Samantha Barks: 'Another Suitcase in Another Hall

from the soundtrack of my mind

from 'evita'

'Les Miserables' 25th Anniversary Concert

before the film there was this brilliant concert live at O2. take this weeks end to enjoy it.
 brilliant!

Samantha Barks

the wonderful ms barks as eponine in 'les miserables' singing 'on my own'

'Les Miserables' Revisited ****stars

when i first reviewed 'lez miz' i gave it***1/2stars. not too shabby. but after rewatching it this past weekend i am giving it back the 1/2* it had not gotten. i'll use the excuse that i was not fully recovered from my surgery when i saw it in the theater. uncomfortability can be an influence.

first i knocked russel crowe's singing. yes it is still not that good but damn it it fits the role. i mean would josh groban's voice have worked for the character javert? no! as i see crowe play the role his voice or lack of works perfectly.

second i believed anne hathaway was being applauded for one song. i was wrong. her performance throughout her 18 minutes or so on screen was magnificent. no i did not have a lobotomy. on the second and third view she stll amazed me. 

i originally wrote it was a brilliant piece of film. i still say this. however, i add it is a masterpiece of musical film. i always believed 'fiddler on the roof' was the best translation from stage to film. it has moved to second place.

and oh amanda seyfried....she made me smile and cry on my second viewing. she is wonderful and the unsung piece of this film this past award season. it's not often i am more amazed the second time i see a film. generally i am less impressed or just feel the same as the first time. not so with 'lez miz'. 

and hugh jackman. in another year he would have won the oscar for best actor. but there was mr. lincoln. but today i wonder if mr. jackman was not the best actor this year. just thinking out loud. you must decide for yourself.

aaron tveit and eddie redmayne and samantha barks remain wonderful.

sasha baron cohen and helena bonham cater were both great comic relief in an other wise tragedy.

bravo tom hooper.

and here is the lovely unsung amanda seyfried with eddie redmayne

the cast at this year's oscar ceremony

'Les Miserables' Releases Today on Bluray and DVD

a grand filmed version gets it's home release today. it is worth every cent you pay to rent or buy it. mine is already preordered from amazon. if you haven't you get to see some damn good performances, one of the worst musical singers of all time in russell croew and anne hathaway's demand and plea for an oscar that she did get over the better sally field in 'lincoln'. crowe and hathaway aside this is a gem with two flaws.

hugh jackman, amanda seyfried, samantha barks, aaron tveit and eddie redmayne are brilliant!

the cast at the oscars:

'Les Miserables' ***1/2

'les miz' is brilliant. the show that is. the tom hooper directed film is somewhat short of brilliant. but that is good. all of us 'les miz' fans have seen the film in our minds over the past 25 years. some of our thoughts and hopes may have been realized with this version. quite a few of mine were. well almost were. but i did not conceive it...mr hooper did and he is to be congratulated. he remained faithful to the original adding snippets here and there to tie together formally loose ends to make a more complete scenario. also a good move.

i cannot quibble with the production values. it is generally amazing to look at and listen to. generally.  for instance: there was just a bit, no maybe too much, excrement in the sewer scene. sometimes less is more. but this is a minor quibble. and vocally the idea to record live on set is quite remarkable with the exception of russell crowe.

the story of jean valjean (hugh jackman) begins with his release from prison, owning a factory encountering his former prison guard javert (russel crowe), encountering the down and out fantine (anne hathaway) and taking responsibility for her daughter cosette. but it all really picks up after the death of fantine when the story moves to paris and we meet the young revolutionaries led by enjoiras, (arron tveit) and his band of student rebels and his best friend marius (eddie redmayne), his friend eponine (samantha barks)  and the now grown cosette (amanda seyfried).

what we now have is an action filled revolt and true romance and the remnants of unrequited love and friends forever gone. and death. not your typical musical but still a bit above most all the others filmed.

the musical highlights are 'the red and black', 'in my life/a heart full of love, 'one day more', 'on my own', 'bring him home' and 'empty chairs at empty tables'. anne hathaways 'i dreamed a dream' is certainly her jennifer hudson moment. it and ms hathaway are wonderful but it is sung for the academy. it is her supporting actress oscar nomination and probable win. if there were justice that nom would go to samantha barks as eponine. i have never been kind to ms hathaway but will give her due credit here. she would just not get an oscar vote from me.

hugh jackman is terrific as jean valjean. eddie redmayne as marius is extraordinary. his 'empty chairs at empty tables is brilliant and a highlight. aaron tveit is a fitting and worthy enjoiras. samantha barks is the quitessential eponine and her 'on my own' is brilliant. amanda seyfried with an almost angelic voice is adorably convincing as the lovely cosset. sasha baron cohen and helena bonham carter add the necessary comic relief as the innkeeper thenardier's. and now we get to the weak link: russell crowe who's right for the part but not the singing. his voice is ear piercing. when he starts singing it just pulls you right out of the film. sadly. and admittedly it lost 1/2 a star because of him. 

all in all see it. it is a grand endeavor that succeeds. and samantha, eddie, aaron and amanda along with hugh amaze.

TODAY

Josh's Juke Box: 'On My Own'

from the soundtrack of my life.
since i showd the poster art for 'les miz' yesterday this beauty of a song needs a revisit.

and i was dared by another blogger to name my top 100 songs from musicals. i'm up to 136 as of today. HA!
yet with a lot of thought i have come up with one that i must say is my favorite. 'on my own' from 'les miserables'

and here to sing it is the once and future eponine, samantha barks, brilliant rendering it. this is from the 25th anniversary concert of lez miz. miss barks will thankfully reprise the role in the film version coming in december.

Les Miz' Art Work

'les misersbles' the film poster goes back to it's origins by using the young cosette rather than the name stars in it's artwork. it's a nice tribute to the original concept. and let's not forget the original is still running somewhere in the world these 25 years later.

the film has been moved to christmas day in the states

the film

 theatre

the new featurette

Amanda Seyfried First Sighting As Cosette in 'Lez Miz'

Amanda joins hugh jackman, russell crowe, eddie redmayne and the abysmal and always terrifyingly awful anne hathaway in this years 'les miserables'. as far as hathaway goes her character fanzine dies early soon after hathaway will destroy 'i dreamed a dream' so we will need to be patient for 40 or 50 minutes. why her? why does anyone hire this woman? well at least with ms seyfried the better and larger part of cosette is in good hands. and samantha barks as eponine is brilliant. so again why hathaway???

'Les Miserables': The 25th Anniversary Concert Part 5

there are magical moments in the theater. there is a hush in the audience as a performer goes for the gold. when i first saw les miz the moment was when frances ruffelle began singing 'on my own' the audience was silent as a stone. it seemed even breathing had stopped. the only sound was the amazing sounds coming from ms. ruffelle. a pause in the song carried the echo of her last note. then she quietly finished her piece and the next sound was deafening applause as the audience spontaneously rose to it's feet. these moments are few and far between but when they occur i am thrilled for the performer and that i am a musical theater nut. ms. ruffelle won the tony and olivier awards for her performance. deservedly so.

i wish i had been at this concert of the show. samantha barks delivers the same song with the same intensity and vocal adrenalin as ms. ruffelle. she seemingly seamlessly stopped the show. the magic is seen on the disc. the magic in the theater must have been enthralling. i am jealous i was not there.

ms. barks is a natural. she is a beauty with a voice. and damn what a voice. her emotional attachment to the character and the song is visible and so natural. ms. barks i bow to you and your talent.

samantha barks delivers

the following sequence, 'javert at the baricade', 'little people', 'the first attack', ends with the ms. barks and nick jonas duet 'a little fall of rain'. they both deliver without missing a beat. eponine's demise is so natural and so understated. brilliant!

(to be continued)

'Les Miserables': The 25th Anniversary Concert Part 4

the role of enjolras has always overshadowed that of marius when awards were handed out. ramin karimloo in this concert adaptation does not disappoint. he is quite a winner actually. as part of 'one day more' and 'red and black' he shines. but as always with this role it his 'do you hear the people sing' that he makes his everlasting mark in musical history. going out on a limb here i think he is the best enjolras i've ever seen or heard. trust me i've seen and heard many.

'one day more'

 'red and black' and 'do you hear the people sing'

'Les Miserables': The 25th Anniversary Concert Part 3

i have always loved the combination duet and triplets ''in my life' and 'a heart full of love'. with memories of judy kuhn and michael ball forever playing in my head i was nonetheless blown away by this concert version. nick jonas, katie hall and samantha barks are so well cast. amazing. brilliant. and so much more. mr. jonas, formerly of the jonas brothers, of whom i know nothing, has a brand new career as a musical star. katie hall lucked out here. the actress who was to play cosette in this concert fell ill and ms. hall was pulled from the touring company to fill in. she stepped up to the plate and knocked it out of the park. a star was born. actually ms. hall and mr. jonas bring a more youthful 'look' and feel to the roles which although i never missed in the past makes this production that much fresher.

  and then there is ms. barks as eponine. what can i say? well those two words amazing and brilliant fit along with every other superlative in every dictionary ever compiled. this is but a taste of the triumphant samantha banks. part 5 of this entry will show her true vocal power, beauty and star quality. 

three amazing talents with 'in my life' and 'a heart full of love'. i am blown away.

(to be continued sunday)