Eponine is my favorite character as well, and if you don't cast somebody who can NAIL her songs you'll lose your audience.

Wow, Hathaway sounds great and I like the grimy, naturalistic style they're going for. Looking forward to seeing more.

I agree. And I just saw the tour again last year. I'd forgotten that Eponine really only has like 4 scenes in the show. Her part isn't as important as far as a "name" goes.

I like the look of the trailer but since I hate Fantine, it was annoying to hear nothing but her stupid song. Looking forward to hearing more music.

I just read an article about how the actors all did their own singing live, as opposed to the usual method of lip-syncing on set to a pre-recorded track that most musicals use. That'll be interesting to see.

that's my opinion for the casting of Javert, if he can't sing his big song 'Stars' to a tee - he's toast.

I really don't like Tom Hooper's use of camera movement. Both in this trailer and in The King's Speech it's just distracting, especially considering they're period pieces.

I don't think there are rules w/ moving the camera in period pieces. If it was like Tony Scott editing? yeah, I'd say that's not needed. The movements? They're fine.

I don't know about the camera movement per se, but Hooper's use of unique object placement within the framing is different, it's apparent in both 'The King's Speech' and 'The Damn United' and I'm curious in seeing if it's used here in 'Les Miserables'

I am pleased with the trailer

The Fantine song arguably the most iconic and will grab people who know it from Glee. Other contenders would be Bring Him Home and Do You Hear the People Sing, but I think this is more of a mood-setter being early in the show.

Embedding for convenience.

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hrmmmm...seems like the trailers are being taken down.

here's another:
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/EnLSG5t_dc8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

hope this is a success, so 'Miss Saigon' can be filmed next. and then 'Martin Guerre' (okay maybe not the latter film) but jeesh, Schönberg and Boublil haven't really been that prolific - guess living off the Les Miz profits is incredibly easy and lucrative.

What strikes me most about that Les Mis trailer is how unashamed it is to highlight the singing. So many musical teasers try to hide that.

Martin Guerre! Which I actually saw! Ya kill me, Giles

HAH! I should have bet a dollar you saw it... yeah, I saw it in London, truth be told the music/songs weren't really that memorable

Agree, except I still remember the "I'm Martin Guerre!" melodic line.

ah, yes... it's all coming back to me now:

<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/embed/Zwo2CByAq6g" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

That trailer just increased my excitement for this tenfold. December can't come soon enough!

Just saw that trailer. Terrific, just what I was expecting/hoping for. As long as Russel Crowe can sing, it should be great.

I too saw Martin Guerre in London (on my honeymoon, Spring 1997). It wasn't too bad, but nowhere near this or Miss Saigon to be sure.

Here's a cool, short featurette about how they're capturing the live, on-set singing. The more I see of it, the better it looks. I hope it doesn't disappoint.

<iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/wwgQjfg0hZw" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

Whether he can or not is what's going to make this thing sink or swim, in the end. He's never sung in a film before. He is a truly odd choice for Javert, imo, but I am really hoping it was a right decision.

He can sing though. He's got his little band on the side.

On a previous note, fuck...I still read it as Tobe Hooper directing this. I always have to read it again.

Although I'd be just as interested in seeing that.

Either that or we get Spielberg in to direct it but he won't take credit cuz he's a nice guy.

I love the choice they made to film it with live singing. I don't think that's been done in a major Hollywood musical since Peter Bogdanovich's disastrous retro-musical At Long Last Love. If you want to see why not, click below:


Any way, it seems to work here (and why wouldn't it, assuming all the actors can really sing well). Looks like they made the right casting choice for Eponine based on that clip.

And I think Russel should be fine with the singing. This is the best performance clip I can find of him, but it's perfectly acceptable singing.


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Wow. Cybil Shepard sucks at singing.

Yup. He was fucking her at the time, which might help explain the casting choice. If you've ever watched that old Drew Barrymore film Irreconcilable Differences, that's a roman a clef for this period with Ryan O'Neil as Bogdonavich and Sharon Stone as Cybil Shepard. Their Gone With The Wind musical disaster was that film you see above.