2013 Oscars & Musicals!

THE MUSICAL IS BACK!!!

I LOVED IT ALL. Especially the drum-line.

THE WINNERS:

• Ben Affleck for Best Screenplay/Best Movie [Argo]: I am happy for him [not that I've seen Argo]. He's a good family guy & his first Academy Award acceptance speech for Good Will Hunting was legendary. Plus, I'm partial to Bostonians & it was nice to see the 1st Lady supporting the ARTS. 
• Ang Lee for Best Director [Life of Pi] : Brokeback Mountain made me an eternal Ang Lee fan. His speech was engaging, candid, & I like that he said Namaste.
• Jennifer Lawrence for Best Leading Actress [Silver Linings Playbook]: Granted, she fell on her way up to the stage. But I blame J.Law's stylist for that mishap because that stunning Dior couture creation would have been difficult for anyone to maneuver, even Katniss. Even though I have not seen Silver Linings Playbook YET, I am glad she won. It would have been cool for the 9-year old to win (tomorrow is just a day away for that lil starlet), but I am glad Katniss took the crown. 
• Anne Hathaway for Best Supporting Actress [Les Miserables]: I am in agreement with the majority of Americans who feel that there is something inherently unlikable about Anne Hathaway. Maybe it's her faux humility, maybe it's the fact that she alone sees herself as America's Sweetheart, maybe it's that she's arrogant enough to casually call Judy Garland & Tina Fey Judy & Tina like they are BFF....I really don't know. She just lacks that innate likability quotient that can't be faked or taught; sorry, Anne, I'd like to like you. Having said that, I also have to say that she really was an awesome Fantine & did deserve her award. But, it's also a real shame that she beat Naomi Watts because that woman deserves an Academy Award already. 

FAREWELL, LES MISERABLES.

...can two anxious hearts beat as one..?

It seemed a strange choice to open the Les Mis montage with a tiny song that was created for the movie, but I guess its' purpose was to honor the movie specifically rather than the Les Mis empire as a whole. I do like this little ditty [plus, it did serve to replace a section of the musical, not create an entirely new one]. I also like that Hugh Jackman is the only ValJean to have sung this little melody because he deserves his own little piece of Les Mis. The man is an amazing, exceptional talent & the film would be nothing without him. I wish he had won an Academy Award, but Daniel Day Lewis did deserve this 3rd Leading Actor Oscar [I'm going by public opinion, I didn't see Lincoln either]. Anne Hathaway's part in the montage was fine, but her voice did warble during moments that required strength (maybe she was pretending to be emotionally invested?). Amanda Seyfried looked gorgeous & I was surprised at how great she sounded. She & Eddie Redmayne seemed to have an even stronger chemistry in person than on film & his voice sounded amazing. Samantha Barks is obviously an invincible live performer, so she rocked it & I liked her modest, English evening attire. I had an opinion in the back of my mind that this live performance was partially a backlash at the critics who said the cast was comprised of actors pretending to sing. And they did achieve that until Russell Crowe came out. Besides Mr. Crowe (whose acting was sooo much better than his singing), this montage was a lovely last hoorah to the cinematic adaptation of Les Miserables. I credit this film for the Musicals in Movies theme of the Academy Awards & hope the awesome influence of musicals on movies will continue selling tickets & bringing musicals to the any & every theatre forever & always. AMEN!

The Les Mis Movie Archives:

* Les Mis DreamCast [3.31.11] * The Initial Movie Cast [10.21.11] * Movie Cast Compete [1.11.12] * Taylor Swift is NOT Eponine! [2.21.12] *  THE TRAILER [8.28.12] *THE MOVIE ARRIVES [1.1.13] * The Miserable Golden Globes [1.15.13] *

the miserable golden globes

Congrats to Les Miserables & Our Leading Lovely Lady!

Now, let's dissect Anne's Acceptance Speech:

• I appreciate that they played my favorite line moment of I Dreamed a Dream ["he took my childhood in his stride, but he was gone when autumn came"] as her walk-to-the-stage music. 
• Opening with "Um, blerg...thank you for that word, Tina...oh my gosh, this is happening..." came across as a premeditated, failed attempt at humor & humility. 
• Describing the Golden Globe Award as a "lovely blunt object that [she] will forever use against self-doubt" was awkward & strangely self-glorifying. 
• Her Tom Hooper joke was not funny. 
• The Sally Fields tribute moment was pretty awesome: "And thank you for putting me, my work, in this category great & gutsy actresses...Amy, Nicole, Helen, & Sally. Sally, I have to thank you so much for being a vanguard against type-casting because, as the girl who started out as the Princess of Genovia, I can't tell you how encouraging it was to know that Flying Nun grew up to be Norma Rae. And grew up to be Mama Gump, and grew up to be Mary Todd Lincoln. So thank you so much."                       Well played, Ms. Hathaway. 
• The fact that her mom played Fantine is pretty cool. 
• The phrase "unapologetically sincere" is a fair/lovely way to describe this film. 
• I expected Anne to win her Golden Globe, but was not as confident that Les Miserables would win for Best Musical or Comedy Film. I was relieved at the win, but wish Anne had shown more class & resisted grabbing a microphone that did not belong to her. I get that she needed to thank her long-time agent, but she missed her opportunity & made a massive misstep in my opinion. 
• The shout-out to her husband ["Honey, you make every day better than the last & thank you for the best string of yesterdays I have ever had. I love you."] was pretty cute. I guess.

Les Miserables: The Movie!

IT HAS FINALLY ARRIVED!!! 

AND IT RULED. 

It has been a long road from the initial cast, recasting decisions, 

the final cast announcement, & the trailer release 

to finally have this Christmas present arrive. 

[believe I was there on Christmas Day with Christmas bells on.]

• Hugh Jackman served as the backbone, brain, & beauty of this film in his performance of Jean ValJean. I initially thought he might seem too young, but that was a non-issue. His experience as a stage actor clearly infused his performance; his acting & singing were matched in excellence, awesomeness, & impressiveness.
• As Eponine, Samantha Barks brought a similar sense of theatrical professionalism to her performance; her singing was strong, her physical appearance was traditional & perfect (although her waist was freakishly tiny) & she presented an Eponine that was more pitiable than pathetic. Her role seemed more pivotal to this plotline in the film version & her rendition of “A Little Fall of Rain” was genuinely heart-breaking. 
• The role of Gavroche serves as a tiny bright spot of sorts, Daniel Huttlestone’s performance of Gavroche provided an equally bright spot in the movie. The moment of Javert pinning his pin to Gavroche’s tiny, fallen body & the aligning of Gavroche to baby Javert (“I am from the gutter, too” ~ Javert, "The Confrontation") was my favorite moment of the entire movie. 
• Speaking of Javert (incidentally, my favorite character), Russell Crowe was a great actor & sub-par singer. His singing wasn’t awful but it lacked the authoritative confidence that defines Javert; these short-comings became especially apparent during the confrontations between Javert & Jean ValJean.
• As Cosette, Amanda Seyfried was stunning in her effervescent beauty, created a fuller character than Cosette is often presented, & sang adequately. She had many moments of  a perfect & bird-like twittery sound, but, more often than not, she reached for notes & barely reached them. One thing I loved about Seyfried’s Cosette: she was blond! Cosette is traditionally brunette in the stage version, which never made sense considering she is Fantine’s daughter & Fantine’s flowing blond hair is a defining characteristic. 
• Speaking of Fantine’s flowing blond hair, where was it? I just want to know why they unnecessarily changed this iconic part of her character. Besides, the hair issue, Anne Hathaway was a pretty stellar Fantine. I really didn’t expect to like her in the role. In my nearly-never-wrong opinion, she peaked at The Devil Wears Prada & casting directors have been too generous in the roles in which they cast her (hello, Jane Austen). Apparently, I was wrong because she rocked as Fantine; her acting was thoughtful & she nailed the wide spectrum of emotions that fall upon Fantine. Her rendition of "I Dreamed a Dream" was refreshingly flawless & made me hear a song I’ve heard 10,000+ times in a new light (especially her angry growling delivery of “…he took my childhood in his stride, but he was gone when autumn came…”). Another perfect, gut-kicker moment was her dying eyes lighting up as ValJean carried her away from the whore-docks & promised to deliver Cosette to her. Well done, Anne! I’ll be rooting for you on Oscar night. 
• Eddie Redmayne played Marius & he presented the perfect balance of  man & boy. I didn’t realize he could sing, but was pretty impressed with his voice 90% of the time. I felt more understanding of this Marius: his past, his convictions towards the revolution, the crazy consuming feeling of first love, the need to take care of/provide for Cosette, & his relationship with ValJean…all of these aspects of Marius as an individual were more highly heightened & allowed the audience member a further investment in the future of his character.
• Helena Bonham Carter & Sacha Baren Cohen as The Thenardiers: Obviously, they were both funny, well-cast, & provided the necessary punctuating funny moments. However, they were what I expected them to be since these roles aren’t too removed from their normally-expected roles. Granted, S.B. Cohen doesn’t generally sing, but seeing H.B. Carter stuff meat into a grinder was a bit too much of a Sweeney Todd flashback for me. This is the lesson we learned from Samantha Barks beating out Taylor Swift for Eponine applies to the Thenardiers: even if a known face is a good fit for a role, an unknown actor might allow the audience to disappear into the story more. 
• Lastly, having Colm Wilkinson [the original & impeccable Jean ValJean] play the Bishop who re-routes ValJean's life was the best casting choice of them all. He is an exceptional performer who can conquer any role; but casting him as The Bishop who guides ValJean when he is the actor who guides the actors who play ValJean was so crazy clever, sentimental for the long-time Les Mis lovers, & respectful to the stage-version of the musical that I was crying within the first 10 minutes of the movie. One of many smart moves by our director, Mr. Tom Hooper. 

NOW GO SEE LES MISERABLES!!!

Les Mis: MOVIE TRAILER.

LES MISERABLES: THE OFFICIAL 2012 MOVIE TRAILER

COMING CHRISTMAS 2012

Russell Crowe looks like a great Javert & I can completely envision him as the obsessive, harsh, hounding officer. I'm just curious if Russell Crowe is going to be able to pull of Javert's character equally well through his singing and acting. STARS is one of my favorite songs ever & he better not drop the ball. As Jean ValJean, Hugh Jackman seems like a cop-out casting. He really is the only/obvious Hollywood name who is as synonymous with musicals as with movies. However, for this specific role, he seems too soft around the edges, too young, too pretty, & too familiar. I would have loved to see a seasoned Broadway veteran playing ValJean. Not only is he an iconic literary character (who I always prefer to see performed by an unknown actor rather than a familiar star), but ValJean is pretty much the pinnacle male role in musical theatre. Of the 13 film adaptations of Les Miserables, this is the first  translation the stage musical to the screen. It would have been refreshing & in much better taste to give the honor of the role Jean ValJean to a deserving stage actor over a familiar Hollywood face. 

Where were Sacha Baron Cohen (Thenardier) & Helena Bonham Carter (Mme. Thenardier) in this preview? Talk about a bad marketing move. Not only are they some of the most popular & pseudo-beloved actors in the cast, but the Thenardiers are the only fun part of the musical. I would think an excerpt of Master of the House would draw a more excited potential audience than constant shots of a busted-up Anne Hathaway. 

I admit I am not an Anne Hathaway fan, but I don't think I'm biased when saying she was miscast. Her acting has never impressed me; I've liked her in the contemporary, girl-next-door-with-a-twist roles (Devil Wears Prada, Love and Other Drugs) but have not been impressed with period pieces (Becoming Jane) or oppressively emotional roles (Brokeback Mountain). She's not all bad, but she is not a chameleon & Fantine is not a role that does not rely on her strengths. Anne Hathaway actually can sing [even though her rendition of I Dreamed a Dream in the preview was warbling, weak, & lacked conviction]. I was really surprised at her Oscar performance [specifically spoofy-singing On My Own] because you could actually hear her skill behind the farce. Seeing her in this video makes me wonder, WHY WASN'T SHE CAST AS EPONINE? I'm very glad that Samantha Barks ended up in the part, but I'd rather it had gone to Anne Hathaway, so they could have put someone in the more critcal role of Fantine. [BTW, It's annoying Eponine/Samantha Barks only got one side shot in the preview. Eponine wasn't a huge role in the book or 1998 film adaptation, but she is very pivotal & present in the musical. I'm sure her absence in the preview wouldn't have occurred if the originally-casted Taylor Swift hadn't lost the role.] Even Amanda Seyfried would have been a better choice because she more conveys the hopeful, wide-eyed, desperate vibe that Fantine requires (and was perfected by Ms. Ruth Valentine Henshall). PLUS, SHE IS BLOND.  I'm all about the physical re-interpretation of classic characters, but Fantine's flowing blond hair is one of her defining characteristics that was completely ignored in this film's adaptation. Even though she'd be a better Fantine, I am confident Amanda Seyfried will be a picture-perfect Cosette. I am equally confident that our underdog Eponine Samantha Barks will shine in her role & soon become a household name. 

BEYOND THE TRAILER...

P.S. I still think THIS CAST of Les Miserables would be pretty awesome.

Broadway in Chicago Summer Concert

 

This ruled. Here's why:

• It was FREE. 
• Senate Bill 937 (Live Theatre Production Tax Credit) went into effect in July. This bill allows a tax break to pre-Broadway shows opening in Chicago, which will expand the quality/amount of shows brought in by Broadway in Chicago.
• The concert served as a centennial celebration of the Nederlander Organization, whose work has made this world a much more beautiful place in my book.
• CYNDI LAUPER. She performed a number from her new musical Kinky Boots & made my night. 

THE SHOWS: 

+ Les Miserables: It was nice performance of the most random & downer number: Bring Him Home. I get that they could only produce one song & it’s best for it to be one of ValJean’s. What about WHO AM I??? It’s his defining moment, it’s uplifting, it’s more approachable, applicable, & enjoyable for audiences who don’t know Les Mis already. Nice performance quality, poor song choice.
+ I liked Catch Me If You Can more than I expected. The music was catchy & the lyrics seemed to have quality & content. It is a cool story with awesome artistic potential, so this one might actually end up being pretty good.
+ Million Dollar Quartet: It was fine, but less striking/impressive than I expected.
+ Cinderella: WHY IS THIS MUSICAL STILL BEING PERFORMED?
+ Peter Pan: I know Cathy Rigby was an Olympian, but it's just weird for a 50-something woman to be playing a little boy.

+ War Horse was awesome. I love anything that comes from the National Theatre & this performance provided heightened degree of artistry compared to the other performances. This is one I definitely want to see.
+ Sister Act was fun & had strong vocals. The ensemble was a little muddled, but it'll probably be a fun, entertaining show.
+ Potted Potter: I didn’t like it. I don’t know the Harry Potter series that well, but I’d be 100% more interested in an authentic Harry Potter musical rather than a spoofy one.
+ Besides War Horse, I Love Lucy was my favorite performance. It is such a great idea for a musical & seemed to true to the original show (which I'm predicting means there is going to be a huge, built-in audience-base & probably make great ticket sales)

NEWS: Taylor Swift is NOT Eponine!

Taylor Swift Is Out Of The Picture! (pun intended) This is a pleasing development.

I haven’t been all that impressed with the casting choices for this important movie; they seemed random, big-name-oriented, and, above all, disjointed. This casting (re-casting?) is a direct shift in that wind. SAMANTHA BARKS is making her film debut as Eponine, a role that marked her West End debut last year & that she revived in the Les Miserables 25th Anniversary Concert at The O2. Before playing Eponine, she finished in the Top Three in “I’d Do Anything” (the BBC search for the new ‘Nancy’ in Cameron Mackintosh’s Oliver!), workshopped Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Love Never Dies, played Sally Bowles in the national tour of Cabaret, and played the title role in Aladdin at the Theatre Royal Windsor. I’m so glad they decided to go with a true-blue musical theatre girl, especially considering the stiff competition of runners-up like Lea Michele, Scarlett Johansson & Evan Rachel Wood.

I love that Samantha Barks has a fresh face. She’s an underdog of sorts, being relatively unknown except to the musical theatre community. For the iPhone generation that will be experiencing The Great Les Miserables for the first time, it would be difficult to dissociate the familiar face of TAYLOR SWIFT with the independent & isolated character that is Eponine. Had Swift actually been cast in this role, I am completely confident that ‘On My Own’ would have ended up as a strange, re-mixed, country/radio version of a most beloved classic musical theatre ballad. Thankfully/hopefully, it will be more along the lines of this:

My favorite element of this casting development was

the musical-theatre fairy-tale manner in which it was delivered. 

Barks is currently playing Nancy in the West End’s Oliver! (after coming in 3rd place 4 years ago in “I’d Do Anything”).

 During curtain calls on January 31, Cameron Mackintosh announced that Barks had won the race for the role.

“I can’t believe I’m going to play Eponine, a role so close to my heart, a role I played in the West End. It’s the happiest moment of my life. The moment I found out I started to shake and then I started crying. I’m still shaking now."

~Samantha Barks

NEWS: Les Mis Movie Cast COMPLETE

LATEST & LAST ADDITIONS:

Amanda Seyfried as Cosette

This is my favorite casting choice.
She has a perfect period-beauty & a quality voice (though I’ve never known her as a soprano, so we’ll se how that goes).
She showed immediate star-potential in Mean Girls, dimension in Big Love, & the voice of a bell in Mamma Mia!. 
[Also, she has replaced Lindsay Lohan in the title role Linda Lace movie, so she can pull off Cosette's straight-up bombshell quality.]   
Plus, I love a blonde Cosette.

Eddie Redmayne as Marius

He was probably cast because of the recent press from My Day With Marilyn.
He is not a familiar face (which speaks in his favor, IMO),
but I like his freckled, innocent look.

Taylor Swift as Eponine

It is a dangerous choice to cast someone whose natural tendency is the biggest downfall
by most actresses trying to conquer this role: playing the over-simplified girl who is blinded by her first love.
Here is the problem with that easy adolescent portrayal: Eponine found an anchor in her infatuation 
because her life was so pathetic, dire, & empty.
This role requires an actress who can add color to a potentially one-noted role, not a pop-country star who has 
no authentic acting experience. I am not alone in this opinion.

Aaron Tveit as Enjolras

He is an accomplished stage actor who is best known for originating these roles on Broadway:
Gabe in Next to Normal & Frank Abagnale Jr. in Catch Me If You Can
[which is a musical I would have LOVED to have seen, despite the terrible reviews].
I’m very glad they cast a quality singer in the role that sings Do You Hear the People Sing.

See my earlier post for my opinions on earlier casting choices.

ARTonNews: Les Mis Movie Initial Cast

Papers have been signed & the plans are in the works for Les Miserables: The Movie Musical. Original producer Cameron Mackintosh will oversee the film, which will be directed by Tom Hooper (The King’s Speech). Filming is set to start in London in February with a projected release date of December 7, 2012. Partial initial casting as been confirmed with Hugh Jackman as Jean ValJean, Russell Crowe as Javert, and Anne Hathaway as Fantine. Rumors are indicate that Geoffrey Rush & Helena Bonham Carter will be playing The Thenardiers.

"Even though I have dreamt about making the film of Les Miserables for over 25 years, I could never have imagined that we would end up with the dream director Tom Hooper, and the dream cast of Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe as the two great protagonists Jean Valjean and Javert…Not only were they born to play these roles vocally, but they thrillingly inhabit this great score. I can’t wait to hear the people sing at my local cineplex."

-Cameron Mackintosh

Hugh Jackman as Jean ValJean

I dislike this casting. He lacks the seasoned, gruff & base street-smart quality of a criminal who has seen Hell but chooses Heaven. I get it. He’s an accomplished Hollywood actor who has proven versatility in roles, the ability to act and sing at the same time, & a face that will sell tickets. But he is just too young & green to play ValJean. I would have loved to see him cast as Marius, a much more appropriate casting for his specific skill-set. This is the ValJean that Victor Hugo envisioned and I am curious & doubtful as to whether Captain Jackman will suffice compared to his predecessors.

Anne Hathaway as Fantine

A very confusing casting choice, to say the least. Just as Hugh Jackman would have been a better fit for Marius, Hathaway could have been a great Eponine. They could have still had their faces on the posters without them playing the headlining characters. She & Jackman have the same problem: lack of authentic weathering as an actor. I don’t want to see a bright-eyed, simple belter as Fantine. I want to see an actress of epic proportions who happens to also have an amazing voice. I want to see an actress I associate with no other major movie roles so that I can accept her as a new Fantine.

Russell Crowe as Javert

If this casting was in reference to purely cinematic interpration of the character in the novel, I would be 100% supportive. But can Russell Crowe seriously sing?? I think he communicates Javert's history more than his present. Textually, Javert grew from a guttered childhood to become the pristine, respected police inspector. Crowe has the brooding history, the intimidating mannerisms, but lacks the clean intimidation Javert consistently displays in this adaptation.

DreamCast: Les Mis

Cameron Mackintosh has confirmed a Les Mis movie to come out in 2012. This could be great. And it got me to thinking about translating these iconic parts to Hollywood. Here is who I would cast for a movie (assuming/pretending they would all sing the parts perfectly).


I LOVED the 25th Anniversary Tour's choice to cast an African-American as Valjean. I ended up seeing his understudy, but I still thought it was a modern & awesome casting choice. Denzel Washington can play the criminal, the man on a holy journey, the protective father, the fighter on the streets, and he can age very well on film.


I only know Jessica Capshaw from Grey's Anatomy, but that is enough for me to see her as a great Fantine. Any actor on that show has to tackle a wide & crazy range of emotion in each 40-some minute episode. Considering that Fantine's entire whirlwind occurs within the first 35 minutes of Les Mis, I feel that JC would be used to having to climb emotional mountains at warped speed. She is also a steel magnolia, conveys some sense of an innate goodness, and is so pretty.

Clive Owen is the perfect picture of Javert in my mind's eye. He is brilliant, intense, well-rounded, and captivating. And I would be totally fine with him using his British accent.

Jonathan Pryce as Thenardier is a musical theatre lover's dream articulated. I feel like he must have played the part before and I missed the boat. It would be so exciting to hear his interpretation of Thenardier's great, offensive, loaded lines. He is timeless, ageless, and a comedic genius who is one of very few that could reimagine the more imagined character in the show. Speaking of comedic genius, let's talk about Amy Poehler. I don't know if she sings, but I feel like I can already hear her voice bringing a whole new humor to Mme. Thenardier's situation. She would bring a fresh, contemporary take on a role that has become somewhat routine due to the successful re-interpretations of previous actresses.

Kristen Stewart has become an icon of the awkward female wallflower, and Eponine is nothing if not that. Plus, that girl rakes it in at the box office & that can't hurt anything.

In The Social Network, Jesse Eisenberg played a character who gladly & knowingly allowed an unrelenting focus on the pursuit of his goals to cost him everything. People were pawns & nothing stood in the way of his common goal, which become the common ground of everyone around him. This is why I can see JE as Enjolras. He can convey an idealism clouded with human faults, lofty goals, and immature execution of those goals.

James Franco seems to be cast as every type of guy, and part of Marius' role is to provide a face & beloved character to all those bodies littering the barricades. He plays a perfect lover & has a youthful energy that could create an especially endearing edge to a potentially bland role.

Carey Mulligan is the perfect Cosette because her acting method is so delicate & deliberate. She breathes life & volume into quiet, pretty roles. She also looks like she could be Jessica Capshaw's daughter, which should always be considered in the casting of the role. I loved the 25th Anniversary Tour's choice to make Cosette blonde. It made me think, why didn't they think of this (and this) a long time ago...