Les Misérables (1925)
Jean Valjean, a Frenchman imprisoned for stealing bread, must flee a relentless policeman named Javert. The pursuit consumes both men's lives, and soon Valjean finds himself in the midst of the student revolutions in France.
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Excellent but underrated film
It's entirely possible that sending the audience out feeling lousy was intentional
The best films of this genre always show a path and provide a takeaway for being a better person.
A great movie, one of the best of this year. There was a bit of confusion at one point in the plot, but nothing serious.
Up to 397 minutes - without intermissions - and beautifully restored in various tints as well as black-and-white, all four parts of Les Miserables can be seen now and it's well worth it. Stylistically, it's solid and conventional with no cinematographic showing off, but Fescourt uses the camera skilfully and the characters are also well-realised, with Gabriel Gabrio the best Jean Valjean I've seen.
I saw this in April 2017 at a packed cinema at the Barbican - a 397 minute feast with live piano playing by Neil Brand. There were two 15 minute breaks and an hour for dinner and the majority of the audience stayed the journey. The version shown has been restored recently and is in pristine condition - the use of tinting (as well as toning and mordanting, apparently) was exceptional.As for the film as a piece of cinema - brilliant. The time flew and the story is given time to unfold I have not read Les Miserables so it was all new to me and the dramatic nature of the story comes to life brilliantly.Great acting and understated direction on photography add to it. I hope, if this gets a DVD or Blu-Ray release that Brand is allowed to score the picture. Although he improvised throughout the film, he captured the moods on screen well.If you can see this, invest the time and do so.