Les Misérables (1998)

Directed by Bille August. Starring Liam Neeson, Geoffrey Rush, Uma Thurman, Claire Danes, Hans Matheson, Lennie James, Peter Vaughan, Jon Kenny, Gillian Hanna, John McGlynn, Shane Revey. [PG-13]

Umpteenth film version of the imperishable Victor Hugo tome casts Neeson as 18th-century French thief Jean Valjean, whose already-excessive punishment for his crime is never enough for obsessive Inspector Javert (Rush). Respectable on nearly all fronts, dutifully touching on the major themes while condensing the narrative (and building up the “big” moments), but it’s never as moving as the novel or as visually sweeping as the best literary epics painted onto a cinematic canvas. Sometimes resembles a Cliff Notes version with its simplifications and moral hand-holding, but it’s a solid story told with proficiency, so that should be good enough, especially for those unfamiliar with the book or superior film version(s). Most glaring shortcoming: the young lovers, Cosette and Marius, who were already one of least successful pieces in Hugo’s powerful tapestry, and the way they’re played by Danes and Matheson make them borderline insufferable. (At least Rafael Yglesias’s script adaptation gives this subplot less coverage than the book.) Music by Basil Poledouris, although some promotional materials credit Gabriel Yared, whose score was rejected by director Bille August.

67/100