The bbc adaptation is based on victor hugos original novel, so there are quite a few. Really i could have just saved a lot of time and had one sentence in this post to sum up the entire thing, when it comes down to book vs. Hugo opens book three of les miserables by discussing the street children of paris and going through all of the different types of urchins as though they were subspecies of humanity. With javert on the pairs tail, their actions are drastic though unlike the book, the bbc version of the story eliminates the role of fauchelevent, the man valjean saved from being crushed. The musical captures the scope and scale of the book better, but the nonmusical focuses in more on valjean and javert and is all the better for it. As written by victor hugo, the 19th century classic novel les miserables is a long, sprawling epic that encompasses everything from the political upheaval of postrevolutionary france to the intimate orchestrations of the heart.
The 2012musical version is clocking in at just under three hours and tries to. Ive just plowed my way through les miserables, one of the longest novels there is. Kudos to all involved for a finelycrafted period drama that delivers over two hours of solid, literate entertainment. Les miserables bbc drama how is it different to the. Over the years, millions of fans have come to admire jean valjean, the books protagonist, who proves that a man can change, and to adore cosette, the one girl who. Les miserables 2012 rotten tomatoes movie trailers. Adapted by andrew davies and directed by tom shankland, it stars dominic west, david oyelowo, and lily collins bbc studios handles the distribution for the series. Let me just say, its 24 hours later and i still cant get it out of my head. Jan 09, 20 in this post, ill compare book with the recent hugh jackman movie, because it is the only version of les mis that i have seen. Marius character he is a far better character in the movie and musical than he is in the book. After the movie is over, i take a long walk to my car. Victor hugo author, norman denny translator, introduction. I saw the musical for the first time on new years day 20, by way of its film adaptation. Les miserables bbc drama how is it different to the musical.
There have been countless adaptations, even to the screen. How does les miserables the musical differ from the book. Les miserables 1998 rotten tomatoes movie trailers. Gavroche is the thenardiers son in the novel they have five children. Differences between les miserables book vs movie page 1what apos. Earlier in this blog i said that i thought the musical version of les miserables was a bad adaptation of the book, and i still think thats true, so i wanted to do a post comparing both of them. Les miserables by victor hugo goodreads share book.
A summary of themes in victor hugos les miserables. Les miserables was inspired in part by the true story of. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. It was broadcast in the uk between 30 december 2018 and 3 february 2019. Musical god im so sick of seeing cosettes face in everything to do with les mis, why dont they ever use any other character. Books similar to les miserables goodreads share book. A lot of the introduced characters encounter other characters, so we get an increasingly complex net of relationships. Jul 10, 2012 in my opinion i know which is the better one, its the book. The 2012 movie rekindled my interest, and i reread it the norman denny translation with an entirely new perspective, writing commentary as i went. The books opens by describing the life of a really upstanding dude named bishop myriel. Les miserables penguin classics paperback april 29, 1982. With hugh jackman, russell crowe, anne hathaway, amanda seyfried.
It is a book that enriches your life and your view of humanity. Les miserables study guide contains a biography of victor hugo, literature essays, a complete etext, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis. I first read les miserables in high school, back in 1992 or 1993, after discovering the musical. However, several alternatives have been used, including the miserables. Overall the movie was good, there were a few places where the accents were off, sounded more like oliver or. Movie vs book posted by newzeal i just thought i would point out some of the differences between the movie and the book, not to criticize the movie, but to give a clearer picture of the story to those who havent read the book. Director tom hoopers film adaptation of les miserables is remarkably faithful to the stage production. Whats the difference between the movie and the book version. Jean valjean, after spending nineteen years in jail and in the galleys for stealing a loaf of bread and for several attempts to escape, is finally released, but his past keeps haunting him. Find books like les miserables from the worlds largest community of readers.
He is seventyfive years old and lives only with a sister baptistine, ten years younger than he, and an old servant, madame magloire, the same age as his sister. As a result, the films valjean is not as great a man. Les miserables tells the fictional story of jean valjean, a man who has unjustly been condemned to nearly two decades of prison for stealing a. This intelligent, handsomely crafted adaptation of victor hugos classic novel condenses the storys developments without blunting its emotional impact. I just thought i would point out some of the differences between the movie and the book, not to criticize the movie, but to give a clearer picture of the story to those. One of my favourite musical films is the 1956 the king and i, with the late yul brynner and late deborah kerr in the lead roles. Les miserables is a bbc television six episodes series based on the 1862 french historical novel of the same name by victor hugo. I am, of course, speaking of les miserables, victor hugos masterwork. I first saw his portrayal as valjean in the 1998 version of les miserables, i personally felt he should have. I just thought i would point out some of the differences between the movie and the book, not to criticize the movie, but to give a clearer picture of the story to those who havent read the book. Dec 05, 2012 les miserables was written in the mid1800s and the original unabridged text ran 1900 pages. Les miserables is the latest musical adaptation to hit the theaters, but it is hardly the first. The nostalgia chick referred to les miserables as les coincidences, because of the way the characters lives all intertwine, and this is all the more true in the book. Adapted by andrew davies and directed by tom shankland, it stars dominic west, david oyelowo, and lily collins.
Whats the difference between the movie and the book. Only the saintly bishop, monseigneur myriel, welcomes him. Movie i am proud of my naming abilities, and ill be examining books and. In a movie already determined to cover all its characters in filth, vomit and human. Click the link for more information on the show, to buy tickets and much much more. Jun 01, 2012 the official 2012 movie trailer for les miserables the movie starring hugh jackman, russell crowe, anne hathaway, amanda seyfried, eddie redmayne, aaron tveit, samantha barks, with helena bonham. When valjean arrives at the town of digne, no one is willing to give him shelter because he is an exconvict. My friend says the acting was amazing but the musical performance was lacking and averagemediocre. The musical captures the scope and scale of the book better, but the nonmusical focuses in more on valjean and. Now that the les mis film has finally been released.
I liked the film of les miserables better on second viewing, and also was able to. The book totally wins over the musical in terms of story, character development and style. Nov 05, 2018 there are quite a few differences, ill name a few. Les miserables, one of the most popular musicals of all time, is based on a novel of the same name by french author victor hugo. Wow, i have seen the movie, i have seen several productions of the musical and i have come away with feelings not. Revisiting the movie after rereading les miserables hyperborea. Bbcs les miserables has just come to an end, adding to a long line of adaptations of victor hugos book, from musicals to an oscarwinning movie. The 2012musical version is clocking in at just under three hours and tries to cram in every bit of the. This famous musical has been produced in 40 countries and been interpreted into 21 different languages. Damien bonnard plays a sympathetic police officer, assigned to a new team, policing an intercity town in france. Les miserables, victor hugo les miserables is a french historical novel by victor hugo, first published in 1862, that is considered one of the greatest novels of the 19th century. You may be interested to know that before les miserables was a movie based on an international smash pop opera it was a novel by victor hugo.
Goodreads members who liked les miserables also liked. All i would like to do is to encourage those of you who know the stage musical or movie to read this book and not to be daunted by its size. Set against the backdrop of 19thcentury france, les miserables tells an enthralling story of broken dreams and unrequited love, passion, sacrifice and redemptiona timeless testament to the. At digne, he is repeatedly refused shelter for the night. Roberts patheos explore the worlds faith through different perspectives on. Les miserables was written in the mid1800s and the original unabridged text ran 1900 pages. The stage version of les mis is usually performed on an abstract unit set and the libretto is full of what i like to call theatrical suspension of disbelief, or tsod. After its great success, hollywood has now decided to take on the difficult task to bring this beloved play to the big screen. For more than 25 years, les miserables has swept the world with its tear jerking songs and heartbreaking story. What did javert see in valjean to get him obsessed.
When hes done with that, he gives a long discussion of paris as though the city were a sort of person with a specific personality. The convict jean valjean is released from a french prison after serving nineteen years for stealing a loaf of bread and for subsequent attempts to escape from prison. Sep 26, 2012 as for the story itself, les miserables is simply one of the greatest stories ever told. After the move to paris, everything happens at once. In 19thcentury france, jean valjean, who for decades has been hunted by the ruthless policeman javert after breaking parole, agrees to care for a factory workers daughter. Most importantly of all, to quote the west side story essay, a movie screen is filled out differently than a live stage is. Perfect for acing essays, tests, and quizzes, as well as for writing lesson plans. Dec 28, 2012 les miserables is an even better novel. He is met with difficulties from the people, as well as from his fellow officers, however he is able to hold it together. My reaction was overwhelmingly positive, and i felt i had to read the book. In the englishspeaking world, the novel is usually referred to by its original french title. Jan 25, 20 for more than 25 years, les miserables has swept the world with its tear jerking songs and heartbreaking story. In 2018, i came back to it again, reading the christine donougher translation. Script changes reflect the book, guide the viewer spoiler alert december 28, 2012 mark d.
The bbcs new adaptation of les miserables has finally come to tv but. Charles francoisbienvenu myriel has been bishop of digne for nine years. Published in 1862, the book referenced what were already historic events. To be fair, i did skip over all the parts that didnt pertain to the story ie, about half of it.
In particular i love the movies addition of javert in the office looking down. Dec 12, 2012 i had the absolute pleasure this week of seeing tom hoopers new musical film adaptation of les miserables which boasts an allstar cast that includes hugh jackman, anne hathaway, eddie redmayne, amanda seyfried. Specifically, lets turn right to the last page to discover how the les mis book ends. Les miserables official movie trailer 2012 hd youtube. Well, i reached my goal and finished reading les miserables so i could see the new musical movie which i. Les miserables is a perfectly fine, if not good, cop thriller with a social urgency bubbling under the surface to provide added depth, but its no portrait of a lady on fire, which was sumptuous. Revisiting the movie musical after rereading the novel. Marius in the musical is gentle, kind and friendly. Les miserables 2019 is a well acted, loose, updated version of victor hugos classic novel. And, while this version of les miserables lacks the cleverness and contemporary spin evident in claude lelouchs brilliant 1995 reinterpretation, it is moving and effective in its own right, as a more straightforward adaptation. In the book marius finds out about valjeans past and ostracizes him from cosette. In this video essay, i compare some of the major english and french film adaptations of victor hugos novel les miserables 1862. Overall the movie was good, there were a few places where the accents were off, sounded more like oliver or nicholas nickleby, an english accent more than french.
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