Wonderful character development!

I am only giving this movie a 1 for the great cast, though I can't imagine what any of them were thinking. This movie was horrible

It’s fine. It's literally the definition of a fine movie. You’ve seen it before, you know every beat and outcome before the characters even do. Only question is how much escapism you’re looking for.

Blistering performances.

HAVING RECENTLY VIEWED this 1935 version of this epic reminded this graybeard of having seen it on local television, many moons ago. On that occasion, which was circa 1958, this writer was about 10 or 11. But even at that tender age, the power of the story,as well the great magnitude of the production, were clearly evident.OF COURSE TODAY, much more of the story was much more clearly understood; which is, of course, what one would and should be the norm.WITH SUCH AN outstanding and voluminous a cast, we are blessed with an epic that truly matches the visual imagery with the outstandingly brutal and highly depressing storyline. This ensemble is outstandingly handled by the Director and has the advantage of the talents of Mr. Frederic March and Mr. Charles Laughton (in his pre-Captain Bligh and pre-Quasimodo days).THE GREAT MAGNITUDE and stoicism of the film are two ingredients that would seem to qualify it as a true epic film; a singular work of art that is almost as big as it would be in real life. It certainly would not be a more worthy candidate for such celluloid canonization if the great D.W.Griffith had been the Director.THE FILM IS an early production for Daryl F. Zanuck's fledgling 20th CENTURY Pictures; which would soon be merged with FOX Studios as a true giant of the Hollywood scene.Mr. Zanuck did hid releasing through UNITED ARTISTS, then. Later, 20th CENTURY-FOX proudly boasted that they produced and distributed their film output.IN ADDITION TO all of the above mentioned talent that the production boasted, there is one who cannot be overlooked. And that would be Cinematographer, Greg Toland. He is the guy who would go on to do so much innovation while at RKO RADIO Pictures. He would also collaborate with Orson Welles on CITIZEN KANE and with Walt Disney on SONG OF THE SOUTH and others.AN INTERESTING SIDE BAR to the story occurs most naturally in the subsequent years. Inasmuch that this was an early Daryl F. Zanuck production, it follows quite logically that It would be he who would be the one to recreate the Allied Invasion of Nazi occupied Europe in 1944, with THE LONGEST DAY, some 27 years later.GADZOOKS! IT DOTH appear that the Epic had become the Blockbuster!!

"Life is to give and not to take. Promise me you will give also," the priest tells Jean Valjean after he has risked everything by stealing again.Jean goes on to exemplify those words. He becomes an industrialist and politician, but his most meaningful contribution is as surrogate father to orphaned Cossette.Both Jean and Cossette have suffered horribly, and life is finally looking up for them -- if not for Javert, the relentless, by-the-book police chief who has it in for a man who thinks for himself and lives by a superior moral code.Frederic March is a superb Jean who looks the part and delivers his powerful lines with intensity. I savored the scenes with Cedric Hardwicke as the forgiving priest. Charles Laughton was perfect, though wormy, as Javert, and beautiful Rochelle Hudson was a convincing grownup Cossette.This classic film from 1935 conjures the age without seeming dated. The climactic chase scene remains amazingly fresh. And the underlying theme of this film, as voiced by Valjean, is perhaps the most timeless element of all: "God is just, but men sometimes are not just."Some things never change.

Les misérables (1935) **** (out of 4) Exceptional version of Victor Hugo's classic novel about Jean Valjean (Fredric March), a man made a criminal by circumstances but paying for the crime only to then be hounded by an Inspector (Charles Laughton) without any sense of goodness or justice. The mammoth novel doesn't get the page-by-page treatment but the screenplay does both the novel justice as well as the characters. This novel has been filmed countless times over the decades and many of the versions run four and five hours but this one here clocks in at just 108-minutes so many of the subplots and various other items are naturally missing. I never compare the book to the film so there's really nothing to be said between them but this movie certainly deserves its classic label for many reasons including two masterful performances from a couple of legends. The screenplay perfectly captures the heart, mood and soul of the novel but its the actors that really bring it to life as both March and Laughton deliver extremely strong performances, which rank among the best I've seen from the men and that's saying quite a lot considering how many great roles they've had. Laughton really got under my skin in a good way as I can't say how many times I wanted to jump through my screen and do bodily harm to him. The character is certainly one of the most known and hated villains in history and I'm sure most actors would have just let the character do all the work but Laughton takes this rather evil man and makes him a real cold snake without any emotions. The way Laughton constantly hounds March and that evil glance in his eye that just makes you feel the coldness is perfectly done. Laughton would gain sympathy in a few years playing the Hunchback from Hugo's novel so it's rather amazing to see him play and perfectly capture the other side of the human nature. March too is perfect in his role as I'm sure a role like this is pure heaven for an actor considering how many emotions and various ranges they have to go through. Needless to say, March perfectly nails all of them whether it's the man begging for pity at the start of the film or the man finally worn down and ready for his justice. When the two are on screen together they play wonderfully well off of one another and really deliver some great scenes. Cedric Hardwicke, Rochelle Hudson and Florence Eldridge add nice support and look quickly for John Carradine in an early role. Fans of the novel will certainly want to check this film out but even if you're not familiar with the work you'll still find yourself really eating everything up here. The two legends make this a must-see for fans of classic cinema.

Advantages here: Charles Laughton's Javert, Gregg Toland's cinematography, um, um.........This film was made by 20th Century as a remake of the French version of two years earlier. The French version totals five hours in all, which allows a more grownup script, a better sense of pace, a fuller exploration of the characters and a more authentic flavor all around.There is something vaguely infantile about this version and Fredric March has about as much European savor as corn-on-the-cob. Charles Laughton unbalances the film with his famous portrayal of the obsessed cop Javert, and the film becomes about his agony, not Jean Valjean's, which is wrong.The Raymond Bernard film from 1933 is available now in a two-DVD set, and is the closest you can get on film to the experience of actually reading the book, which is long and spacious and worth it. Certain individual scenes are done better in other versions, but the Bernard film is the best overall.