'Les Miserables' Hits Theaters Christmas Day
The big-screen adaptation of "Les Miserables" has arrived in theaters on Christmas Day with the star-studded cast including Anne Hathaway, Hugh Jackman, and Russell Crowe wowing audiences everywhere.
Based on the book by Victor Hugo as well as the award-winning musical, "Les Miserables" offers a grim tale laced with love and redemption.
Hathaway expands her talent from acting into singing while portraying Fantine in the film. The "Devil Wears Prada" actress delivers a breathtaking rendition of "I Dreamed a Dream" and debuts her short-cropped hair.
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While core issues in the 19th-century story revolve around love, faith, and redemption, Hathaway's role as Fantine required drastic changes to the actress' physical appearance; including nearly 25 pounds being shed in addition to chopping off her hair.
Moreover, Fantine is thrust into poverty and forced into prostitution in order to care for her illegitimate daughter Cosette. Hathaway explained her method for tapping into the challenging and gut-wrenching role.
"There's no way I could relate to my character was going through, I lead a successful happy life," started Hathaway, 30, while speaking to The Christian Post at a press conference.
"So what I did is I tried to get inside the reality of her story as it exists in our world. To do that I read a lot of articles and documentaries and news clips about sexual slavery," the actress told CP.
"This injustice exists in our world, so everyday that I was her, I thought, this isn't an invention, this isn't me acting- this is me honoring that this pain lives in this world, and I hope that we see an end,"
However brief, Hathaway's role paves the way for the rest of the tale.
Adding to the all-star cast are Russell Crowe as Javert, Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean, and Amanda Seyfried plays Cosette while Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter play the Thenardiers.
Oscar winning director Tom Hooper was the helm of "Les Miserables." The director is well known for his hit film "The King's Speech."
Already, "Les Miserables" has been nominated for Best Picture in this year's Oscars race. Moreover, Jackman and Hathaway each picked up best actor and actress nods for their roles in the film, respectively.
On Twitter, "Les Mis" fans sounded off on their reactions to the new film on Tuesday.
"Can't wait to see Les Miserables today," wrote Sally.
Dennis added, "I think Les Miserables is gonna be an amazing movie. Cast is epic. Has anyone seen it yet?"
"Les Miserables is powerful and haunting," wrote Dennis Stagg. "Not sure how it'll play with a regular movie going crowd but definitely a feat in the film."
Also released on Christmas Day was the soundtrack to "Les Miserables," available on iTunes.
