“People are ignorant of things they ought to know, and know things of which they ought to be ignorant. They are crude and impious.” ~Victor Hugo, Les Miserables
What to make of the stage and film productions of Les Miserables?
I’ve pondered that question ever since I first saw the musical in 1992 Seattle. It was a big hit by then and we had blown our entertainment budget for the quarter purchasing tickets. People I liked loved it. I knew nothing else of the story. So I bought the audio tape (the waning audio technology that year) and listened.
I’m a musician. I loved the music.
I’m a trained musician. I heard how the composer used his skill to manipulate emotions.
That’s what composers do and I relished the whole experience until I stopped to consider the words.
The most “fun” songs were about prostitutes and the bawdy master of the house.
Hey, I swung my hips and sang along. I understand the power of the songs–but as I repeated the lyrics and burned them into my mind, well, I’m not sure how healthy that was for me.
“Certain thoughts are prayers. There are moments when, whatever be the attitude of the body, the soul is on its knees.” ~ Victor Hugo, Les Miserables
Several years later my son’s classmate left Hawai’i to spend six months in New York City to play Gavroche on Broadway. When the production came to Honolulu, I hestitated–the humorous glory of those prostitutes and the innkeepers–but then decided “art” and “culture” trumped mother unease.
We blew the entertainment budget for six months and took the olders boys to see it–Jay wanted to know what his friend had been doing.
“What was the message you took from the show?” I asked.
They shrugged. They loved the spectacle of the fighting and music on the barricades. Is there a more stirring anthem than “Do You Hear the People Sing?”
“People are ignorant of things they ought to know, and know things of which they ought to be ignorant.” ~ Victor Hugo, Les Miserables.
We’d spent four days in Paris visiting the Musée de L’Armée at Les Invalides, touring Isle de France and some of the sites of the French Revolution and finished with a trip to Normandy. We rode through the chunnel and hurried to the London theater the next night to see Les Miserables. This time we took young adults fresh from trying to make sense of French history.
This production was geared to the tourist–we attended with many Japanese school girls dressed in uniforms–and was very hurried. But while the music continued its swelling pathos, the speedy rendition and two sopranos who couldn’t hit their notes, made us reconsider the message.
Somehow, the truly redemptive power of Jean Valjean‘s repentence and acts of grace went missing in London. Javert, of course, growled his way through rigid legality and frigid anger before breaking–everyone knew to hate him. But the true heart of this story–grace–was easy to overlook and disappointing.
“Those who weep do not see.” ~Victor Hugo, Les Miserables.
The opening scenes of the film last week stunned me as we moved from underwater to God’s view above and then honed down to focus on one individual man. Prisoners dragging a ship into drydock astonished me, and set what should be the spiritual tone of the film.
Then Russell Crowe began to sing.
The poignant songs are beautiful, but Fantine’s elegy of her lost youth, “I Dreamed a Dream,” (magestically sung by Anne Hathaway in the movie–give that woman an Oscar) as well as Eponine’s “On My Own,” underscores what this tale is all about: grief, pain, heartbreak, violence, revenge.
While savoring Hathaway’s performance, I realized I had paid to watch people in torment. The entire film is a glorious orgy of horror–from the beaten prisoners, the gaudy prostitutes, the toothless peasants, to the bloody death of young men at the barricade.
I sat in a comfortable seat to watch people suffer. Beautifully, of course.
Did that make me the moral equivalent of the wealthy Parisians who walked past people living tortured lives in the streets? Can I be sanctified by just observing poverty and grief? Should I better use my time and talents to fight against slavery and the type of misery these people experienced?
“Love is the foolishness of men, and the wisdom of God.” Victor Hugo, Les Miserables
Ultimately, the story of Les Miz is the contrast been grace and law as seen in the lives of Valjean and Javert. These are the biblical ideas Hugo demonstrated in Les Miserables. From the priest who bestowed the candlestick on Valjean to Eponine’s sacrificial decision to thwart her miserable parents, grace and love abound. Fantine gave up her life for her child, which underscores the power of love to redeem at personal sacrifice. (Just like Jesus?)
“Even the darkest night will end and the sun will rise.” Victor Hugo, Les Miserables
Bodies litter the path of our heroes by the end of Les Miserables, but the writers do not leave us in misery. The final scene is a blessings as Valjean makes his confession and leaves this life to be embraced by God–forgiven, justified, loved.
“A faith is a necessity to a man. Woe to him who believes in nothing.” Victor Hugo, Les Miserables
What to make of it all? Faith is the center of Hugo’s work–that’s where the focus needs to be: redemption, forgiveness, love. That’s the truth, the strength, the beauty of all life–on stage or off.
In my opinion, where Les Miz focuses on that truth, this is a powerful work. Maybe the bawdy, fun music is needed, however, to slip truth into the hearts and minds of those not looking for it?
What do you think?
For more insight into Victor Hugo, see The Writing Sister’s posts 10 Powerful Quotes from Victor Hugo and 10 More Powerful Quotes from Victor Hugo.
Michelle,
Wow. What a lovely post today. I still haven’t seen the movie – my musician son who also happens to be a die-hard Hugh Jackman fan – has been prodding me to go and go now!
I don’t know why I’ve been resisting. Could be a time constraint – isn’t entertainment always a time constraint? – or it could be that I’ve loved this story for so long and am afraid that it will be changed on screen as so many of my favorite books have been over the years.
That being said, you’ve convinced me, whether that was your aim or not. My birthday is this month and I think I’ll convince hubby that a movie is in order – we don’t usually do movies because the rare times we get out and away from “normal life” we want to talk and catch up and try to remember what it felt like to stare longingly into each others’ eyes…. 🙂
Thank you for sharing your beautiful words today.
Blessings – and Happy New Year!
Becky
I found the movie revealed much about the story I had not picked up in three different theatrical versions. It started to feel long towards the end with the barricade scenes–but I’ve never really understood that element of the story–but ended beautifully. Singing was good other than Mr. Crowe, but maybe Javert should have a creaky, odd voice? Enjoy the movie, and relish God’s grace! 🙂
I recently went to the latest movie. I have found myself humming a few of the songs, which have words I do not care for, so I know what you are talking about, Michelle.
One of my concerns was that I think the political asperations of democracy was lifted more than the spiritual themes. I did see a lot of religious imagery, but I was imagining seeing the film with no or little biblical knowledge; very little knowledge of the American Revolution vs. the French Revolution; very little understanding of a Republican Democracy vs. a pure Democracy. In that case, I could easily think that if any country just has a pure Democracy form of government, it would be heanven on earth. That is a dangerous idea, IMO, to promote.
OTOH, such a deep book would be very hard to reduce to a movie. I enjoyed it and would certainly recommend it. I would more recommend the book and a deeper knowledge from various sources to gain more understanding.
I agree with you, Kathleen, particularly about the political over the spiritual. This story took place after the French Revolution which overthrew a despotic, out of touch ruler, as well as after Napoleon as the French sought a secular government. Unfortunately, it all was bloodthirsty. 🙁 What happened to those “innocent” peasants? Wikipedia describes the political history here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/June_Rebellion
Of course you and I both know the only true freedom to be found on earth is from sin. Where grace abounded, love was shown and people were free. I have mixed feelings on the entire storyline.
Hugo, of course, was sympathetic to the revolutionaries–as evidenced in the barricade sub-plot. Interestingly, whenever we ask people to describe grace, many come back to the priest and the candlesticks. That may be the most known demonstration in our society today and the movie depicted it with honor and reverence.
Thanks for your comments.
So glad I came over to your blog to read this post, Michelle! You have done a wonderful panorama of the versions. I had seen it staged on television and perhaps because I was in and out I never felt like I understood the whole story. After having seen this movie version I feel like I really do understand now after all these years.
I saw this not long after I saw the movie “For Greater Glory,” which is based on a true story. Both of these films felt like they ripped my heart out, tore it up and then pieced it back together with love.
Given that it is not only Christians who are watching this film version of Les Miz, I feel the scenes with the prostitutes and innkeepers are okay portrayals for they show the realities of people living totally in the moment without knowing
Christ. They showed the misery and down in the gutter, or sewer parts of life.
Good point, Janice. We cannot write shielded from the horrors and truth of this life, but we don’t have to glory in them. That’s why I’m back and forth–love the music, feel a little guilty about liking it, while recognizing it was meant to draw me in. I guess I’m bothered that those with the dirty faces and mussed hair, missing teeth and circles under their eyes were not offered the same gospel of grace Valjean demonstrated in the story.
But that’s why Jesus came and why we need to proclaim his grace–available for free to all who ask.
For Greater Glory was a powerful film as well. Thanks for sharing.
That post got messed up because I could not see what I was typing, and when I tried to find it, well…you see what happened. I was going to put in a second comma after sewer, but that got lost, too.
I felt those songs are representative of attitudes of some people in our society, perhaps even some in government, who enjoy tricking people to make their money. I felt the movie to be especially timely given the way things are going politically here.
I’m so glad to read your impressions about the latest version of Les Miserables, one of my favorite books since the 70’s. We, too, spent the wad in the early 90’s when the musical came to Portland, and I left disillusioned when the redemptive scenes seemed to be overshadowed by the bawdy ones. I’d decided to skip this version, not wanting to risk another disappointment. But now I am excited for it to come to our town.
We still get caught up in the bawdy scenes–though I prefer the cleverness of the stage for The Master of the House, rather than this more graphic film version. A movie is a different medium and the director had far more latitude to show things only hinted at on stage. I’m glad I saw it and probably would see it again if the occasion came up. Opening scene was absolutely tremendous. Wow. My husband has worked in shipyards and I know how hard it is to get a ship to rest safely with modern equipment, to see men in the water was staggering.
That opening was an amazing scene. And I agree about The Master of the House being less objectionable on stage. I’m so glad I saw it and I may go see it again with a gf. But I don’t remember being so moved with any of the other versions. Hugh Jackman’s facial expressions were amazing, really drew me in to Jean Valjean’s suffering.
Does anyone have a definitive source for the quote, “To love another person is to see the face of God.” I cannot seem to find it in the novel at all. Is it from another of Hugo’s works, or did it originate with Alain Boblil? Internet sources I’ve seen make various claims.
I’m sorry, Mark, I do not know where the quote comes from because, like many, I have not read Les Miserable. My guess is the lyric was written to match the story by Herbert Kretzmer.
There was a lengthy discussion on a Catholic forum about Hugo’s religious ideas. http://forums.catholic.com/showthread.php?t=741459