Les Miserables

I've adored the stage show for years. Listened to all the soundtracks available and loved the songs so much. You could say that I know the show about as well as is possible to know a show!
So when I learned that there was to be a film version of the musical, I was overjoyed!
I finally got to see the film the other week and I was blown away. Truly, I thought it was fantastic.
Yes, Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean is the main character and holds the film together, but I was most impressed with Russell Crowe. I know he's had his critics about playing Javert but I thought he put in a magnificent performance. Ok, his singing isn't as good as most of the others, but he lends a grittiness to his character which suited it well.
And as for Anne Hathaway.....well, if she doesn't win an Oscar for her portrayal of Fantine, then I'll be very much surprised. Some have said that she was over-acting, which to a degree I suppose she was. But I think she was trying to convey how wretched Fantine's lot in life had become, and as it was all sung live on set, I think that that wretchedness was wrought out of her and came through markedly when she sang 'I Dreamed A Dream'. One of the most heart-wrenching performances of a song I've seen sung on film.