Les misérables

I have the new version (with Liam Neeson as Valjean) and it was pathetic, and almost blasphemous to Hugo's great book, if compared to this one. This one of John Gay is THE best adaptation. Richard Jordan also did perfectly to give life to Valjean, you can feel the misery and redemption of Hugo's Jean Valjean. Perkins was also perfect for the tough-principled sinister and cold Javert. If you have seen the new version and not this one, you've been cheated.

In the Eighteenth Century in France, the unemployed woodman Jean Valjean (Richard Jordan) is arrested for stealing a bread to feed his family and sentenced to five years in prison in Toulon. He tries to escape from prison due to the mistreatment of cruel Javert (Anthony Perkins), increasing his sentence. Nineteen years later he succeeds to escape and is helped by the kind Bishop Myriel (Claude Dauphin) that feeds and shelters him. However he steals his silverware in the dawn but he is arrested by two policemen and brought back to the bishop. The bishop tells that the silver objects were a gift and gives two additional candlesticks to Valjean. When the policemen leave the place, the bishop tells that he has bought his soul and now he should live an honest life.

Jean Valjean becomes a well-succeeded businessman with the alias Madeleine bringing prosperity to a small town producing black beads that he had learnt in the prison and then the becomes the major. His life changes when Javert is assigned the chief of police of his town. Javert arrests the beggar Fantine (Angela Pleasence) accused of prostitution but Madeleine asks him to release her and brings her home. He learns that she sends money to a couple to raise her daughter Cosette. Meanwhile Javert travels to Paris to denounce Madeleine, but he learns that Jean Valjean is arrested. But Madeleine confesses the truth to the court and releases the man. Now Javert will take him back to Toulon. What will Jean Valjean do?

"Les Miserables" is one of the saddest stories of injustice and obsession ever. The Victor Hugo's novel is a touching extensive novel and should be mandatory its reading for teenagers. This excellent film omits many details but it is very faithful to the novel as a whole. Maybe it is the best version ever made. Anthony Perkins is fantastic in the role of Javert and Richard Jordan has a great performance in the lead role of Jean Valjean. My vote is eight.

Title (Brazil): "Os Miseráveis" "The Miserables")

This is the best version of this classic by far. Richard Jordan gives one of his best performances as Jean Valjean. His scenes in the prison are heartrending. And he certainly knows how to draw you in and make you feel a part of it all, you can feel his suffering, his pain and the scene with the priest as he turns himself around is heartfelt and dramatic, he is definitely by far one of the best character actors that ever was. Anthony Perkins is great as Javert, cold, grim and unforgiving and the two of them together, they are great. Angela Pleasence gives a great performance as Fantine and of course John Gielgud, what can you say about someone that is a living legend, because you know whatever he does you know it will be outstanding. So I would highly recommend this one to anyone that loves the classics and not the version that just came out last year, to think they would try to do this classic again where there was already an outstanding version of this story once before was outrageous.

Perhaps more watchable than the better known recent version with Liam Neeson, this made for TV adaptation of Hugo's classic novel makes for interesting viewing. Those familiar with the musical will note that many episodes not used for set pieces in that adaptation are here, with the effect that this plays like a slightly different story. The emphasis here is on forward story momentum rather than moments of high drama, and the cat-and-mouse story of Javert's pursuit of Valjean moves along at a fair clip. The period look is less lush than in the more recent version, but convincing and appropriate on its own, and the performances of Richard Jordan as the harried Valjean who wants only to do good, and of Anthony Perkins as the relentless and uncompromising Javert are spot on. Les Miz is a great story that can be effectively adapted any number of ways and the choices made here were good ones.

An interesting adaption of the story. The screenplay writer John Gay has added about 30 minutes worth of backstory and recounts Valjean's initial theft of the bread, trial and almost 20 years imprisonment in some detail before getting to the scene with the Bishop, which is where the 1000+ page books _starts_!

He has included notable scenes and characters from the book - such as Marius' misunderstanding with his grandfather (played by John Gielgud) and Monsieur Madeline's housekeeper who never lies, Sister Simplice. However, he has also cut many others - notably the whole subplot with Thenardier's gang in Paris, practically all of the students' interactions and the character of Eponine. Further, he has chosen to include some scenes which I certainly would never think of as essential or even substantive, such as the convoluted means of getting Valjean back into the convent where he and Cosette spend 10 years.

The effect of these interesting choices is twofold: Firstly, this movie is very much Valjean's story, with many of the other characters given short shrift. (Javert is an exception.) Secondly, the pacing is somewhat uneven - inclusion of short scenes such as those with Marius' grandfather imply a more detailed backdrop to each of the other characters, but ultimately appear tacked on. Some of the "chase" scenes also come across as gratuitous and lack tension.

The fact that this is a made-for-TV movie comes out in a limited budget and the periodic fade outs between scenes.

On the plus side, Anthony Perkins gives a wonderfully controlled performance as Javert (standout scene for me was his confrontation with Sister Simplice), and Richard Jordan is sympathetic, if somewhat babyfaced even as an old man.

Lovers of that great "kids" TV show Press Gang (highly recommended BTW) will get a kick out of spotting a young Dexter Fletcher as Gavroche.