gelman@attglobal.net

This is not a filmed version of the stage musical. I understand that. And while, the rearrangement of the plot is awkward at times, I can forgive that. What I find impossible to forgive is the casting of certain parts. Though his voice isn't as powerful as it should be, Hugh Jackman is good as Jean Valjean. Russell Crowe can't sing worth a damn. Ann Hathaway acts her part successfully but her voice isn't particularly good. Sacha Baron Cohen and Helen Bonham Carter don't exactly ruin the comic highlights of the musical but neither of them is a singer. To my taste, Samantha Barks as Eponine is the only singer who could have stood up to his or her stage counterpart. Frankly, the only emotion my wife and I felt when the film ended was relief. The highlight of the film is the opening scene where the convicts are hauling a battered vessel into dry dock. After that, it's pretty much a pale imitation of the stage version we saw. I did, however, appreciate the scenes in which Colm Wilkinson appeared. He was "our Jean" Valjean and, though too old to play that part now, a better singer than Jackman.

I've seen all the reasons viewers (and some critics) dislike this film, but in my opinion it is infinitely superior to ARGO in its authenticity and dramatic quality. The final scenes, when the SEAL team, goes into Ben Laden's house, are brilliantly rendered. The idea of doing it mostly in the dark with flashes of illumination by "night vision" green is a brilliant touch, which most directors would never have attempted.

The performances by Jessica Chastain, of course, Jason Clark and Jennifer Ehle are top drawer and the torture scenes, while brutal, are necessary--because that's the way it happened. Congratulations to Kathryn Bigelow and Mark Boal for getting it right.

I don't want to put the knock on Argo, because I found it entertaining. But it's artificiality provides a distinct contrast with Zero Dark Thirity's authenticity, and authenticity wins.

Like it or not--and some will despise it--"The Gatekeepers" is MUST SEE for anyone concerned about Israel's future. While it is true, as one reviewer has pointed out, that excerpts from the interviews with six former heads of Shin Bet, Israel's spy agency, have been assembled and, therefore, shaped by the director, what emerges is nevertheless astounding. To be sure there are significant differences of opinion on some issues -- like the efficacy of targeted assassinations, for example--and those differences have been obscured in some reviews of this documentary. But what unites the six is a good deal more significant than what divides them. They all regard the occupation as a disaster. They are all pessimistic about the future. They have contempt for most of Israel's politicians, who, they say, are consumed by tactical considerations but have no strategy. To a man, they want peace and see it slipping away. To a man they blame settlers and extremist rabbis, together with the politicians who have enabled them. (Only Yitzhak Rabin is admired by any of the six.) Yes, it's depressing. But reality is often depressing, and this is a necessary dose of reality from men who have spent their lifetimes in Israel's service.