Les Misérables (1934 film)

Les Misérables
Directed by	Raymond Bernard
Written by	Raymond Bernard
Produced by	Unknown, possibly Raymond Bernard
Starring	Harry Baur Charles Vanel
Music by	Arthur Honegger
Release date	3 February 1934
Running time	279 min
Country	France
Language	French

Les Misérables is a 1934 Drama film based on the novel of the same name by Victor Hugo. written and directed by Raymond Bernard and starred Harry Baur as Jean Valjean and Charles Vanel as Javert. The score was written by Arthur Honegger. It is an epic film which runs nearly five hours. It is considered by many to be one of the most underrated films of all time. The film is also considered by the few fans of the novel who have seen the film (the film is rarely seen in its full version outside of France) to be the greatest ever adaptation of the novel.

Plot Summary

Jean Valjean is an ex-convict struggling to redeem himself, but his attempts are continually ruined by the intrusion of Javert into his life. Javert is a cruel, ruthless police inspector who has dedicated his life to pursuing Valjean, whose only crime was stealing a loaf of bread, and later, breaking parole.

The film, like the novel, features numerous other characters and plots, such as Fantine, a woman forced into prostitution to help pay two cruel innkeepers, the Thenardier husband and wife, who are looking after her daughter, Cosette, the story of the revolutionaries, including Marius a young man whom falls in love later on in the film with the now-adult Cosette.

Critical reaction

The film has been referred to as "the most complete and well rounded adaptation of Victor Hugo's classic novel".

Differences from the novel

The film is, for the most part, faithful to the original novel, however, there are some differences:

• Jean Valjean has served only fifteen years, in the book he served nineteen.

• Javert is presented as considerably less sympathetic than in the book, largely portraying him as the pinnacle of the cruelty in 19th century France.

DVD Release

The Criterion Collection has announced that Les Misérables will be released on under the Eclipse label, along with Bernard's Wooden Crosses. The two films are scheduled for a July release. This version runs around twenty minutes shorter then the original release, although it is entirly possible that the five hour and five minute running time, may be inaccurate, or counting intermissions from the original release that are not included in the Criterion release.

Length

The Criterion DVD release is 279 minutes long, whereas the original release is reported to be 305, however, it is likely that that is including intermissions, and the DVD without, it is also possible that some footage has been lost or damaged, but less likely.