Jean Valjean was sentenced to 5 years for theft, a sentence extended by increments of 3 years for 4 escape attempts, plus 2 years for resisting on one of his captures, for a total of 19 years. Here, he is sentenced to 5 years for theft, then is given an additional 5 years for his first escape attempt and 10 years for his second, bringing his total sentence up to 20 years. A third escape attempt is successful, so he only serves 19 of his 20 years. A successful escape somewhat misses one of the points of the original story, that even former convicts who lawfully served their sentences and paid their debt to society were still not given the opportunity to become productive members of it.
Monsieur and Madame Thénardier, main characters in the novel, who dog Valjean throughout his time in Paris, appear in only one scene here. A young girl, presumably their daughter Éponine, is seen very briefly in a non-speaking appearance. In the novel she is also a main character, engaging in a love triangle with Marius and Cosette. Gavroche, the Thénardier's eldest son, does have a substantial role here, though no connection is made between him and the innkeepers who looked after Cosette.
In the book, Monsieur Thenardier identifies himself as "Napoleon's Sergeant". Sir Ian Holm played Napoleon in several movies.
Lynne Frederick campaigned for the role of Cosette. When she auditioned, she also read for the part of Fantine, but was ultimately deemed too old to play Cosette and too young to play Fantine.
The action of the original novel begins with Valjean's arrival in Digne, an event which does not occur in this version until roughly a half an hour in. Depending on the edit, that means nearly a quarter of the story as presented here takes place prior to the events of the novel and was created for this film. Mostly it focuses on Valjean's trial, imprisonment, and escape attempts, events only mention, not depicted, in the novel.