The epic musical Les Miserables tells the story of a man named jean Valjean played by Hugh Jackman set during the dawn of the French revolution. After serving 19 years as a slave because he stole a loaf of bread, he breaks parole and spends years reinventing himself as a new man. Jean is being hunted by officer Javert played by Russell Crowe, who swears he will not rest until Jean is behind bars. While running from Javert, Jean Valjean finds himself caring for a factory workers young daughter, Cosette. The young child changes his life forever.<p>Les Miserables is honestly one of the greatest films I have ever seen. This film is almost three hours long and I still wanted it to go on longer. Les Miserables is a very well known Broadway musical and it stays so true to the play it is unbelievable. Not a single word is off. However, the one thing that changes for the better is they made the movie easier to understand and follow. I have been a huge fan of Les Mis for a long time and I know almost every single song by heart. I was trying so hard not to start singing along with the film, the musical score was amazing. The whole film is better than I could have ever hoped for, but seeing this tale up on the big screen was phenomenal! <p>The visuals and special effects are truly breathtaking. It is set in France at the beginning of the French revolution when life for the poor was awful and life for the rich was grand. They capture the hard times of the streets perfectly by using dark colors and wonderful lighting contrasts. I loved seeing the world of Les Mis on a grand scale and it is exactly as I imagined it would be. I love this entire movie so much that when it was over I immediately wanted to see it again. I'm definitely going to see it again when it comes out in theaters. I have so many scenes that I love so much, but my favorites are the Lovely Ladies scene and the Master of the House scene. I like the Lovely Ladies scene because that's where Fantine, Cosette's mother turns to the streets as a home after losing her job at the factory. It is a wonderful musical number and Anne Hathaway's performance is amazing! It is so historically accurate showing how people would do anything to make a quick penny from selling their teeth, to chopping off their hair, it was hard for everyone. I also love the Master of the House scene because it is so hilarious. It has Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter as the innkeeper and his wife. They con people into staying the night at their inn, then trick them into never leaving. They are so crafty and hilarious and they rob everyone blind. This scene is so clever and hilarious. Sacha and Helena make an amazing duo.<p>I love all of the characters equally, but I'll only pick a few to talk about. Jean Valjean is a truly amazing character and Hugh Jackman brings him to life so well. Hugh's talents are really shown off during this film and I was very impressed by him. Fantine, played by the remarkable Anne Hathaway is a very memorable character. Anne is perfect as Fantine and this was, in my opinion, her best role. The last character that I really enjoyed is Eponine played by Samantha Barks. Eponine sings all of my favorite Les Mis songs and her incredible duo of A Little Fall of Rain with Eddie Redmayne. A little fun fact is that Samantha Marks played Eponine in the Broadway version of Les Mis.<p>Overall, I give Les Miserables 5 out of 5 stars because it is truly the most amazing film I've seen in a long time and it far surpassed my expectations. This film is definitely for ages 13 and up because of the dark period it is set in and the violence and cruelty that occurs. Raven Devanney, age 15, KIDS FIRST! Film Critic.