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•	2012 Highlights Album

•	2013 Deluxe Album

•	2012 Highlights Album

In the role of Inspector Javert is Russell Crowe, an even greater embarrassment to the history of Les Misérables. There have been a number of superb performers in the role of this villain throughout the history of the play, though none can surpass the nasty tone of Philip Quast, who portrayed the character in Australia and London and was featured in the musical's "Complete Symphonic Recording" album. The role requires a deep baritone voice that can both boom over the ruckus of the ensemble and angrily emphasize individual words with a snarling demeanor. Where Quast excels (with remarkable precision in the 10th anniversary concert as well), Crowe fails miserably, his voice nowhere near low enough to handle the role. Not only does he lack the oomph the bring the sinister obsession into the role, thus making him sound like a whiner half the time, but he exerts absolutely none of the inflection necessary to breathe life into the role. The musical requires the character to state his own name several times as an accent point at the end of a line, always requiring harsh emphasis on the second syllable; Crowe, for whatever reason, states the name romantically and thus diminishes the hostility of the character. So embarrassing his vocals are at times that you wonder if you are listening to a staging of the play in some little amateur theatre in a desolate Wyoming town. Acquitting herself to a greater degree is Anne Hathaway in the role of Fantine. Her singing capabilities are at least better developed and she can handle a lengthy note without too much trouble. Unfortunately, she too decides to speak her way through much of her role, her death scene lacking poignancy because of her sobbing rather than singing. There is also a question about whether she was the right age and disposition to play Fantine, the role dictating the use of a huskier, mezzo-soprano voice. To that end, famed stage veteran Patti LuPone originated the role in London with incredible force behind the voice, the kind of breathtaking talent that Hathaway does not approach. Based partly on her success with the musical Mamma Mia!, Amanda Seyfried was cast as the adult Cosette, a role with no infamous performers on the stage (no offense to Rebecca Caine and Judy Kuhn, both quite good) and thus reduced expectations. She is overshadowed by Eddie Redmayne in the role of Marius; the actor at least had extensive stage experience and a better inflective tone. Still, he cannot compare with the talent of someone like Michael Ball, whose impressive helming of the role in London's production (despite suffering from immense stage fright) remains a fan favorite. Likewise, Aaron Tveit's portrayal of Marius' friend and revolutionary leader, Enjolras, is barely sufficient but not particularly memorable, his presence in the film often fragmented due to haphazard photography.

Of the few outright disasters that have befallen the universe of Les Misérables over the years, none can arguably compete with the casting of Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter to play the Thénardiers in the film. Despite being plucked out of Sweeney Todd and sharing an embrace for the perverse, the two are simply not awkward enough character actors to play those roles. Any enthusiast of the musical will be able to tell you that the scenes containing the innkeepers/robbers are the standout comedies routines of the story. In the theatres and during the concert performances, the "Master of the House" and "Beggars at the Feast" songs by this duo stir audiences to a state of damn-near hysteria at times, clapping along and laughing with the musical's funniest lyrics. It will always be difficult for anyone to compete with Alun Armstrong's memorable London performance as Thénardier, his intentional awkwardness a perfect blend of goofiness and evil, though Barry James did a good impression of him during his tenure in the role. In later years, the role of Madame Thénardier has been largely defined by Jenny Galloway, who really chews on the material and makes her loathing for her spouse into a spectacle. There is simply no way Baron Cohen and Bonham Carter can match these famous performances and, sadly, they don't even try. Baron Cohen has none of the sinister undertones necessary for the part and Bonham Carter is meek and badly underpowered for the kind of woman that Madame Thénardier is. In fact their performances go beyond embarrassing and enter the realm of humiliating, reducing themselves to added comedic lines in their songs to compensate for the fact that they cannot sing and be funny at the same time. After all of this bashing of the cast in the 2012 film, it should be mentioned that there are a few bright spots. Ironically, but not entirely surprisingly, they involve situations in which cast members from the theatre productions carry over to the film. Mackintosh was certain to include Wilkinson somewhere in the film's cast, and the role of the bishop is a logical one, symbolically passing the torch (or in this case, the candlesticks) on to the new Valjean. His presence is very welcome in the film, but due to the live recording process, the remainder of the power in his voice is underutilized. The bishop always had a baritone voice, and Wilkinson doesn't exert the Godly tone in his performance that one would expect and hope to hear. Samantha Barks carried her role of Éponine over from the 2010 London and 25th anniversary concert performances, and it is no surprise that she steals every scene she is in. Her voice is like that of an angel amidst the chaos of "One Day More," and that's simply because she can actually sing! Other former cast members, including Frances Ruffelle (the original Éponine), have cameos as well.

The Themes and Score:

The actual score for Les Misérables has, in its basic structures, not varied as much as the orchestrations of it. When the musical was largely finalized in 1985, the same identities and their applications carried over to each successive incarnation of the show, including the film. The foremost reason for Schönberg's lasting success with this material is his attention to motific development and reprise. Each of his many themes for the show is loyal to a specific concept or emotion rather than a character, allowing similarly constructed scenes to maintain musical continuity regardless of the character performing at that moment. Among his most compelling is his "loneliness" theme, a yearning idea that is expressed by each character prior to his or her death ("Fantine's Death," "On My Own," and "Epilogue/Valjean's Death." In that instance, Schönberg also applies the theme for Valjean's release at the start of the story, smartly suggesting that the character's past self may be expiring. The theme for "solemn lamentation" is attractively foreshadowed in "The Bishop" before becoming the basis of the great Marius song, "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables." For the concept of "oppression," nothing is more vivid than "Look Down" in expressing the heavy hand of the law, and this theme informs both the barricade identity and the confrontations between Valjean and Javert, the latter arguably the highlights of the musical. For "salvation," there is the "Bring Him Home" theme that follows Valjean's noble acts in the second half of the story. Several others exist, ranging from the romantic ("A Heart Full of Love") to the comedic ("Master of the House") and the triumphant ("Who Am I?"). Schönberg doesn't avoid mixing and matching his themes as well, the crowd favorite "One Day More" taking its foundation from "Who Am I?" and "I Dreamed a Dream" and expertly combining them with fragments of other themes for the main ensemble piece of the show. A set of minor phrases appear for smaller recurring purposes and do not get fleshed out in full song form. There is no single theme at drives the identity of the entire show (such as the descending and ascending five note motif in The Phantom of the Opera), though the closest such thing may be the fanfare-like brass motif that opens "Look Down" and defines the barricades thereafter. That said, the only chart-topping song to stand apart from the musical in terms of popular appeal is "I Dreamed a Dream," dozens of cover versions following LuPone's famous initial recording. It is one of those songs that has seemingly been performed by every notable stage star in the twenty years following its debut, including some of the male leads of Les Misérables. The song's interlude sequence, reprised for the rotating ensemble within "One Day More," is as dramatic a theatrical identity as any ever written for the stage.

As mentioned before, Les Misérables has become increasingly symphonic as it has evolved over the years. The "poppish" aspect to its initial recordings was common to the late 1970's and early 1980's, especially in Andrew Lloyd Webber's larger productions, and this approach functioned for the small ensembles deemed appropriate for the venues. Starting with the "Complete Symphonic Recording" album that debuted a few years after the musical became a hit, larger ensembles were matched up to the vocals, building up to the 10th and 25th anniversary concerts featuring monumental orchestras conducted by David Charles Abell and large choirs for the group vocal sequences. There is debate about which of the fully symphonic recordings of Les Misérables is best, for each of them offers different orchestrations and mixing quality. One version, for example, might have creative percussive effects for the slaves in chains (with clanging metals) while another presents eerie, unique sounds for the portion of the story in the sewers. You will also find that counterpoint lines will differ from recording to recording, the 25th anniversary concert in particular emphasizing some awesome activity from the ensemble that is seemingly lacking in the others. Conversely, the acoustic guitar is an important element for the intimate, personal side of the story, and its use in the 10th anniversary concert (along with harp) is best supplied in the mix. The film's 70 orchestral players and their orchestrations, largely arranged by Anne Dudley, are difficult to judge because of the production's decision to force the ambient sound of the group into a very dry, close mix to match the live vocals. There are intriguing, re-orchestrated passages in the work, especially in the full-blooded brass portions such as the "Look Down" renditions, but many of them are buried deep in a mix that reducing the whole group's appeal and effectiveness. Such is the difficulty with that dry approach given that enthusiasts of the musical have heard it so often in live environments, whether in person or in one of the two popular concert presentations, all of which carrying with them robust reverb natural to a performance hall. Interestingly, while the "Complete Symphonic Recording" and the two concert arrangements featured progressively receding electronic accompaniment (the "Complete Symphonic Recording" actually features some notable electric guitar contributions), the 2012 film completely eliminates that sound. The musical has always benefitted from a dash of synthetic or pop-like personality (inserted even at the height of the operatic "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables," for instance), and it's somewhat disappointing to hear none of that in the movie. The bass strings and bass woodwinds are badly undermixed in the film as well, and some listeners will be disappointed by how shallow the end credits orchestral suite will sound.

Track by Track Analysis:

Some enthusiasts of Les Misérables will wish for an examination of the film's treatment of each song, and this review will oblige that detail to some degree, comparing the arrangements and vocals of each entry with the previously recorded renditions. The movie's opening orchestrations of "Look Down" are impressive, the strings at their best in the score and the drums well placed. The light percussive clanging and other accents are missing, however, as is, strangely enough, much of the song itself. The lines conveyed by the slaves at the outset of the song are sadly truncated. The Javert and Valjean lines are barked out and the various cuts of the live performances are badly paced, especially when Javert says "No" with no natural pause before launching into the next line. The water sound effects in this sequence are among the better to grace the album. Appended to the end of this track on album is Valjean's quick expression of the loneliness ("On My Own") theme, and Jackman, for whatever reason, does not even attempt to sing the lines until the very end, at which point he's off-tune. Inexplicably absent from even the deluxe, expanded album for the film is "On Parole," the introduction of the Bishop, leaving Wilkinson's contributions to "The Bishop" instead, the aftermath of Valjean's re-capture. This Wilkinson cameo is somewhat weak in stature but, after the "law and order" motif, listeners do get to hear the actor perform the theme of lament ("Empty Chairs at Empty Tables"), albeit in a distant mix with intrusive sound effects. This abridged version of the song does rob the character of its impact, especially given that the Bishop was meant to be a booming baritone rather than Wilkinson's softly tender tenor. In "Valjean's Soliloquy," Jackman hashes through his lines with no depth to his voice, missing far too many notes in his attempt to overact the scene. There's no real empathy in this largely spoken performance, and when Jackman does fully sing, his shallow voice has a nasal quality about it that reduces the impact that the character is supposed to have on the listener. It's doesn't help that the line "another story must begin" is badly out of tune. The opening orchestrations at the transitional introduction of "At the End of the Day" are great, and the counterpoint layers of the factory workers' group lines are well performed. A couple of the lines traditionally performed by a male or female are switched in gender, however. When the individual lines begin, some of them are not strongly enunciated enough. The performances by both Hathaway and the actor playing the foreman are very weak, expressed far too softly for a scene that's supposed to involve rough personalities. Fantine has always exhibited defiant desperation in this song, and Hathaway conveys none of that. The foreman's voice has to be a brutish baritone or tenor, and this actor here is abysmally light, and his speaking of the line "On your way!" instead of yelling it out is unacceptable.

The fuller version of "The Docks" here is adequate for the narrative even though it is moved up in the story. Far more disappointing is what is supposed to be the show-stopper but is barely a blip in this version of the music; surprisingly tepid orchestration behind "I Dreamed a Dream," with too little an emphasis on the acoustic guitar and harp, causes a complete lack of depth for most of the song. Likewise, Hathaway prefers to act the song out rather than provide any refinement to the singing performance. Compared to Patti LuPone, Ruthie Henshall, and a number of others, Hathaway crucifies the song's demeanor, the interlude sequence ("the tigers come at night"/"with their voices soft as thunder") lacking any force of vocal inflection. Fantine is not supposed to be outwardly weeping and whimpering while singing this song, and the changed pacing of the ending to accommodate the acting is insufferable. The interaction that gets Fantine arrested, as well as the "Runaway Cart" sequence, are rearranged in the film and not provided on album. In "Fantine's Arrest," too many of the lines are spoken and acted intimately rather than sung, the sequence blasted through at too fast a speed. Hathaway succeeds when she outright sings her lines, though her underperformance of the typically resonating line "if there's a God above" is frightful. In "Who Am I?" Jackman once again rushes through the scene, the orchestration not accordingly heavy enough or romantic in first half. The mixing of this song in particular is problematic, sullied by room noise and lacking any of the expansiveness of the theatre performances. The "I'm Jean Valjean" line is spoken softly rather than belted out as necessary, stripping all the triumphant responsibility regularly associated with that pronouncement. The score's most heartbreaking moment comes in "Fantine's Death" as the character hallucinates before dying. The orchestrations in this version are too prickly, the strings and harp/guitar abrasive. Once again, Hathaway acts rather than sings through the song, barely understandable at times due to her weeping. Jackman likewise reduces his stature as a savior by speaking through too many lines. In no production of Les Misérables has it even been necessary for the performers to express the actual acted emotions of a scene beyond the inflection in the singing voice. When Fantine sings to Cosette in this scene, you don't need to hear the mother crying in between each line; the score and the sorrow in the fully sung lines are enough to bring the audience to tears, especially as the performers trail off with the final word, "wake," that typically fades into the distance as the character dies. You see the film version of this musical make that mistake several times, but in no place is it as obnoxiously overwrought as in "Fantine's Death." Hathaway won an Academy Award for this role simply because of her acting, and that's a tragedy given that she disrespected the actual songs which she was supposed to carry with her voice.

The highlights of Les Misérables are the interactions between Javert and Valjean, and "The Confrontation" is arguably the best of these. This extension of "Look Down" requires the actors to engage in simultaneous singing with precise synchronization, their tones meant to distinguish them as Javert's relentless focus and Valjean's nobility sonically battle. Crowe's voice is wretched for his part, for you can hear no true menace in it. At least he resolves down to key for the word "chains." The orchestration of the first half of this song is superb, the percussion hits and brass backing attempting to compensate for the vocal weakness. While the layering of the two actors is decent enough to suffice, Jackman quits partway through the song, negating the impact of when the two are supposed to converge at an exclamation of "Javert!" Instead, Crowe oddly finishes the song by himself. The rendition of "Castle on a Cloud" by the young Cosette is faithful to the stage version, though the album here, like most previous recordings, cuts off the threatening interaction between her and Madame Thénardier. In the crowd-pleaser "Master of the House," there is a bizarre attempt by both the orchestrators and Baron Cohen to oversaturate the film adaptation with French tones, the overwrought opening and his faux-French vocal inflections badly misguided. The off-kilter chords normally associated with the song are not adequately applied, the usually quirky orchestration now too sparse, and Baron Cohen's inflections are restrained due to his attempt to maintain an accent. The song plummets even further when Bonham Carter enters the scene, her performance devoid of all the pizzazz necessary in the role. She slinks her way through the song as though she was lamenting within a Tim Burton animated tragedy, a product of the film's transformation of her into a younger seductress. Madame Thénardier has to be larger than life, physically and in the brutality of her loud, dismissive vocalizations. Bonham Carter sounds like a mouse by comparison, and between this truly strange alteration and Baron Cohen's failure to convey amusement, "Master of the House" has lost all of the infectious fun that it would always invariably bring to the theatre. The "Oh, Santa!" sex clip was tacky and totally unnecessary, too. Missing from the album is "The Well Scene," which normally affords Valjean an opportunity to perform "I Dreamed a Dream" (complete with interlude) but is rarely included on any recording. Ironically, the lesser tone of Baron Cohen's voice functions better for the "Waltz of Treachery" in "The Bargain," though superfluous lines have been added to the song for enhanced comedy. Again, Bonham Carter's voice cannot convey any of the treachery of the character, not sinister enough in tone to remain believable. A nice recording of the soft interaction between Valjean and Cosette at the end of this song is included on the film recording, however.

The new song added by Schönberg to this film adaptation of Les Misérables is "Suddenly," a moment for Valjean to reflect upon his past and the transition he's facing with Cosette. Backed mostly by piano, the song requires Jackman to fully and emotively sing the part in nearly a studio-like performance, and he barely suffices. The absence of orchestral depth in this redemptive situation is curious, mirroring the added song for Evita in 1996. The short addition of "The Convent" is, despite its length, another Evita throwback and a highlight of the film, the reprise of the "Bishop"/"Empty Tables" theme of lament expressed by Jackman over a stunningly gorgeous children's choir in a wet environment that, by coincidence, emulates a live theatre ambience. The album very nicely mixes the choral performance into the beginning of "Stars." Unfortunately, then Crowe opens his mouth. His amateurish voice has difficulty extending notes, and this horrible performance betrays otherwise outstanding orchestration late in the cue. Again, the end of this song carries over into the next cue, the massive burst of "Look Down" for the Paris transition very impressively overlapping the final word of "Stars." The brutal orchestration is aided by added trumpet counterpoint lines in the first minute of the cue. The fuller narrative performances for Gavroche (the little boy) are nice to hear, as are the group sound effects at the end of the cue. Also a worthy but not always appreciated inclusion is "The Robbery," which brings many characters together for the first time (although the Marius part is struck from this version). The extension of the waltz and the "theft" and "law and order" motifs all return in this cue as Javert and the Thénardiers interact, though Baron Cohen fails to comically deliver the "may I go?" line and Crowe doesn't have enough frustration in his expression of the final, accelerated "garbage off the street" line. Absent from the album is "Éponine's Errand," a common omission that is unfortunate because it establishes much about the dynamic between her and Marius. The introduction of the student rebels in "ABC Café/Red & Black" is decent, though the orchestrations are somewhat limp until the call to action at the end. Hearing spoken dialogue overlapping with the singing parts in this performance is a bit distracting. Pacing issues plague "In My Life," a lack of natural pauses between sections and uninvolved instrumentation both problems. The extension of the middle section between Cosette and Valjean is welcome. There is little convincing romance built into Redmayne's tone as Marius, in part because he doesn't hold his notes long enough. In "A Heart Full of Love," his voice comes across as wimpy, almost pleading, and this prime romantic song of the musical has layering issues with the overlapping, muddied performances by Cosette and Eponine. Gone from the albums is "The Attack on Rue Plumet," which is not atypical.

The best overall adaptation from the stage to the movie is "On My Own," an observation owed mostly to the fact that Samantha Barks actually knows how to sing the role. She may not have the expansive dominance that veteran Disney princess Lea Salonga famously brought to the role, but Barks played Eponine in London at the time the film was in production and it's no surprise that she handles her role throughout the adaptation, led by "On My Own," with grace and competence. An enhanced mix of the piano culminates in a sequence at 1:47 that really flourishes with fantastic instrumental presence. The transition directly into "One Day More" is a little abrupt, and the descending string motif at the start of this famous ensemble song isn't wondrous enough. This understated orchestral tracking causes issues all the way to the "I Dreamed a Dream" interlude sequence. The usual percussion accents are missing at the 1:24 mark and, as the pacing seemingly slows more than normal at the climax, the final layering of all the lines is awkwardly sparse despite brass power trying to pull them together. The ensemble does succeed in the final phrase, however, finally yielding the kind of emphasis absent several other major sequences. The cast rendition of "Do You Hear the People Sing?" is pretty good, though a stronger lead voice in Enjolras would have helped. A fair amount of the narrative that takes place in the barricade sequences has been truncated, at least for album purposes, "Building the Barricade" mostly a score cue overlapped by sound effects and dialogue (the interior has the narrative section for Javert's deception). As Javert returns in "Javert at the Barricade" (a combination of "Javert's Arrival" and "Little People"), the narrative is a bit condensed. "Little People" is still a bit annoying no matter the context. Fighting and marching sound effects at the end of the song are unnecessary and irritating. Another score cue ruined by sound effects and dialogue is "The First Attack." Was there any reason why this non-song had to include all the effects to drown the orchestra on album? Fans of the show will also be miffed by the changing of the Eponine and Marius encounter at the end of the cue (the plot has been altered). Regardless of Banks' presence as the former, "A Little Fall of Rain" is largely translated to a spoken song, the breathing sound effects causing serious issues with it. Lines are barely sung when they are, and all the somber romance is stripped from the moment. The vital "Night of Anguish" sequence is gone from all albums for the film's soundtrack, and omitted is another great interaction between Valjean and Javert. Perhaps that's for the better considering lower expectations for the lead performers. Adequate is the film's shortened version of "Drink With Me," with better guitar presence than usual. It's difficult to nail down Aaron Tveit's interpretation as Enjolras even here, the blend of optimistic, gung-ho spirit not really accompanying the normal masculinity the role demands.

In "Bring Him Home," the voice of any Valjean performer is tested at its higher limits, an aspect of Wilkinson's success that was so remarkable for the tenor. Jackman is forced to attempt a traditional singing performance much like in "Suddenly," and only some decent orchestral backing helps mask his marginal capabilities. Anyone expecting Jackman to even approach Wilkinson territory will be horrified. The "Dawn of Anguish" and "The Second Attack" passages are condensed into "The Death of Gavroche," a mostly dialogue and sound effects track with the exception of the barricade motif explosion from the full ensemble at 1:43. Even more troublesome is the lack of an isolated orchestral recording in "The Final Battle," which combines the score with effects and dialogue once again when the score alone would have been preferred outside of the picture. The track does offer nicely isolated string renditions of "Red & Black" and appends the violin performance of "Bring Him Home" typically associated with the sewers score cue from the stage recordings. The actual track called "The Sewers" here is partly another score cue obscured by effects, though there is an impressive isolated portion in the middle. The orchestral backing of the final interaction between Valjean and Javert is very impressive, but the scene is badly truncated for no good reason. Enthusiasts will note that the Thénardier song "Dog Eats Dog" is the most notable total omission from the film adaptation. The quirkiness of the song makes it one of the more difficult ones in the musical, so it's no great loss. At least we won't have to hear Baron Cohen embarrass himself trying to perform the more fluid, "only the moon looks down" portion at its end. In "Javert's Suicide," the quivering strings at the forefront are somewhat distracting, as are the prickly instrumental treatments subsequent in the song. Both the sounds of the water and an increased layer of dissonant instrumentation leading up to the jump are also issues to contend with. And all of this on top of Crowe's continued, amateurish performance capability. Shortened for the film is "Turning," making it somewhat insignificant. The normally booming "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables" has been reduced to a very slight and muted presence, Redmayne no comparison here for the various major theatre production actors in the role. Lacking is the vocal inflection and instrumental power of the stage renditions, sucking all the life out of the song. The introduction to "A Heart Full of Love (Reprise)," "Every Day," is badly abbreviated and unsatisfying in the film, Marius' lines removed completely from the sequence. In the actual reprise, the mix of Jackman's voice is far too forward and dominating when Valjean's purpose in the song is meant to be in the background. It is good to hear "Valjean's Confession" on album, because it is a nice piece of the narrative not often included, with a memorable adaptation of "Who Am I?" finished in the identification of Valjean by Marius, who performs that line decently here.

The reprise of "Suddenly" between Cosette and Marius is likewise a strong narrative addition to the musical, leading naturally into the robust choral "The Wedding," which for some reason is missing chimes in the performance. Unfortunately, the latter portions of the passage are badly cut short, the grand orchestral transition to the treacherous waltz for the Thénardiers absent. The lines of the waltz are also condensed and those that are provided are mainly spoken rather than sung. This reprise is particularly piss poor work by Baron Cohen and Bonham Carter. The transition to "Beggars at the Feast" is rushed, Marius' assault almost immediately followed on album by the lively song. No man can rebound from a strike that fast and start singing in jolly old fashion! The actual "Beggars at the Feast" is even shorter and more haphazard than it always has been, with an unnecessary yell at the end. The lengthy "Epilogue" has typically included a reprise of "Bring Him Home," "Valjean's Death," and a reprise of "Do You Hear the People Sing?" for the full chorus, this sequence left intact structurally for the movie. The first of those three performances for the film is rather unremarkable by Jackman, though there are inconsistencies in the distance of his voice on album. As nice as it is to hear the spirit of Fantine, Hathaway's reappearance is ruined by the desperate breathing of Jackman. In the dying sequence, Jackman's performances disintegrate into spoken words; the only salvation is the singing of Hathaway and especially Barks, who save the sequence. The approaching mix of voices for the finale is well handled, the wetter ambience welcome as always. The film's end credits contain an orchestral suite that plays for eight minutes and opens with a combination of "One Day More" and "I Dreamed a Dream" (which are structurally related anyway) and intertwine for the first 2:50 of the track. In the climax of "One Day More," the orchestrations nicely pass the various overlapping lines between sections of the ensemble (horns for Javert, trumpets for Epinone, flutes for Cosette and Marius, and violins for the Thénardiers). Thereafter, the suite resets and rotates between instrumental versions of most of the song melodies, leading up to "Do You Hear the People Sing?" as the natural conclusion. The arrangements of "Bring Him Home" and "Stars" are well presented, though "Master of the House" is embarrassingly sparse and abrupt. The inclusion of "Suddenly" to the suite helps better define its theme, and its transition to "On My Own" is gorgeous with the piano. The guitar finally makes an impact (too late, really) in the conveyance of "Empty Chairs at Empty Tables," which gets cut off by the barricade motif. The entire suite has a few flaws, however, omitting the important "Look Down" as a necessary element and maintaining a very dry sound that makes the ensemble sound like it's only 30 members strong in a small theatre pit. This constrained sound will ruin the performance even for listeners for whom manual addition of reverb is a must.

Summary of the Film Soundtrack:

Overall, it is easy to recognize why casual enthusiasts of the musical, those who perhaps saw it on stage back in the 1980's or 1990's, will find the film adaptation of Les Misérables to be appealing, especially with the photographic techniques and the big name actors in the major roles. But those loyal to the music's heritage will be horrified by this new soundtrack just as much as those who balked at 2004's The Phantom of the Opera. The producers managed to ruin both of the movies, the decision to choose acting over singing a fatal flaw with predictable totality. What is the purpose of hearing Schönberg's music and Boublil's lyrics disrespected in such a way? Interestingly, the insistence by Mackintosh to have the singing performed live on set in the context of the action was not alone a major problem; it simply exacerbated the issues with the incapable voices in the cast. Had talent at the level of Wilkinson and other stage greats been employed for this film instead, these actors could simultaneously act and sing just as they do every night, and they probably wouldn't require as many takes! The notion that you need to have actors convey the story because motion pictures are "too up close" compared to the stage is nonsense, and anyone who has seen the stage masters perform will know that. These performers can sing and express agony or delight at the same time as well as anybody, and if anything, their job of conveying these emotions is more difficult because they have to ensure that those in the back row of the theatre can see what they are doing. Meanwhile, you have the orchestral score, which in this case was adapted and orchestrated to a large degree by Dudley. In some regards, it's difficult to say if the general disappointment with their recording is due to the arrangements or the poorly executed mix of the group into the live environment. The latter tends to obscure the nuances of the former, especially in the strange diminishment of the acoustic guitar and harp. There are places where the arrangements are simply magnificent in this adaptation while there are others in which they are utter failures. For the recording of 2012's Les Misérables to truly impress, it would have required a wet ambient sound with the kind of reverb that audiences have heard in theatres for decades, perhaps even with a dose of overdubbing of strings to widen the effect. But that sound was incompatible with the highly intimate recording quality of the vocals, which once again perpetuated the overall mix's fatal flaw: sounding small and amateurish. Like The Phantom of the Opera, there are some new incidental and transitional cues in the score (attributed to Dudley in some cases) that were swallowed up in the process of bringing the whole together, and don't expect to hear many of these on even the most expanded album presentation.

The Stage and Film Albums:

If you seek an album representation of Les Misérables, whether in the screen adaptation or from the original stage musical, you have numerous options. For the film, fans were offered two variations of the soundtrack, the first your typical condensed highlights that will function for the masses who enjoyed the picture. Several months later (and milking more money from those who couldn't resist the first product but wanted to hear more of the score all along) came the "Deluxe" 2-CD version which, for whatever reason, is not complete. Even the longer version is missing "On Parole," "The Runaway Cart," "The Waltz of Treachery," "Éponine's Errand," the full version of "The Attack on Rue Plumet," "Night of Anguish," the "End Credits Suite," and a number of the instrumental passages throughout the non-sung portions of the film. Given that the two CDs in the "Deluxe" version had more than 40 minutes of space to spare, it's baffling as to why all of this material was not pressed, especially considering that royalties for the orchestra shouldn't be a big concern on this project. Enthusiasts of the play will likely gravitate to the longer album simply because that is what they have always done with the musical's recordings in the past, but be careful with this approach. Those who care enough about the music to want to hear the whole soundtrack, even in the flawed film form, will more likely be the ones who reject the adaptation because of the terrible performances. The expanded presentation on album simply exposes the true depth of how awful the recording really is. No matter which way you go, you will be confronted by a stifling ambience and the intrusion of sound effects and dialogue on the product. In some ways, you would be better off simply going the Moulin Rouge route (a far superior film musical but one that also requires its film music, sound effects and all, to really recreate the music's fullest form) and simply yank your desired Les Misérables movie soundtrack from the DVD itself. What you get will probably sound better, be as complete as you want it, and still have all the same sound effects (or detrimental artifacts, if you will). That way, you also can attempt to reverse the mixing of songs together like they are at the transitions of the album tracks, a touch that is nice in some places but causes awkward moments at others. To be honest, though, the avid Les Misérables collector will probably want to watch the film once out of morbid curiosity, be disgusted by it, and forget about the resulting albums. Unlike The Phantom of the Opera in 2004, there really isn't even a collection of orchestral outbursts you can pull out and add to your compilation of favorite moments from the stage recordings, with the possible exception of "The Convent," which is too short to matter much.

Those unfamiliar with the music should not despair the negativity in this review, however, because fortunately the English-language Les Misérables exists in beautiful form on prior albums of the stage variants. It is because of how incredible those albums were, in fact, that this review of the dismal film is so passionately argued. As longtime fans of the musical can humorous testify, however, there is no silver bullet amongst the collections of previously existing albums, either. Each offering has its benefits and drawbacks, and you ultimately find many Les Misérables fans with several products in their collections. This isn't like the original cast recording for The Phantom of the Opera, which nailed everything (vocals, orchestration, mix, etc) on the first full product. There will always be sentimental connections to the original London and Broadway cast recordings for Les Misérables, for they feature some of the best vocal performances as you would expect. It's somewhat difficult to go back and appreciate them for reasons other than nostalgia, however, given how sparse their orchestrations are. The musical has become some much more operatic and grand in its symphonic tone in later years that these original recordings, dominated by electric bass, electric guitar, and other synthetic elements, sounds comparatively cheap. They do, however, have tremendous personality. In the late 1980's, the "Complete Symphonic Recording" assembled cast members from around the world and presented the full musical with greater orchestral depth (but without losing the electronics). Unlike the other two, however, this album lacks Wilkinson in the lead role, a big detriment considering the power of Quast as Javert. Through the film's debut in 2012, this 1989 album remains the only option for fans wishing to hear the full musical in English. The two anniversary albums, the 10th and 25th, resulted from live concert performances of the musical with a massive orchestral ensemble and choir, both available on CD and DVD. These were produced stunningly by Mackintosh, which makes you wonder what the hell he was thinking with the film. Of these two concerts, the 10th anniversary is superior, and it remains the best overall product representing the musical ever to be assembled. The cast contains a great collection of performers (only LuPone as Fantine could have improved it appreciably), they nail their parts in one pass, and the orchestra and choir are sublime. Sound quality on this product is also tops, though there are portions of the 25th anniversary product (which unfortunately had a few wretched casting choices, including that of Marius) that overwhelm with great symphonic force and clarity. In the end, skip the film's soundtracks and seek out either the CD or DVD (it's fun to watch as well) of the 1995 10th anniversary concert performance of Les Misérables to enjoy the best of all worlds for this magnificent, transcendent entry at or near the pinnacle of the long history of stage musicals.   @Amazon.com: CD or Download

• Music as Originally Written for the Stage:  *****
• Music as Heard on the Original Cast Recordings:  ***
• Music as Heard on the 1989 "Complete Symphonic Recording":  ****
• Music as Heard on the 1995 10th Anniversary Recording:  *****
• Music as Heard on the 2010 25th Anniversary Recording:  ****
• New and Adapted Music as Written for the 2012 Film:  ****
• Music as Heard in the 2012 Film and on its Albums:  FRISBEE
• Overall 2012 Film Soundtrack Rating:  *