A Few More Thoughts On "Brave "

I kept thinking about the film all throughout work last night. What a artfully crafted film. I'm so happy that Pixar went outside their usual zone and went into fairy tale land. A lot of thoughts online focus around this modern version of a princess, and a focus on a mother and daughter tale, both of which are not only new to Pixar, but largely unseen in theaters today. The fact that Pixar went there, and did it so beautifully, deserves credit.

When walking to work, I saw some fireflies, and couldn't help think of the wil o wisps. I looked up and saw the moon, and couldn't help thinking of la luna, which I just realized means the moon, especially since it was a crescent.

Lastly, some reviews online said the film was so lush and gorgeous, but I liked the visual but thought them a bit dulled. Turns out the 3D in the film may have dulled the visuals more than in most other films, which explains it. I saw some shorts on apple's site, and the visuals are jaw dropping. I can't wait to see this in blu ray. And her hair is so fantastic! So textured and red and all over the place. I love red hair and I love curly hair, and this combination in such exquisitely animated detail is a bit of sensory overload for me.

Those shorts are hilarious, by the way. I wish they used those as advertisements instead of the trailers, one focused on a kilt ad. Another on the summer games, perhaps to keep with the Olympic spirit. The witches brew one was especially hilarious, and cut well to scenes from the film. And the one with Scottish songs as alright. I wish these received more publicity!

I love the feeling after seeing a Pixar film, where you yearn to see it again, to delve into that world again.

Pixar Review: "Brave"

Brave
Starring: Kelly Macdonald, Julie Walters, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson
Directed by Mark Andrews and Brenda Chapman

Pixar has arguably set the bar for animation films to date. They are also one of the world's top animation studios, alongside Studio Ghibli; the superiority of one over the other is a matter of debate. As a result, each new entry to pixar's library is especially seen with a more critical eye. I'd love to work at pixar, but I definitely don't envy the pressure I assume they feel with each new release. After their slew of early hits, including Toy Story, A Bug's Life, and Monsters Inc., critics and audiences alike have fell in love with their characters, stories, and journeys.

Each Pixar film, aside from sequels, has shifted focus on different things. Ratatouille focused on cuisine, rats, and friendship; Up delved into the emotional journey of losing a spouse; WALL-E showcased the beauty of silent animation and the excesses of human wastefulness. Last year's Cars 2 was seen as a drop in Pixar's standard. I considered it to be a very enjoyable film, despite being lower on Pixar's ranking; I feel the mixing of the Cars universe with a solid spy story was very nice, but I'm also partial and more forgiving to spy stories.

Brave seemed a bit weird from the previews. Most of Pixar's previews don't make the films look appealing, aside from the excellent teaser for Toy Story 3, and the hilarious teaser for next year's Monster University, which I'll get into in a bit. The teasers for Brave made the film look a little silly, with childish humor. The animation looked nice, but the story wasn't given away too much, aside from a hint at the involvement of magic. Needless to say, I expected something good from Pixar despite this, and even though I was dubious as to whether the film would truly meet expectations, it did, and surpassed them in some ways.

Brave is a fairy tale, straight and simple. Apparently they wanted to create a story in the vein of Hans Christen Andersen and the Grimm Brothers, and I'd say they succeeded. Merida, a princess of one of the four ruling clans in Scotland, is a headstrong redhead who yearns to ride horses and shoot arrows, but is bound by the expectations of her mother, who is training her to be a princess. She's taken aback when marriage proposals from the other three clans' leaders come her way. She rebels, and finds a witch to change her mom's mind. Unfortunately, the witch turned her mom into a bear, and the rest of the story follows her attempts and correcting her mistake, and rebuilding the ties between her, her family, and her society.

The story was very good. I have yet to read reviews in detail, but the snippets I've seen so far point out the change in tone. And it's true; we go from a typical ruling clan society, to suddenly dealing with magic and transfiguration (thanks for the term, Minerva). I personally liked the shift to something a big more fantastical, as it made the film more unique. The film felt like a fairy tale, something old and classic suddenly discovered and made into a film. Despite kids turning into bears and magical brooms, the main goal of the story, I feel, was to discuss growing up, living your own life vs fulfilling the expectations of others, and facing your fate.

The supporting characters were pretty good overall. They're not at the level of Toy Story's supporting cast, but they're enjoyable, especially the triplets. They looked rather silly in the previews, but they were mischievious in just the right doses to bring solid humor to the film. Some of the clan leaders had a bit of sillier humor, almost aiming more towards kids, but it didn't detract too much from the film.

The music also felt very apt for the tone of the film. Composed by one of my new favorite film composers, Patrick Doyle (Rise of the Planet of the Apes), it fits the Scottish theme well, and as is seemingly his style, it's a more subtle score that brings out the beauty of the film without overshadowing it.

The animation was beautiful, especially the landscape scenes. My favorite is probably near the beginning, when Merida is seen near that fire waterfall. You can really see how far animation has progressed through Pixar's history. I have to go back and see The Incredibles, but I expect the facial features, hair, and other aspects of human animation are much more improved compared to that film, which looked pretty darn good itself. I loved Merida's wild, red hair.

Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed this film. I didn't like some aspects of the humor, and I was taken aback at first with the transfiguration, but in the end, the story shone through and it stuck out as an original film amidst a lot of the other animated offerings this summer (including an Ice Age sequel and a Madagascar sequel). And, as with most Pixar films, there were a few unexplainable emotional moments, especially at the end of the film. Ah, I so enjoy watching Pixar films.

And for a Pixar first (I think), there was an end credits scene, short and simple, but tying into an earlier part of the plot. I'm glad I waited until the end! It's also nice seeing the movie with kids in the audiences. Their comments are so funny and innocent, it really adds a nice atmosphere to the film.

This film also showcases one of Pixar's strengths. Up to now, they have been very original. Disney is close behind, as their two recent films (Bolt and Tangled) were very good, and Wreck-It Ralph looks creative and interesting. Dreamworks, however, is very hit-or-miss, and even when they hit it, they're usually based on prior works. Shrek incorporates many elements of existing fairy tale characters, and How To Train Your Dragon, a fantastic film, was based on a book. Pixar, instead of just updating an existing fairy tale (like The Little Mermaid, Beauty and the Beast, and Aladdin) crafted an original story, set in an older location. That was a risky move, but I think it really paid off, and will help this film stand the test of time. A wholly worthy addition to Pixar's growing library of classics, in my opinion.

The short prior to the film, La Luna, was creative and pleasant to watch. It told the story of a boy and his two caretakers, who's job is to clean up the moon. We see how each man is trying to shape the boy after themselves, but in the end, he chooses his own style. It was creative, nicely animated, and showcases the beauty of wordless animation. It doesn't have the emotional impact of Partly Cloudy, though. I'm glad we got an original short this time, and not a third Toy Story short, even though it's fun to revisit that world.

The worst part about seeing a new Pixar film is having to wait another year for the next one. But next year looks to be fun! We got a preview of Monsters University, the prequel to Monsters Inc. It was a short preview, showing Sully playing a funny trick on Mike. It's akin to the short but hilarious Toy Story 3 teaser with the film title creation. And it's maddeningly annoying, because I want to see it sooner than a year from now! Cars 2 is debatable, but Toy Story 2 and Toy Story 3 showed that when Pixar makes a sequel, they do it when they have a good story in mind, and they've said as much, from what I recall reading. I'm hoping Monster University will explore the universe of Monsters Inc. much more than we saw the first time around, with some solid humor as well. School is in session next summer!

Animated Film Review: "Superman vs. The Elite"

Based on a comic from 2001, this newest DC animation film pits Superman against a very formidable group of foes. During a political conflict in Europe, a new team called the Elites saves the day with Superman, led by their telekinetic and telepathic leader, Manchester Black. Superman cautiously befriends them, but when they kill one of the escaped villains Superman recently put in prison, they receive worldwide adoration. Whether world sees what these new heroes are willing to do. Unlike Superman, who serves the law and doesn't play judge, jury, and executioner, these new heroes are willing to take the steps that need to be taken. When Superman challenges them publicly, he loses public favor, and is challenged to a final battle by the Elite. During the battle, he lets himself seemingly be killed, before turning the tide on the Elite, killing two of their members and laser beaming the power focus of Black's brain. Then, he reveals that he actually didn't kill anyone, but his robots took them for power elimination at his fortress and subsequent transport to prison.

This was a very good story. Superman is so powerful, and so characteristically good, it's difficult to think of a truly dangerous villain for him. This story showed that perhaps his greatest threat is not something physical, but something that challenges what he stands for. Once he lost public favor, he became weak and crippled. Of course, the Elites were a bit overboard, killing too freely and being too power hungry. And Superman showed there was a fine line between what he does, and what the Elite became by giving into anger.


Still, it bring up an interesting point. I was discussing TDK and Batman Begins with a colleague recently, and he was saying he didn't like those films because Batman doesn't kill the enemy. Scarecrow and the Joker weren't killed by Batman, but presumably sent to prison. In a real world, it would make sense to kill them, stopping them from causing more harm. But the counter-argument to that is that heroes given free reign, who place themselves above the law, can lose sight of what made them heroes, and led them to become worse than those they sought to defeat. The way the public seemed to fear the seemingly evil, murdering Superman showed that that's not who they wanted as their hero, even though they thought they did. Overall, an excellent story, probably one of DC's best animated films to date.

Relating to "Avenger's" Villain

In "Thor" and "The Avengers," loki comes across as a unique villain. After reading some comics about him, you really learn his motivation and where he's coming from. Not evil, per se, but he feels slighted. Born (or adopted) in a family of royalty, he was always second best to his brother, thor. Stronger, more popular, more loved by his family, and true heir to the throne, loki felt second best, less fortunate, an afterthought. That's what leads him to try and create a threat to asgard in order to save it, to win his father's trust and love. And when that fails, he tries to take over earth, maybe to feel feared, to feel the respect he feels he's deserved. I can't claim to feel exactly like that, but I can see where he's coming from. Despite all the blessings one has, sometimes one cannot help but see a lot of friends successful while doing not much more than oneself, while you seem stagnant and lost. That's how I feel often, especially with some of my friend's and their career advancements both in acceptance to residency and in residency. I work like they do, but I feel sort of stuck and nonadvancing. I guess that's how loki felt on a bigger scale, and I can see why his motivations were what they were. It's tough sometimes to see that, but then I think of the bigger picture, and I can't see all the strings and true meanings of things.

Surface

Yesterday, Microsoft announced their competitor to the "let's beat the iPad" race. It's called surface, and it's honestly pretty impressive. Some people online are already hailing it as a serious iPad contender, while others say we need more time. I obviously didn't handle it myself, but I agree with the latter. On paper, it looks pretty good. The premium version is a tablet and an ultrabook in one, the smart cover functions as a keyboard, there's a built-in kickstand, and the metro windows 8 GUI looks quite nice.

It's taking a different approach from Apple, and for that, I have to give them credit. Android just copied off iOS, and it looks like a cheap imitation. At least Microsoft tried to come up with something different and innovative, and so far, it shows. I think this tablet has serious potential, and I can't wait to play around with it whenever I can.

What I'm most glad about, almost oxymoronically, is that it'll force Apple to up its game. Apple has been leading the tablet market, with good reason. But with Microsoft potentially hot on their heels, they may need to up their innovation, which can lead to a tablet evolution war. Maybe stressful for them, but beneficial for consumers, both in technological advancement and hopefully in affordability. It looks like the true tablet wars may be beginning. Best to sit this one out, Google.

Film Review: "Gone with the Wind"

One of the most classic movies of all time, Gone with the Wind is the story of one woman's life set amidst the civil war and reconstruction. It remains the top grossing film of all time, when adjusting for inflation. And it remains one of the top Oscar winners, earning ten wins. And it's quite lengthy, almost four hours to be exact. And I actually found it to be entertaining the whole way through, in one sitting. Despite the length, the film is paced well, and it helps that it was set against pivotal moments in American history.

Scarlett O'Hara, played by Vivian Leigh, is the central character of the film. She grows up on a farm called Tara, where she's in love with a guy named Ashley. She remains in love with him through three marriages, only to find at the end that he never truly loved her. She has a lot of dealing with Rhett Butler, played by Clark Gable, who she eventually marries and has a child with. And he was so patient with her, and kind to her, and in the end, she treated him as second-hand. By the end, he's had enough, as evidenced by the famous line.


There are some really nice shots in the film. The shots set against the sunset on the plantation are nice, but the best shot was probably the likely hundreds of sick bodies lying on the ground in Atlanta after a battle. The music was also good, and the main theme is quite famous, at least from the oscars telecast. The music, from what I recall, seems to have run throughout the entire film, unlike with movies nowadays. The acting was also good, but a totally different style from modern acting. There was a lot of overacting, but I figure that's normal for the day.


Surprisingly, this film stood the test of time, and really beat my low expectations of how enjoyable it was going to be. My favorite character was Mammy, the voice of common sense in the film, and Hattie McDaniel was the first black woman to win an Oscar for her role. This film goes alongside such classic as The Wizard of Oz and 12 Angry Men to show that a good film, with strong characters and a good story, can likely last the test of time and beat out modern movies in terms of quality.

Movie Review: "Castle in the Sky"

One of Studio Ghibli's first films was Miyazaki's Castle in the Sky, the story of a young girl named Sheeta who owns a beautiful necklace. She's on an airship when the story starts, as some pirates attack it. She falls during the fight, and it appears the pirates are after the crystal on her necklace. She floats to the ground and is found by a young boy, and they escape the pirates and the government army who are both looking for her. I turns out the army kidnapped her on the airship in the first place. The young boy is looking for a land in the sky, which his father found years ago before his death. Eventually they are captured by the army, and the boy is allowed to escape, which he does. Then, he makes a deal with the pirates, led by a strong mother, and they free Sheeta, but the emerald is in the hands of the government. They both find the castle in the sky, but the pirates are captured in the process. It turns out one of the government people is actually the descendent of the rulers of the sky world, as it Sheeta. She uses a spell she learned long ago to help defeat him, and his army, and the pirates and the two kids leave to live a free life, which the remnants of the castle that weren't destroyed in the battle and destruction spell float peacefully in the sky.

Overall, I wasn't very impressed with the film. I know it's old, but that's no excuse. The story wasn't compelling enough, which I blame moreso on the characters than the story itself. The pirates and their mom were the best in the story, while the kids screw decent. The army guys and the main government agent/sky leader descendent weren't too interesting, more like plain villains. I think it just wasn't my type of movie, despite me being more of a fantasy fan. The animation was nice at times, but I can definitely sees the anime style at play, especially with facial expressions. Perhaps some of the other Studio Gibli films will draw me in more.

Movie Review: "Prometheus"

Ridley Scott's revisiting to the world of Alien is a much welcomed, much better film that his original, in my opinion. In lieu of a pure horror film, we are treated to a film that's part horror, part science fiction, and part philosophy. The story involves two scientists undertaking a mission to discover the origin of mankind after discovering ancient paintings across the world depicting a tall being with six circles suspended in air. After finding a star cluster with a similar appearance, they head to that system, funded by the Weyland Corporation, precursor to the Weyland-Yutani corporation of the older films. They discover an ancient civilization there, headed by the space jockeys, until it turns out this was likely a scientific or military outpost hiding some big, biological weapons of mass destruction.

The film attempts to start asking where we came from, and why we are here. It opens these questions, but does not answer them. We learn that the space jockeys, who are larger humans with identical DNA, created and then intended to destroy us. We learn that Mr. Weyland wants to live longer and cheat death, and thus funds this expedition, only believing at the end that there's nothing. David the android, played so well and believable by Michael Fassbender, follows orders from Weyland and infects Dr. Holloway, one of the scientists, with a black goo from the jockey ship, which causes him to turn into some weird creature, but not before he impregnates his scientist partner and lover, Dr. Shaw (Noomi Rapace) with what can best be describes as a womb-buster. And said womb-buster grows into a massive face hugged, which kills the last surviving space jockey at the end, only to give birth to.... an alien, and a xenomorph to be more specific.


I felt this film was so well done. The cinematography and set design was so reminiscent at times of the original film, I felt like parts of it could be attached to the original and we may not even know the difference. The acting was excellent, and they assembled quite a good cast of supporting characters, including Weyland's daughter (Charlize Theron) and the captain (Idriss Elba). But it left us with answers. We assume that in this world, the jockeys created us, but why? And why did they later want to destroy us? And who created them? Dr. Shaw sets out with David at the end, in a jockey ship no less, to help answer that question. One wonders if maybe an alien is on board.


This was an excellent prequel. It stands well on its own, and does not bind itself to connecting to the other films in the series. Sure, we got the space jockey, we w inside their helmet, and we saw the birth of an alien. But the film didn't feel the need to service the other story. It told just enough to make Alien a better film, but told little enough to hel it stand as a fantastic story in its own right.


The visual effects here were also stellar, especially the galactic map in the jockey ship control room. The aliens were also inventive, like the arm cracker. Is unfunny how these aliens can have such aptly descriptive names. Big human, arm cracker, face hugger, chest buster, and perhaps the best of all, womb buster. By the way, that medstation was so cool, performing surgeries and whatever else may need to be done on the fly. Must cost a fortune, which would explain why there's only twelve made thus far.


Overall, a film I think will stick with me for longer than any of the, in my opinion, subpar and overhyped Alien films. And a film wholly deserve of a sequel, I think, if only to explore more of the themes we only got a taste of at the end here. I saw this at the new RPX screen on Staten Island, by the way, which wasn't nearly as nice as the AMC equivalent in Manhattan. The screen didn't seem much bigger, but the seats were nice.

TV Review: "Mad Men" Season 1

It took my a while to finally get into Mad Men. I was watching Being Human, but that show started faltering early in the second series. I felt that it just was not written as well, especially the whole war the the vampire thing in the first season, it seemed like a small subplot that suddenly became unnaturally big at the end. Anyway, that led me to start watching Mad Men, a show I really wanted to watch basically based on critical acclaim.


The story follows Don Draper, portrayed by Jon Hamm, who is a senior member of an advertising firm called Cooper Sterling. In the first episode, Don gets a new, eager secretary, Peggy, who is trained on the job by Joan. It starts out slow, but each episode delves more into various characters and their histories and numerous affairs. The show is a study in slow but strong character development. It's very well done, making you feel as if you're watching the 1960s. But the characters are what it really comes down to. we learn, through many episode, that Don actually has a brother named Adam, and that his actual name is Dick Whitman. Dick was the son of a whore, and grew up with his father and stepmother, and they had a son named Adam. Eventually, Dick joined the war, but while lighting a cigarette, he blew up his small camp, killing Lieutenant Draper, his only other team member and commanding officer. Don switches the name tags, and he is now Lieutenant Don Draper. We don't know, yet, how he got into the advertising business. But we know he meets Betty when she was a model, and they get married and have kids.


Don's bosses are Cooper and Sterling. Sterling is having an affair with Joan, and many other women, and at some point develops a heart attack, at which point Don is promoted to partner. Peter Campbell is another major character, a more junior executive at the office, and a gunner. Peter has an affair with Peggy, and in the season finale, we see that she is pregnant with his child, and gives birth. Peggy was noticeably getting bigger throughout the episodes, but for her to suddenly become pregnant and delivering was somewhat odd. She looked like she was gaining weight, but not in the pregnant type of distribution.


Anyway, the show got through these major points in 12 or so episodes, which means it is rather slow moving. We see various ad pitches during episodes, and stories about Don's affairs with a hippie and a major department store owner named Rachel. Don also pays a psychiatrist to help Betty with her anxiety, and violated HIPPAA by getting the inside scoop from him, which Betty find out at the end of the season. In a private session, she divulges that she knows Don is cheating on her. And, at the end during a pitch for Kodak's carousel projector, he displays pictures of his family, and ultimately realizes how much he cares for them. Don goes home, imagining going to zthanksgiving with them, only to find them gone.


The strength of this show, again, is its characters. They take their time, develop them well, and invest you in their lives, even though nothing truly epic is going on. After these huge revelations, including Peggy's promotion to junior copywriter, I can't wait to see how the next season unfolds. We found out much more about Don's past than I expected this season, but I suspect there's even more there than meets the eye. And what's going to happen with Peggy and her baby? Definitely a well-done show, in my opinion.

London 2012: Some History

London hosted the Olympics twice before. First was in 1908. Oringinally the bid was given to Rome, but after Mount Vesuvius exploded in 1906, London stepped up to the plate as a replacement. They built a stadium, White City, in under  a year, and the games were opened by King Edward VII (great grandfather of Queen Elizabeth II). Tug-of-war was a sport at the time. It was the first times athletes paraded under their flags at the opening ceremonies, and also when the marathon distance was fixed at 26.2 miles (distance of Winfsor Castle to the Olympic Stadium).

In 1948, London held the games after a 12-year absence due to WWII, given without an election. Tokyo was due to hold the games in 1940, and London in 1944. London used the older Wembley Stadium for it’s opening ceremonies. The Empire Pool became the first covered olympic pool in history. They were also the first games to be shown on TV, despite few people owning TVs at the time.

Baseball was voted out of the 2012 olympics, the first vote-out since polo in the 1930s.

First Sri Lankan woman won in the 200m (bronze) in Sydney.

LA won the bid in 1984 by being the only one competing; some financial crisis in 1976 stopped most other countries from bidding.

Lillehammer was the first winter games to be held in a different year from the summer games, two years after the last winter games.

It’s interesting that while it seems like Rio has most of it’s major venues in place, these venues are largely new, created for the Panatlantic Games in 2007. Seeing the various stadiums created for the games, London appears to be somewhat lackluster. It doesn’t look fancy, but it’s apparently equipped with a removable later of stadium seats which can be used for possibly a different venue.

The structure of the stadium is interesting, as it seems to be designed in layers, as noted in the picture. Apparently the lowest layer is dug deeper into the ground. 

Trailer Review: "Wreck-It Ralph"

Geektastic! was loosely interested in this film when I herd about its video game roots, but the trailer totally took me by surprise. I did not expect to see M. Bison, Zangief, and Bowser there! I love Pixar, but I am quite a bit more excited for this film than for Brave right now. This will hopefully resonate with people of my generation, I remember growing up playing SMB on the NES, seeing the gold Zelda cartridge at my cousin's house. This just looks fantastic, and maybe sometihng Pixar wouldn't do, using other people's properties to help tell a story. And no, Tortoro was a cameo, he doesn't count.

Man I love the utter creativity of animated films, or at least the potential. And that animated Jane Lynch looks so much like the real one. Disney animation is really doing a stellar job, with Bolt, Tangled, and now the potential theyre showing with this. Pixar is still tops to me, but to me, Pixar remains a film company. If Pixar is my main meal, Disney animation is my dessert. Maybe not as artfully crafted, thematically structure, and finely tuned, but at times more enjoyable, fun, and purely entertaining. Just like with superhero films, I am glad to be living in a time when animated films are being held to such high standards. And this is why it's hard to limit being a film fan.

"Les Miserables" on West End?

Ever since seeing the trailer for Tom Hooper's Les Miserables, I was interested in learning more about the story. The story takes place in post-revolutionary France, and is written by Victor Hugo, who also wrote The Hunchback of Notre Dame. There was no modern musical film version to my knowledge of the story, so I decided to watch Liam Neeson's role as Jean Valjean in Les Miserables from 1998. The film, as you can see from my prior review, was very good. One thing that stood out to me was your Javert's strength as the character. He wasn't necessarily evil, he was just Ana bound to the law trying to enforce the law, and could not take the fact that one man avoided him all this time, no matter how petty the crime. While watching the movie, and the trailer, I was thinking to myself "wouldn't it be nice if I could've seen the musical?"

Unfortunately the musical was not around on Broadway. But I was planning to go to London for the Olympics. I was thinking of seeing a West End show, but then I figured no show would be worth it since Broadway was right next to at home. However, yesterday I decided to do a little browsing and see if there were any shows worth watching, and after perusing a list of shows including The Lion King, Les Miserables popped up. After a bit more research it seems like this is the longest running musical on West End, and according to sources maybe the longest-running musical in the world, although that seems to go to Phantom of the Opera.


I decided to book tickets for Les Miserables, seeing as the story was so good. I really love the song "I Dreamed a Dream," such a beautiful, haunting, and sad song, so I bought tickets to the show and I'm excited to hopefully get to see the musical in the place where it was popularized, even though it started in France. I am glad to hopefully get to see it where it really became popular became a hit before the film comes out, and get to experience a chance of West End history.

Film Review: "Les Miserables"

Les Miserables is a 1998 film based on the novel by Victor Hugo. Unlike the upcoming 2010 version, it is not based on the stage musical. It tells the story of Jean Valjean (Liam Neeson), who is on parole from prison for almost two decades after stealing bread. Valjean attempts to steal silverware from a priest who offers him food, but is caught. The priest lets him go, with the condition that he changes his life. This he does, becoming the mayor of a small town. Unfortunately, he meets one of the guards during his imprisonment, named Javert (Geoffery Rush), who notices who he is. Javert tells his superiors, but later a man people claim is Jean Valjean is caught for breaking parole. During this time, a young girl named Fantine (Uma Thurman) is caught at her factory for having a baby out of wedlock, a girl named Cosette. She is fired, and cannot afford to pay the people taking care of Cosette, so she resorts to prostitution. One day, when some men put snow down her dress, she hits them, and is arrested by Javert. Valjean hears this, and uses his authority to free her and take care of her. Also, he hears about the fake Valjean goes and frees the man by revealing himself, and when Javert goes to arrest him, he attacks Javert and flees. Fantine dies right before this, and he promises to care for Cosette. Valjean goes, frees Cosette, and they escape to Paris, where Cosette and he join a convent. Ten years later, Cosette (Claire Danes) doesn't want to fulfill her vows as a nun, so they go live somewhere else, where she falls in love with a buddinge revolutionary named Marius. Javert sees this, traces it back to Cosette's and Valjean's home, and realizes that Valjean is still alive. Unfortunately, in an attempt to capture Valjean, Javert is captured by the revolutionaries and is set to die, but Cljean goes in and frees him. A little while later, Javert captures Valjean and he tries to help Marius. They make a deal: Marius is free, but Valjean will go with Javert after visiting his home one last time. When Valjean returns, after saying bye to his daughter Cosette, Javert decides to let him go. Javert says he has never broken a rule in his life, and then commits suicide jumping into the river. Valjean, now a free man, walks away.


According to Wikipedia, there's more after this in the novel. Cosette and Marius marry, and Valjean eventually dies. This film was well acted, the cinematography and locations were beautiful and natural, and the story was well told. It felt like a classic style of filming, and the story's strength carried itself. I really liked who they chose, very good actors who played their role well. The music was subtle but fitting, and the main theme played throughout the movie was nice. I look forward to the musical, which may be different from this film, which was excellent. I do remember seeing parts for this film before and remembering that it was good, although I remember little else.

Trailer Watch: "Les Miserables"

Oscar seasons starts early this year with the trailer for "Les Miserables," the upcoming film adaptation of the musical directed by Tom Hooper ("The King's Speech"). Starring such big names as Hugh Jackman, Anne Hathaway, and Russell Crowe, it all but seems set for Oscar baiting. However, it also looks really, really good. The ailer starts with a haunting rendition of Hathaway as Fantine singing "I Dreamed A Dream," set to scenes from the film. Not much is given away, if anything, in terms of the plot. The song is so somber, haunting, and frail, it seems to really set the tone and mood for what the film may be. I remember seeing it many years ago, a drama version with maybe Liam Neeson, many years ago on TV. However, given my bad memory, all I can really remember is the name Jean Valjean, and something about a police officer he may be trying to avoid. I do remember it being very engrossing. Just from this trailer, this film is now up there with "Lincoln" and "Django Unchained" on the winter movie list. Such a well done, haunting trailer. I love unique trailers, and this one really stands out from the rather blasé trailers we usually get.