Review: Les Miserables

"I've ransomed your soul and now I give you back to God." So declares a priest to Jean Valjean (Liam Neeson), a hardened ex-convict to whom he's given food and shelter and who has just stolen from him.

Years pass. Valjean has taken the priest's words to heart and has led a good life as a respected mayor of a small village. But the past must catch up and it does in the form of the heartless, obsessive Inspector Javert (Geoffrey Rush), a man who knew Valjean the prisoner, and who is a man who lives and dies by the letter of the law. Momentarily blinded by Valjean's respectability, Javert is soon plagued by the increasing belief that Valjean is the escaped prisoner he has been searching for.

During the time-spanning cat and mouse game with Javert, Valjean finds himself drawn to the tubercular prostitute, Fantine (Uma Thurman, hauntingly lovely). He promises to take care of her daughter, Cosette (Claire Danes), whose budding romance with a student revolutionary (Hans Matheson) puts Valjean in Javert's path once again.

Director Bille August (The Best Intentions), working from a tight adaptation by Rafael Yglesias, recovers from his previous all-star literary epic, The House of the Spirits. That particular outing, with Meryl Streep, Jeremy Irons, Glenn Close, and Winona Ryder, was a botched adaptation of Isabel Allende's magical novel. This time, August gets it right although Hugo's novel seems to be foolproof, as evidenced by the countless adaptations that have graced stage, screen and television. August allows the tale to have its epic sweep without sacrificing intimacy. Most directors often abandon this aspect of an epic but it's the little moments that make us care about the characters.

Thurman, whose otherworldly beauty lends an added melancholic sheen to Fantine's fate, is stunning. Her scenes with Neeson are the heart of the film. "You are God's creation," Valjean tells Fantine, who has sacrificed beauty, body and soul to take care of Cosette. Thurman's face registers disbelief, appreciation, pride, and regret. It's a marvelous scene and Thurman plays it with the right mix of delicacy and strength.

I was not one of Rush's supporters when he picked up the Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of the emotionally troubled pianist, David Helfgott, in Shine. To me, Helfgott remained a one-dimensional character rather than a fully realized human being. I am, however, highly impressed with his portrayal of Javert. Rush's Javert is all armor and no flesh. His dogged pursuit of Javert is the only sign that there is life in him. As the pieces start to fit, you watch Rush and his fervor is such that you swear you can see him, feel him smell Valjean's blood in the air.

In contrast to Rush's coldblooded stoicism, Neeson is all raging flesh and blood. The most amazing thing about his performance is the way he fills in the gaps. Scenes of his 19 years in prison and the 10 years that he and Cosette spend in a convent are only hinted at, yet Neeson manages to carry those unseen years in his eyes. The body may be comported differently but in his eyes, you see the 19 years, you see the struggle, you see the pain, you see the rage. When he finally reveals his past to the beseeching Cosette, the great man falls. Neeson unleashes Valjean's demons with such broken ferocity that all you can do is look, listen and thank God for creating such an actor during our lifetime.

Les Miserables

Directed by: Bille August

Written by: Rafael Yglesias

Starring: Liam Neeson, Geoffrey Rush, Uma Thurman, Claire Danes, Hans Matheson, Julian Rhind-Tutt