Les Miserables movie review

My husband and I went to see a preview showing of Les Miserables at the Showcase last night and it was amazing.  There was literally not a seat left in the house and as such, my husband and I were sat right on the front row to the left and had to spend the movie (150 minutes) staring up at the screen (cricked neck alert) but this could not detract from the power of the movie. 

We have been to see the stage show more than once, both professional and amateur, and love it, so we were expecting great things.  Hugh Jackman (X-Men, Van Helsing) as Jean Valjean was superb.  He was almost unrecognisable at first when he is prisoner 24601 but he gives a gritty and moving performance throughout.  Samantha Barks as Eponine was outstanding (though this should not be surprising given her turn in the 25th anniversary Les Miserables), but I was a little disappointed with Amanda Seyfried (Mamma Mia, In Time) as her Cosette was played far too dippy to be taken seriously and her voice got so high that at times I expected a bird to explode nearby a la Shrek's Fiona.  Newcomers Daniel Huttlestone as Gavroche and Isabelle Allen as young Cosette were spot on, which is remarkable considering Isabelle was acting the part of a boy in her school play only a year ago.  I expect to hear more from these too.  Eddie Redmayne (My week with Marilyn, The Other Boleyn Girl) as Marius and Aaron Tveit (Premium Rush, Ghost Town) as Enjolras were also perfectly cast, as was Russell Crow (A Beautiful Mind, Gladiator) as Javert, even if his vocals did sometimes grate into cigarette rocker.  Sacha Baron Cohen (The Dictator, Borat, Bruno) and Helena Bonham Carter (Harry Potter, The King's Speech) also treat us to a fine comedic performance as Thenardier and Madame Thenardier.

The real star of the movie however, is Anne Hathaway (The Dark Knight Rises, The Devil Wears Prada) as Fantine and although she is in the film for very little time, she steals the show.  Her performance is both angry and heartbreaking to a powerful degree and I would think it a travesty if an Oscar does not wing its way to her on the strength of this role.

The genius of the Tom Hooper (The King's Speech, The Damned United) direction, gives close ups of the characters whilst they sing, so that most of the shot is taken up with the raw emotion in their faces and this drags you into the movie in a way the show cannot.  Amazing when you consider that each song was done live and in one take (it must have been very hard to choose which one to go with) but it benefits from the spontaniety.

I thought the fight scenes could have been less 'stagey' as could the barricade, but these are minor points in a film that arguably revolutionises the movie musical.  You will not be surprised therefore, when I tell you that the audience broke out into loud applause at the end of the movie, which is a very rare thing indeed for a film, let alone a musical.

A tour de force               10/10

Writing Events - Hebden Bridge

Magic and Faraway Places – Sunday 27 January, Hebden Bridge Library

 

11.30am -m 1.30pm Writing the Journey a Poetry Workshop with Christy Ducker £6/4

 

2.30pm - 4.30pm Short Story Workshop with Cassandra Parkin Literary Thievery £6/4

 

2.30pm - 4.30pm The Long Poem: A Poetry Workshop with Pauline Plummer £6/4

 

5.00pm - 6.00pm Tales of Magic and Faraway Places free event featuring the above writers and chaired by James Nash

 

For full details and how to book:

 

Anna Turner

Reader Development Librarian

01422 392606

Central Library

Northgate

Halifax

HX1 1UN

 

annaturner@calderdale.gov.uk

 

 

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey

Took the family to see this yesterday as my husband and son have been itching to see it since it came out (me too if I'm honest). 

Although this film was very slow to start, it soon got into its own with stunning visuals and fine acting.  Martin Freeman (TVs The Office, films Love Actually, Nativity) was excellent as a bumbling, complaining and homely Bilbo Baggins and played the part with empathy.  Ian McKellan (X-Men, Lord of the Rings) starred once more as Gandalf and it was lovely to see him using his magic more.  Talking of magic, Sylvester McCoy (the seventh Dr Who) played Radagast the Brown and I really liked him in this, which is more than I can say about his performance as the Dr. 

Richard Armitage plays Thorin who was spot-on as the troubled would-be King, though he sounded a lot like Sean Bean and so reminded me of Boromir from the previous film. The other dwarves were Balin (Ken Stott of TVs Rebus), Dwalin (Graham McTavish of Rambo and The Wicker Tree), Bifur (William Kircher from Out of The Blue, The Last Tattoo), Bofur (James Nesbitt, a fine actor known for TVs Monroe and Murphy's Law), Bombur (Stephen Hunter, Love My Way), Ori (Adam Brown), Dori (Mark Hadlow, King Kong), Nori (Jed Brophy of the fantastic film District 9), Goin (Peter Hambleton, The Last Tattoo), Oin (John Callen, The Rainbow Warrior), Fili (Dean O'Gorman of Young Hercules, Toy Love) and Kili, my personal favourite, played by the brillian Aiden Turner (Mitchell in the superb BBC3 TV series Being Human).  I absolutely loved his one-liners and his prowess with a bow (rather like Legolas Greenleaf, my favourite from the previous films). 

Most of the aforementioned are all excellent British actors and it was fantastic to see them in such big film roles.  Don't worry that all your favourites from Lord of the Rings aren't there though, as there are appearances from Ian Holm (as old Bilbo), Elijah Wood (Frodo), Cate Blanchett (Galadriel), Hugo Weaving (Lord Elrond), Christopher Lee (Saruman) and of course, the scary and convincing Andy Serkis (Gollum/Smeagol).

I had seen reviews in Empire and on TV for the film review that were not as I had hoped, but I have to say, I really enjoyed this movie as it transported me to another world.  Yes, it was aimed more for the children, but then so was Tolkien's excellent book.                                            8/10

New Years Resolutions

Like everyone seems to do at this time of year and I know most writers do, I am going to list my resolutions here in an attempt to force myself into keeping them :)

1)  Get my final edit for Thorde: The Keeper of the Trysk done for 1 February 2013
2)  Get Quantum Worlds to first draft by April 2013
3)  Enter more writing competitions and try to get an agent (involves getting more brave)
4)  Write more (sound familiar anyone?)
5)  Lose weight (involves joining my friend on a diet, exercising more and cutting down on drink)
6)  Do more walking (I love it when I do it, the weather conspires against me)
7)  Go to the theatre, movies and read more
8)  Organise more family treats (like camping, trips to London etc.)

Here's to keeping our resolutions.

Spoken Word Flood Fundraiser at Hebden Bridge

My writer friend Ian has let me know about the following event that he is co-organising:

Calder Valley writers come together in aid of flood fund

 

 

A spoken word event featuring local writers aims to raise money for the Upper Valley Flood Fund. The fundraiser, Speech Bubble, is to be held at the Hole In The Wall in Hebden Bridge on January 24 at 7:30pm. It will feature some work specially written in response to the floods, which hit the region in the summer of 2012.

 

“We want to do our bit to help people affected by the floods and show they’re still in our thoughts,” said Oxana Poberejnaia, organiser of the event. “At the same time, we’re aiming to celebrate the valley’s unique spirit of resilience through an evening of stimulating entertainment.”

 

Acclaimed poet Carola Luther will read a selection of poems exploring themes of water, climate change or drought.  Award-winning poet Char March will read her prose piece entitled “Flood the First” inspired by the June and July floods. Winston Plowes will present his verbal and visual poetry created as a reaction to the floods in Hebden Bridge.

 

Ian Humphreys will read his wry short story “Labels”, Graham Alexander will read a selection of insightful verse and flash fiction, and Jim Donaghy will entertain with his lively rhymed poems.

 

Oxana will introduce her collection of poems “Sherlock Suite” inspired by the BBC's "Sherlock" drama series. An original musical score composed by her brother, Alexander Poberezhny, will accompany the work.

 

 

Event details:

 

 

Date: Thursday, January 24th at 7:30pm.

 

Entry: £4 on the night. All entrance fees will be donated to the Upper Valley Flood Fund.

 

More information: http://www.facebook.com/events/496205057098380/

 

 

Media contact:

 

Oxana Poberejnaia                tel:       01706839405

                                                email: poeticoxana@gmail.com

London break

We just got back from a fantastic break in London.  We had a lovely time seeing our friends S and B and visiting the sights.  My husband and son went to the Science Museum whilst my daughter and I visited the Victoria and Albert Museum and we had a wonderful day.  The next day we went to the Natural History Museum and my son and I saw lots of fascinating exhibits whilst my husband and daughter went ice skating.  We also visited the sales and had some delicious food in a variety of restaurants.  Our friends have just set off for a lovely break in Japan and we have returned home to celebrate the New Year.  I thought I would share some of the photos from our trip.

I would like to wish all my followers a Happy New Year and send my best wishes for an amazing 2013.

Merry Christmas

I would like to share the picture of our Christmas Cupcake with all my followers and wish them a very Merry Christmas