Les Misérables (BBC/PBS miniseries) Review

The BBC/PBS adaptation of Les Misérables was an ambitious mini-series with an all-star cast and lavish production values.

Following Napoleon’s defeat at Waterloo France enters a period of political and social upheaval. The King has returned to rule France and Napoleonists are shunned. During this period Les Misérables focuses on Jean Valjean (Dominic West), a convict who’s ostracised when released from the Hulks, and Javert (David Oyelowo), a police inspector who has a vendetta against Valjean. Over the years Valjean becomes a mayor and a factory owner and adopts a young girl whilst tension in Paris simmer.

Les Misérables is one of the most famous novels to come from France and has been adapted numerous in English and French for film and television. Probably the most famous adaptation is the musical – it’s the version I’m most familiar with. So the miniseries was a bit of an eye-opener because the musical did skip over of the story so the stage adaptation wouldn’t be too long.

Les Misérables is an enduring story, as evident by the number of adaptations. It’s an epic story that spans over 17-years and has a large cast of characters. It’s a story that looks at poverty, romance, revolution and redemption. It’s a lot to take to in.

Les Misérables is French for “The Wretched” and that title is fitting because many of the characters go through hardships. Jean Valjean has to suffer working hard labour and punishment, the young Costelle (Mallow Defoy and Lia Giovanelli) gets abused by the innkeepers, and many people end up destitute. Les Misérables makes Charles Dickens’ portrayal of poverty tame by comparison.

The character that suffers the most was Fantine (Lily Collins). She was a peasant girl who has a relationship with a wealthy student who abandons herself, gets exploited by the Thénardiers (Adeel Akhtar and Olivia Coleman), and falls into prostitution. Fantine’s story was a tragic one because she has the shame of being an unwed mother and gets drained physically, emotionally and financially. It was a role that showcases Lily Collins’ talents as she goes through the wringer in the second episode. A powerful sequence in the second episode was when Fantine sold her hair and front teeth and then mocked by The Scribe because he told her she should have prostituted herself first.

Valjean was a less sympathetic character than in the musical, especially in the first two episodes. The first episode ends with Valjean stealing money from a child and he fired Fantine because he found out she lied to him. Fantine’s anger was more justified than in the musical where she was fired by the foreman. Even when Valjean mellows with age he still had a dark side because he’s protective of his adopted daughter. He didn’t want her to suffer the faith of her mother when a wealthy student falls for her.

The vilest characters were the Thénardiers. The series starts with Monsieur Thénardier robbing the graves of soldiers after the Battle of Waterloo and he sinks even lower from there. The couple swindles Fantine for everything she had, abusive, and show little regard towards their children. They were easy to hate.

One of the most interesting supporting characters was Monsieur Gillenormand (David Bradley), Marius’ grandfather. Gillenormand was a conservative royalist who prevents Marius’ father from seeing his son and indoctrinated Marius to be a royalist as well. Bradley does his cruel man that mastered in Game of Thrones, but he was also able to show the Gillenormand’s humanity because he still loved his grandson despite their differing views on politics.

The TV series had a cinematic quality to it. A lot of money was spent on it considering the calibre of the cast and being shoot on location in France and Belgium. The ambition of the series was shown with the scale of the scenes. The opening scene showed how big the Battle of Waterloo was by the number of bodies on the ground and there were big sequences like when Valjean was doing hard labour and showing the mass of people during General Lamarque’s funeral. However, the barricade sequence wasn’t much different from the 2012 film.

This mini-series can appeal to a wide audience. It can please people interested in macro issues likes political revolution and poverty, and having more personal conflicts throughout its runtime.