Les Misérables (2012)

I could not help comparing this one to the 1998 one. In the '98 version, many a things were amiss, yet I loved Inspector Javert played by Geoffrey Rush - Javert did not feel like a man with flesh and blood, rather he felt like the insatiable spirit of Law itself. Les Misérables has been honed to near perfection as an on-stage musical, and this (2012) film being so stunning a musical, makes you wonder how greater an experience it would be if one watches the staged version. This time (2012) Jean Valjean looks rougher as he should, but Hugh Jackman's singing sometimes makes you think he is short of breath. Russel Crowe's voice, as he sings, becomes so thin at times that it contradicts his natural full voice, and he appears a bit too polished for the character. The 1998 version did not have Javert's soliloques, it did not need them; the character conveyed its inner thoughts without a spoken word.  A welcome addition is Éponine, who is totally absent in the '98 version; her unrequited love never feels innoble; infact She appears more radiant than Cosette. Another little gem is Gavroche. In the end, this was the greatest theatre experience for me in 2012.