Carousel

This is the worst musical in the world next to Cats.
I had the pleasure of viewing Carousel last night on PBS Live from the Lincoln Center. 
First let me tell you the good parts about this God awful musical;

Good
1. The actors. I have always been a big Kelli O'Hara fan and was happy to hear that she would be the lead in this musical. The rest of the actors were also great and I'm almost positive Jessie Mueller is going to get more work after this, but it's hard to realize that these people are wonderful when their characters are so effing stupid.

2. The New York Philharmonic.
That is it. These are literally the only good parts about this musical.

The Characters
Julie Jordan- An idiot girl who needs some sense knocked into her head. 
Billy Bigelow- He is a stupid jerk ass and his last name is a brand of tea.
Mrs.Mullin- Some whore who owns a carousel .
Carrie Pipperidge- Stupid girl who's only goal in life is to become married.
Enoch Snow- Enoch is a stupid name and the guy is an asshat.
Nettie Fowler- Annoying and stupid lady.
Jigger Craigin- Idiot guy who loves being an idiot. Oh and God help the man who ever names his child Jigger.
Louise- Julie and Billy's daughter. Just like her parents, the character turns out to be an idiot. 



Review:



Audra Mcdonald tells the viewers about what the musical is about and we are then brought to the Lincoln Center where the New York Philharmonic play a long, and by long I mean a REALLY REALLY long overture called The Carousel Waltz before we get into the show. To imagine how long the overture is just remember the intermission for Gone With the Wind then subtract any fun aspect the music might have and add 5 or so more minutes.


After that is over we see two girls run onstage. Now I know this doesn't happen in every production if ANY but what irritated me was that when Jessie Mueller ran onstage it was quiet but as soon as Kelli O'Hara showed up the audience started applauding like crazy. Yes, Kelli is amazing and everyone who's seen or heard her in anything knows that. However applauding for one person when there are two on stage is ridiculously rude. But anyways-



We then meet Mrs. Mullin who is the owner of the carousel.She comes out spouting nonsense and being insanely pissed about these two girls riding on her carousel and how if she better not catch Julie near her carousel again because it's completely Julie's fault that her carousel barker (Billy) touched her for a second then put his arm around her waist. SCANDALOUS BITCH. 

Billy then comes out and the first words out of his mouth "OH SHUT UP" what a great guy! He interrupts this argument like a little jerk then says Julie can come back any time she wants, and adds that if she can’t pay, he’ll pay for a ride for her. Mrs. Mullin is all like "I own the carousel and I'm the boss. You are an idiot. You're bounced." (which is a fancy way of saying fired in this musical.)

Billy's response is something along the lines of ; What the hell ever. I'm too cool for this job yo. He then tells the girls "Don't feel sorry for me or I'll make you regret it." 

Julie is then all flustered and says "You quit your job for meeeeee?!?!?" Uh no Julie dear he was fired. Big difference. 

Billy then goes back to the carousel to get his things. He tells Julie and Carrie to wait until he gets back so they can have a drink.
Carrie then starts singing "You're a Queer One Julie Jordan" which is definitely a show opener song in this day and age. 0_o
After that song not even a minute later we have to hear a 5 or so minute song about Carrie's secret engagement to Mr. Snow and how she pretty much can't wait to bang him. Lovely.

Billy then comes back and this conversation pursues;

BILLY: “You still here?”
CARRIE: “You told us to wait for you.”
BILLY: “Well, what did you think I wanted with two of you? I meant that one of you was to wait. The other can go home.”

The audience laughed at this. How is this funny? It just shows that Billy is an even bigger jerk then he was 15 minutes ago! Carrie then leaves after Julie is all "TEHHEHEHEHE Billy is soooo dreamy!" Billy being his usual jerk self decided to tell Julie that he can get all the girls he wants. Great way to get a girl to love you Billy! 


Julie’s boss then shows up to take Julie home and forgives her for missing curfew. A policeman shows up with the boss and informs Julie of Billy’s record. Julie,being an idiot, decided to ignore mr. policeman and her boss and stays with the idiot Bigelow guy despite the fact that every red flag that has been given to her so far shows that Billy is a freaking loser!  

The two then sit on a bench and start singing about what would happen if they loved one another. It is the longest and most boring song in the history of musical theatre and I seriously almost fell asleep through it. The two  kiss for some reason and that's the end of the 30 minutes of a scene that I wasted my life over. 

We are then taken to a restaurant or something where Carrie shows up again and some other people are getting ready for a clambake. The only part about this I can remember is there are some extras that keep on singing;

"Give it to em' good Carrie give it to em' good!" 
I swear if I have to ever hear this again I will hang myself in a shower and I'm not even kidding. 


Nettie, the owner of whatever this is shows up and starts singing about how June is Bustin' Out All Over and everyone is super happy about it being June. That is the only point in this song; it is June. 

This scene perfectly displays that there is absolutely no reason for extras in this musical. The only reason the extras are there is because they have to sing the background vocals for some tremendously terrible songs.

In the next scene Julie shows up (after a month or so after being married to Billy) and starts telling Carrie that Billy is still not working and is hanging out with his friend Jailbird Jigger, and that he is still basically a loser. But she is okay with that. Then we get to the best part of the musical.
Julie: "He (indicating Billy) hit me."
Carrie: Did you hit him back?

This is the only part of the musical where I like a main character. Right on Carrie! 
Julie is then tells Carrie "He hit me but it didn't hurt!!! He's unhappy because he ain't workin. That's why he hit me!"
That makes sense! We will continue to hear about Billy being an abusive ass during the rest of the musical. 

Carrie then tells the extras and Julie that she is engaged to Mr. Snow and sings the reprise of the same song she sang before. We are then introduced to none other than Mr. Snow who just so happened to appear while Carrie was singing about him. What a coincidence! Mr. Snow's entrance tells us everything we need to know about him.
1. He's conceded and thinks he's the best person in the world.
2. He's annoying 
3. He's an idiot


About 5 minutes later Billy shows up and like usual, is a complete jerk and is rude to Mr. Snow who offered to shake his hand. Then again, Snow also wanted to talk about his chest cold so that could be a reason as to why Billy didn't wish to associate with him. Billy also threatens to hit Julie again. What a wonderful husband! He then tells us that "He ain't going to no clambake" which is a metaphor for "I refuse to be seen in public with my wife who I just happen to hit every so often."

Billy and Julie leave the stage so we are left with Carrie and ENOCH (Mr. Snow) who thinks it wise to question Billy's lifestyle choices then proceeds to sing a song bragging about how he will accomplish everything he wants to do in life and how he plans to get Carrie pregnant 8 or so times. Carrie by the way  has no say in any of this but obviously has feelings about children.


After that catastrophe of a scene we are brought to some place where Billy and Jigger sing a song with some extras for no reason other than to get the extras a paycheck. Oh and to tell the audience their plans of ROBBERY. Jigger wants himself and Billy to ROB  the mill owner for some money. I'm not sure about Billy, but in Jigger's case he better believe he's going back to jail once his parole officer finds out about this scheme.

Mrs. Mullin's comes back into the picture and offers to give Billy his job back. The only way she'll accept him back though is if he leaves Julie. Billy says "he'll think about it" which is messed up in so many ways. Mrs. Mullin tries to have a conversation with this loser when out of nowhere she says that "You beat her." Billy's response?
"I DID NOT BEAT HER. I HIT HER. I DID NOT BEAT HER! I'LL KILL ANYONE WHO SAYS OTHERWISE." GRR RAGE! 
Julie comes out of her house when Billy is thinking about leaving her and tells him that she's pregnant.  Oooh now we're getting somewhere! What a twist that came out of absolute thin air.

Billy goes back to Mrs. Mullin and does the only responsible thing he ever does in this musical and decides to stay with Julie to support their kid. Although when you look at it in another light, Billy just declined the one and only job offer he will ever get so once again Billy is somewhat of an idiot. 


Mrs.Mullin laughs at Billy about how he's going to become a father which leads to Billy almost strangling her dramatically.
We then have to hear Billy sing a 10 minute long song about his soon to be son who he will name Bill. Not like Julie get's any choice in naming the child or anything because as we all know, the father is the one who has to go through excruciating labour pains! He then comes to the realization that the child might not be a boy after about 8 minutes. 
You can have fun with a son
But you gotta be a father to a girl

So if it's a boy he doesn't have to take on any responsibilities. If it's a girl he's screwed! 

After the song is over Billy agrees to help Jigger rob someone so he can support his child. I can think of a million better ways to help support a child, robbing someone is not even on the list. 

Oh and remember when Billy said "I ain't going to no clambake." Well he's going now so he can use that as an alibi when he and Jigger have to run from the cops because their robbing plan is bound to go terribly wrong.

End of ACT I.


Now if you are still reading this and are on the edge of your seat wanting to know what happens in the next and final act, here you go!

ACT II
Act II opens with everyone in the cast at the clambake. Singing about the clambake. Originally the song "A Real Nice Clambake" was written for Oklahoma! as "A Real Nice Hayride." Either way though the song should have just been burned so it could never see the light of day. By far this is the worst song in the musical. I wanted to go outside, get a rock, and throw it at my TV every time these people sang the chorus.
However I could see a ton of the extras faces and in their mind you can tell that they were thinking "This isn't worth it."


Once the song ends, Nettie tells everyone that "They all will clean up the mess they made" before the men can go on the treasure hunt. I'm wondering since when did this lady have the power to tell everyone what to do? I would have thrown something at her, like a rock. And why can't the woman go on a treasure hunt? Are they not pirate-y enough? Can woman not be good at treasure hunting? That's screwed up. When I was forced to go to camp when I was younger my cabin had to go on a "treasure hunt" and find 5 counselors. We found 6. And we all just so happened to be a girls.

But anyways, Billy starts telling Jigger about how he has a knife under his coat for the robbery which everyone watching already knows considering he makes it pretty obvious that he has a knife hidden at the end of Act I. Billy then leaves and the only two people left onstage are Carrie and Jigger.

Jigger stars making a move on Carrie for some unknown reason considering the two haven't even spoken before this. Carrie tells Jigger that he better get his damn hands off of her cuz she be a happily engaged woman! Jigger tells Carrie that he will teach her how to defend herself then picks her up. Enoch happens to find this unacceptable and tells Carrie that he can't marry a woman who is "loose, free, and lollygagging" LOLLYGAGGING. Now there's a word I haven't heard in a long time.

Carrie then stars breaking down and crying while Enoch sings about Geraniums in the Winder. Once again this is not Rogers&Hammerstein's best work.The song tells us how Enoch is feeling sorry for himself (even though he's the one who called the marriage off because another guy touched Carrie in a non-provocative manner.) Carrie continues to cry while Enoch keeps pushing her away from him while basically calling her a tramp. Enoch is too virtuous a man to touch you Carrie!

Jigger looks like he's about to punch Enoch in the face for being so stupid, but instead of something hilarious like that happening we get to listen to a song which repeats the phrase 
Stonecutters cut it on stone
Woodpeckers peck it on wood
What does that even mean?!?!?!? If anyone can tell me what that means I will buy them a croissant or something. 
Carrie then tells Enoch to say "Say something soft and sweet" to her.  The actor who plays Enoch in this production took a long dramatic pause then said "Boston Cream Pie" AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA. That's a rib buster! 

^Boston Cream Pie is hilarious! Just look at it!

After that nonsense the treasure hunt begins! Nettie tells them that the team that finds the treasure get to kiss any girl they want! Knowing this musical that sounds like a wonderful prize considering the treasure would probably only be something like CLAMS or a SHINY NICKER instead of real gold or something that could be beneficial to get anyone off this stage.

Julie goes up to Billy and tells him that "Pairing up with Jigger is a foolish mistake because neither of them know the island very well." Being Billy's usual jerk self he completely disregards his wife's advice because he has other plans. Like robbery.

Once the guys all leave all of the girl extras tell Carrie that marriage sucks and that she's better off being a free woman. Julie comes in and we have to hear the damn reprise of Tell it to em'good! only this time it's towards Julie. Julie tells Carrie that marriage is awesome and that if you love someone it doesn't matter if they are a stupid moron. 

Billy and Jigger come into the scene for some unknown reason where Julie tells Billy that she wants to go with them and feels the knife under Billy's coat. How do you think Billy responds to this? If you guessed "be an abusive idiot" you're correct! He says; 
"I got no time to fool with woman! OUT OF MY WAY" then roughly pushes Julie out of his way. She's lucky she didn't fall down. Oh and how do the extras respond to seeing Billy being an abusive jackass? If you guessed "be an idiot" you're right again! The extras tell Julie that even though Billy's a jerk she should still love him. This is the worst advice ever!

The lighting for the stage grows dark and we are shown Billy and Jigger, both who are waiting for the mill owner to arrive so they can rob him, or I'm sorry MURDER him. It went from robbery to murder. This should go over well.

The mill owner shows up and Billy asks for the time while Jigger sneaks up behind him. The mill owner is on to their bullshit and pulls a Jackie Chan style move on Jigger and pulls a gun on Billy. The mill owner is my all time favorite character in this musical. The mill owner is like "You wanted to know what time it is. I'll tell you what the time for you will be. 10 or 12 years in prison." Bwahaha. Mr. mill owner you are awesome! 
Jigger runs away and the police show up. Billy decides to do the only logical thing to help his child now and stabs himself. The mill owner says that Billy's "a fool" and that he didn't have the money anyways so Billy did this for absolutely nothing. 

The rest of the clam-bakers show up to the scene at this time. Julie is sad because Billy is pretty much going to die. She tells him how much she loves him despite the fact that he just left her with no money and no support for her unborn child. 

Nettie shows up and her and Julie start singing You'll Never Walk Alone which is honestly a wonderful song and one of R&H's best. Mrs. Mullin's also appears out of nowhere and gives her condolences. 




You thought that was the end? Think again!

Some guy who we've never seen before comes onstage and starts talking to Billy. At this point Billy get's up from his dead position and starts walking around while Julie and Nettie are continuing to grieve. The guy who just showed up tells him that he needs to come along to be judged. Billy, being his usual self says that "IF I'M GONNA BE JUDGED I'LL BE JUDGED BEFORE GOD HIMSELF." Because you totally deserve that right Billy. The new guy on stage takes Billy to the Starkeeper (played by John Cullum) who has some kind of power in heaven. The Starkeeper tells Billy that because someone on earth remembers him, he can go back to earth for ONE DAY and if he accomplishes to do one good thing he will be able to go to heaven. 

At this point in time Billy's daughter is now a 15 year old troubled girl. Billy comes back to earth because he reaally wants to go to heaven and watches as his daughter Louise (played by Tiler Peck) perfroms a ballet dance which shows us that she's lonely and that the other kids bully her because her father was an abusive ass. I actually enjoyed this part of the show for some reason, even if it did go on for 10 minutes but there really was no point in including a ballet number. 



Julie and Carrie come onstage after Billy decides it would be wise to help his daughter in some way. Basically the only thing we learn from Julie and Carrie is that a graduation is coming up and Carrie has 9 children, all of whom were helped made by Enoch. Enoch and Enoch Jr. arrive on the scene as Carrie is being SCANDALOUS by imitating a show she saw the other night. Enoch Jr. stays behind and tells  Louise that he is going to marry her to stop her from joining an acting troupe, but his father probably won't approve. Louise thinks Enoch Jr. is almost as bad as his father and orders him to go away.

Billy, watching the scene unfold, becomes visible (apparently he can become visible/invisible whenever he wants), scares the bejesus out of Louise, then starts telling her a story about how he was a friend of her fathers and starts bragging about what a wonderful person her father was. You want to know what else Billy is? A trespasser! 

Billy then presents Louise with a gift, a star he stole from the starkeeper. Louise, thinking this guy is off his rocker, refuses the star. Billy, being the typical Billy, then hits her. Next stop: HELL. You can't be stealing stars from someone in power then hitting your daughter. 


Louise runs inside to get Julie. Julie then runs outside and because Billy doesn't want to face her non-existent wrath he becomes invisible again.
This conversation then happens. 
Louise: Is it possible, Mother, for someone to hit you hard like that - real loud and hard, and it not hurt you at all?
Julie: It is possible dear, for someone to hit you, hit you hard, and it not hurt at all.

WTH. I am appalled by this in so many ways. 
Julie and Billy then sing a song which I can't remember much of because I'm still trying to watch this musical without smashing my TV because these characters are such freaking idiots.

The graduation ceremony begins and the Starkeeper, posing as some doctor gives some pretty good advice to the future generation. 
" I can't tell you any sure way to happiness. I only know that you've gotta go out and find it for yourselves. You can't lean on the success of your parents. That's their success. And don't be held back by their failures."

Billy, still invisible, whispers to Louise to believe the doctor guy. We hear a reprise of "You'll Never Walk Alone" being sung by everyone at this graduation. Louise is now accepted by everyone. Billy whispers into Julie's ear that he loves her then walks into heaven.

THE END.




My opinion

This is one messed up show. I obviously disliked a lot of it. There is no character redemption at the end and for some reason Billy get's to go to heaven for doing NOTHING. Oh wait, he did do something. He beat his wife and hit his daughter and was going to kill someone for some money! Not to mention he became a thief while he was in the afterlife.

In the Hungarian version of this musical, Liliom, Billy get's sent to Purgatory then goes to hell after hitting his daughter. I would have enjoyed this ending much better!

However once again I must stress is that all of these actors are amazing even with these sucky characters. Nathan Gunn (Billy) had a fantastic voice in this, which he should considering he's a professionally trained opera singer. I thought Kelli O' Hara was absolutely brilliant in The Light in the Piazza, The Pajama Game, and Dracula. I have heard Jessie Mueller's (Carrie) name before and she was terrifically fantastic with what she had to deal with here. Jason Danieley (Enoch Snow) I thought was alright. I had to do some looking around considering I had no idea who he was but I have actually heard him before. He was in the musical Floyd Collins, which most people have never heard of but I thought it was a great musical.

Oh well, you can't like all musicals even if you are a theatre major.

I'm thinking about writing a review about a musical every Monday if I can. No promises yet though. It's just something I think would be fun to do. 

Hope you liked reading this! =)

Downton Abbey Returns Tonight!

I am a huge fan of Downton Abbey. Every single review that you may have read about the show is true; it is a masterpiece. I am incredibly excited to start the 3rd season tonight and although it has already finished airing in Europe I have tried my best to stay away from as many spoilers as possible because nobody is going to ruin the experience for me! I am fully prepared to devote the next seven or so Sunday's into watching season 3 and am looking forward to what will unfold in the lives of both the upstairs and downstairs crew and everyone else.


Yes, Downton Abbey does have somewhat of a soap operaish feel to it, but if you have never seen an episode here are a few reasons as to why you should start marathoning it right now;

1. The actors are flawless- Literally, every single actor in the show is amazing. From Maggie Smith's Dowager Countess Violet and her hilarious insults, to the horrible character of Thomas played by Rob James Collier, the acting is perfection and you will become invested into at least one of these characters story lines.

2. Speaking of the Dowager Countess's insults, the show does tend to have humorous moments. One of my favorites;

3. It's true to the time period- Have you ever watched a movie and thought "Wow that is so historically inaccurate?" *cough cough The Patriot* well this show stays true to the Edwardian time period from the fashion to the War to the makeup (note: mascara is not allowed onto the set. Woman did not have mascara during those times so the makeup artist of the show does not use it.)

4. ACTION- From the sinking of the Titanic to the Great War, this show has a lot of action, usually when you least expect it. As of right now one of the main characters is in jail for murder. More than likely because his conviction was wrong.

5. Love Love Love- There are a few stories dealing with romance. Mary and Matthew, Anna and Bates, Sybil and Branson,  Cora and Robert, etc.etc.etc.

6. Villains- Thomas and O'Brien along with Vera Bates. You will either hate or pity them. Which is a good thing because this means that they are doing a great job!

7.  The fashion- The dresses and hats and hairstyles are oh so beautiful. I actually learned how to do Lady Sybil's hair the other day and got some compliments on it. Sybil style rocks!



8. People are always coming and going. Apparently Shirley Maclaine is supposed to show up this season which I am very curious about.

9. British accents! I swear every character has a different one, but I could totally just be hearing things.

10. It is a great show. Seriously, just watch it.



To those of you who are fans like myself, who are your favorite characters? Personally I like Daisy (a  few people have told me that we're dopplegangers, which I can kind of see...) and Sybil as characters and am a huge fan of the Anna and Bates relationship. Matthew and Mary is practically the main relationship going on so of course I'm invested in that as well. Honestly I really dislike Mrs. Hughes but I can't quite put my finger on as to why. I'm pretty upset about Robert's behavior last season as well so he has to work hard to earn my trust back. I want O'Brien to be fired because as much as Thomas is horrible, I find O'Brien to be worse. I really want Edith to find someone as well. She is a pretty awesome character (if a little bitchy) even if she is shoved in the background half of the time.
 Overall I am just really looking forward to season 3 tonight, bring it on!

Les Misérables Review!

Let me start this off by saying that if you have not seen this movie yet, please do so now. Right now. Even it's it is 1 in the morning, go. Get your butt off the computer or your iphone and see it!!! Invite your neighbors as well. I shall wait for your return.

Now that that is out of the way, be warned, this review will contain SPOILERS. So if you failed to listen to the above suggestion tis your own fault if you are spoiled, not mine.







Review Time!
So without a doubt I knew that this movie was going to be fantastic. I stayed away from the reviews online so as not to have their opinion influence my thoughts. This is now my 2nd favorite movie of all time, but Les Mis has always been my 2nd favorite book and stage production so it really doesn't surprise me that this is now my 2nd favorite movie. I seriously cannot say enough good things about it. However, I am a little bit more impressed with the stage version but that is no reason to diss on this film.  In fact everything Tom Hooper directed completely did the stage production justice and for that I applaud him. The only people I cannot see enjoying this movie are musical haters and people without a soul or people who love everything about Will Ferrell. (No, I am not apologizing for that last statement.) That is it.

Now I apologize to my readers ahead of time if this just kind of bounces around and all over the place but I am hoping that you understand what I am trying to say. Before we begin here is what Les Miserables is for those who have no idea. Les Miserables is a French novel written by Victor Hugo (the same dude who wrote The Hunchback of Notre Dame) in 1862. The novel was turned into a musical in Paris in 1980 where it ran for 3 months in the Palais des Sports in Paris. After being translated into English, it opened in the West End of London on October 28, 1985 where critics loathed it but fans loved it. The Broadway production opened on March 12, 1987 and was nominated for twelve Tony Awards, and won eight.

Now onto the movie version!

The actors
Hugh Jackman (Jean Valjean aka 24601)- Give him an Oscar. And an Academy Award. And everything. Wonderful, wonderful performance. I cannot even fathom seeing any other film actor as Valjean. He did so well and I am just extremely proud of him in this role.



Russell Crowe (Javert)- I want to give this man a hug, truly I do. He was phenomenal and I have to say that he was the one that surprised me the most. And I am so tired of reading comments about his portrayal of the character and how bad he did. To those people; you know nothing of Javert! Javert is a hard role to portray considering it's complexity and I would like any one of you asshats who are complaining about his performance to do as well as he did. Oh that's right, he got the role and you didn't so you can't prove anything so let us shut up about it and stop hating on the Crowe. Considering that Crowe is not a professional singer, he kicked major ass. His Javert was amazing and for the first time I felt that he was indeed, a human and anyone who disagrees can go jump off a bridge! Truly Crowe was one of the highlights of the film.

Oh and here's a little fact that a lot of people missed in the theatre; when Javert falls in the water you can hear a cracking noise. Pretty sure that was the sound of my heart breaking.='(



Colm Wilkinson (Bishop of Digne)- For those who don't know, he is THE FIRST Jean Valjean. Having him play the Bishop is the best decision ever made ever. Great performer and he did fantastic as the Bishop. I was so happy that he makes an appearance at the end of the movie as well for he is the character that pretty much had the most significant influence on Valjean the most.What was really cool was that throughout the movie the silver candlesticks were shown.


Anne Hathaway(Fantine)- Oh Anne Hathaway, you were so amazing! After I Dreamed A Dream I was tempted to not applaud. She was just incredible in this role. She played the character so well and I thought that she was absolutely astonishing.Her scenes were the ones I found to be some of the most heart wrenching to watch and when a scene or actor can get that reaction out of you, they are doing their job. I am really REALLY wanting Anne to win an Oscar for this, she is deserving of it more than anyone this year.



Amanda Seyfried (Cosette)- She did wonderfully. I knew by the trailer that she was a great choice but her voice completely fits the role and she sounds like a little song bird! At the end you could really feel her characters love for her father as well. I really dislike all the hate Cosette's character get's though. Sure, in the musical we don't get to know a lot of her back-story but if you read the book you might come to appreciate her more. By the way, I absolutely loved the hat she wears! =)



Eddie Redmayne (Marius)- Good casting choice. THANK GOD HE IS NOT NICK JONAS. I've only ever seen him in one other role and this was something new to him and he succeeded and almost made me like Marius a little. ALMOST. Still hate him though but at least in the movie he seemed to feel something when Eponine died and didn't just go (2 seconds later) I HAVE MY LOVER COSETTE'S LETTER! I LOVE HER! without even acknowledging Eponine's death. One thing I really wanted to see that they didn't add in (though probably not his choice) was having Marius throw a rock up to Cosette's window and have her shut it then sing "I'm doing everything all wrong!" during A Heart Full of Love.

ABC Members- Every single one of them did an amazing job. Aaron Tveit (Enjolras) really surprised me and I have to say his portrayal of the character is right up there with Ramin's. Unlike the stage version I actually felt somewhat attached to his character and felt some pretty strong emotions when we didn't see him again until the end.


Samantha Barks (Eponine)- Truly the star of the cast. I knew she wouldn't disappoint. Eponine is one of my dream roles and I have been a huge fan of Samantha ever since the 25th Anniversary concert. Even on film she is the best.


































Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter (The Thenardiers)- I loved them both so much! Most hilarious characters in the show and they got that across very well. I wish they would both receive a lot more credit than they have been given. Truly Helena and Sacha are now my favorite takes on the Thenardiers.


 Daniel Huttlestone (Gavroche)- I loved him so so so much! As soon as he jumped into the carriage I'm just like "You're gonna go far kid." Loved him so much! I knew he would die but that didn't make it any less sad. When Javert put his medal on him I almost lost it.


Isabelle Allen (Younger version of Cosette)- What a great little actress/singer she was. I was so surprised to find out that this was her first time appearing on film, she did so great. I'm literally rooting for her to be in more films, I thought she stole the show.


Natalya Angel Wallace (Younger version of Eponine)- Looked so very similiar to Samantha Barks it was unreal. Although it's a small role she made it her own. "Eponine, come my dear, Eponine, let me see you. You look very well in that new little blue hat!"


Sister Simplice AND Sister Perpetue- BOTH OF THEM were in the movie. I was so very happy when I saw both of the sisters even if in the musical they seem to play a small role and usually only one is on stage. But the movie gave homage to the characters which I liked a lot.


The Extras- You could not have this movie, nor this show at all without the extras. Well done to all of them and a special shout out to Frances Ruffelle who played a whore!




The Music:
Every single song was done in good taste and is deserving of ravenous round of applause. Although a lot of the lyrics were switched around and some of the songs cut shorted (such as A Little Fall of Rain) it is not really that big of a deal and you won't pick up on it unless you are a huge fan of the musical (like myself.) 

Work Song/On Parole- This starts the entire musical out and get's you ready to experience this rollercoaster of a story. However this is not my favorite version of the two songs. Great change in lyrics, but not my favorite version.

Valjean Arrested, Valjean Forgiven- I cannot even begin to describe how wonderful this scene was. I adore Colm Wilkinson as the Bishop so much.

What Have I Done?- Hugh Jackman did an exceptional job during this song. The emotion he put into it was so great that for a second I believed that he was the real life version of Jean Valjean.

At the End of the Day- We are taken to the year of 1823 in Montreuil-Sure-Mer. Fantastic scene. I read that some people were complaining about the extras and how their whispering was unnecessary but it was wonderful and fit the scene beautifully. We meet Fantine and learn that she is working to pay for her daughter after some worker snatches a letter out of her hand because she has no respect for privacy and needs to know every single thing that goes down in Fantine's life. Honestly it felt a little like bullying when the other workers surround and quetsion her.  Monsieur Madeleine aka Jean Valjean comes in to break up the fight, sees Javert then flees as Fantine is thrown out onto the street. Wonderful performance by Hathaway here. 

Lovely Ladies- I was honestly not a fan of the 10th or 25th anniversary's rendition of this song. However the movie does it fabulously and we get to see Fantine get her hair cut/ have her teeth pulled which is truly heartbreaking.

I Dreamed A Dream- This is what will get Hathaway an Oscar, for this song alone.

Fantine's Arrest- The scene where we see that Valjean truly is a changed man.  Breathtakingly beautiful this scene was.

Who Am I/The Trial- Jackman did such a wonderful job with this song, although the close up on his face kind of bugged me for a minute.

Come to Me (Fantine's Death)- CRY CRY CRY CRY CRY!!!! We get to see a type of spirit representing Cosette at this point in the film and it just breaks my heart to know she's not going to make it. Jackman also takes this scene to a whole new level with his character, which is good considering he has became an honest man.

THE CONFRONTATION- By far my absolute favorite song in the entire musical. And they did it splendidly... WITH SWORDS.

Castle on a Cloud- Isabelle Allen is a talented little girl and her version of Castle on a Cloud has to be one of the best that I have ever heard. And of course Madame Thenardier's part was purely evil but I couldn't help but love it because Helena was singing and I'm a huge fan of hers.

Master of The House- I have had this song in my head for days. It was done so well and had everyone in my theater laughing. Why is it that the catchiest song has the one with the worst morals in lyrics?

The Bargain/The Thénardier Waltz of Treachery- Everyone nailed this scene! This is basically how it went down;
Thenardier- (hand gesturing) Come here
Cosette- (shakes head) No
Thenardier- Come on I NEED MORE MONEY. 
Cosette- No no. That's quite alright.
Thenardier- Please pretend that we love each other.
Cosette- NO.
Thenardier- GIRL GET OVER HERE!
Cosette- Fiiineee...

Probably one of my favorite parts of the movie!

Suddenly- This was a new song that they added in for the film and although it is a really nice ballad it was not necessary. Maybe I need to listen to it again to get exactly what he was singing about and maybe I'll learn to love it.

Stars- Oh my God it was soooo freaking good! And I loved how at the end it went into a huge instrumental and we were taken to Paris, 10 years later.

Look Down- Probably my 3rd favorite song of the entire musical. Loved it lots! However I missed the beggar woman and Madeline!

The Robbery/Javert's Intervention- This was a great take on it! I loved how each character seemed to have aged through the years as well!

Eponine's Errand- I am so happy that they didn't cut this scene! "Little he knows, little he sees."

ABC Café/Red and Black- HUGE round of applause for our Barricade Boys! Red and Black is another song that has been stuck in my head for days now and it's not really one of my favorite songs.

Rue Plumet/In My Life- Such an emotional song and I think that every single person carried it out well. 

A Heart Full of Love- <3 Wonderful. There really isn't much more to say about it.


The Attack on Rue Plumet- AHHHHH! It was sooo sooo good! I've always loved this little tune!

On My Own- I shall admit that it blew me away. A bit different than the stage version (not as much belting) but still really fantastic. I want her to win an award so bad.

One Day More- This song was just filmed amazingly and I really can't explain how they did it but it made the song seem more umm realistic? I'm not sure what word I'm going for here but it was good.

Do You Hear the People Sing?- Yes and they were great! I loved how they filmed this scene as well. Completely took me by surprise.

Building the Barricade (Upon These Stones)- Pretty good, although I wish Eponine would have delivered the letter, but can't have everything I suppose.

At the Barricade (Upon These Stones)/ Little People- LOL. I love Gavroche so much in this! But I've always liked Javert as well so it always sucks when they find out he's a traitor and tie him up! Oh and it sucks when Eponine get's shot as well. ='( Besides Gavroche, not a really happy song for some people!

A Little Fall of Rain- No idea why they had to cut this short. Not cool Mr. Hooper! But still, it was quite good.

Night of Anguish- Valjean, at last! You arrive at the barricades! 

Drink With Me- I really am not fond of this song but the way it was filmed gave it something, although I'm not sure what.

Bring Him Home- Fabulous, fabulous, fabulous. Jackman brought it home with this song!!!

The First Attack- Valjean releases Javert. Not really a great song but it is needed for development.

The Second Attack" (Death of Gavroche)- I cannot express how much I wanted to cry during this. WHO SHOOTS  A KID?!?!? Bastard! You could truly feel Grantaire's sadness during this scene.

The Final Battle- This was done beautifully. Toward the end about five or six end up in the attic with Enjolras. The soldiers are downstairs and shoot through the ceiling and suddenly the boys drop dead and Enjolras is left completely  alone. There’s fear and a pounding heart as the soldiers come up and surround Enjolras, and you can see it in his eyes that he knows this is it. And then Grantaire makes his way up the stairs, and takes his place beside Enjolras to die. 

Javert's Suicide- Beautiful. Simply beautiful. I HATED IT! Why does he have to die?!?!? Overall though, it was executed in a beautiful way and we actually get a deja vu experience to Stars when he was walking on the edge of the building.

Turning- They cut out 99% of this song as well. It made me sad because I really enjoy this song a lot.

Empty Chairs At Empty Tables- Redmayne sang it really well but I think they could have added more to the scene.

Every Day- This was breathtaking. But I really REALLY dislike Marius as a character. 

Wedding Chorale- Great scene, always love how Marius punches Thenardier. Surprisingly this is the part where everything becomes clear to Marius! *gasp.* 

Beggar's At The Feast- Liked it better on stage but this was different and I somehow appreciated it.

Valjean's Death- Crying tears!Fantastic and heartbreaking. Amanda’s reaction to the death of Valjean is so tragic and believable. Fantine coming to retrieve Valjean’s soul is beautiful  And  Eponine isn't there. Yeah, I kind of wish that we could have had that cool harmony with Fantine, but that's okay. Instead, Valjean’s spirit walks out of the church where he died to the waiting Bishop, who joins in singing “to love another person is to see the face of God” and it’s just literally the most perfect way to end the Epilogue.

Do You Hear the People Sing? (Reprise)- Great way/ song choice to end the show with. Bravo!


Basically, to sum this review up the movie should win everything.  EVERYTHING. And Tom Hooper included the convent in the film which was only in the book. Hooray climbing the wall convent scene! What really impressed me the most though is that every person sang live, no movie has ever done that before and you can definitely see that making that small change really payed off. Basically this is a one million and a half movie out of 10 in my ratings. Go see it!

Favorite Halloween Movies

Happy Day Before Halloween Everybody!

For a blog post I thought that I should incorporate what some of my all time favorite scary/thriller movies are for this time of the year! Granted, they will not be in any order, these are just some of my favorites.

HALLOWEEN

Story time: My grandmother made me watch the first Halloween movie when I was 8. It scared me to death when the knife went missing from the kitchen. I have watched all 8 since then and let me just say that if you watch 2007 you are wasting an hour or so of your life. Because of my crazy grandmother I don't find many horror films horrotastic today so I guess I should thank her for introducing me to Michael.

I Know What You Did Last Summer

Technically this is the first horror movie I have ever seen and gotten through. One of my friends said it scared her to no end so of course I had to check it out. Absolutely loved it. I also really liked the sequal, I Still Know What You Did Last Summer.

Night of the Living Dead

"They're coming to get you Barbara." My all time favorite horror movie hands down. The 1968 version in black and white.

Sleepy Hollow

Tim Burton. Johnny Depp. Headless horseman. Beautiful costumes. Windmill on fire. I watch this movie every year. I actually wanted to go to the theatre at the time and see it but I was only 8 years of age at the time and because it was rated R that was a no go for me.

The Haunted Palace

My all time favorite Vincent Price film which I think should be considered a classic. If you like Price then I  also recommend House on Haunted Hill, House of Usher, The Pit and the Pendulum, and The Masque of Red Death.

13 Ghosts

Fantastic movie if you are into old school terrors. This is the 1960 version. The 2001 version irritates me. Basically most movie remakes irritate me. One of the surprises I had while watching this was that Margaret Hamilton (aka Wicked Witch of the West) co-stars in it.

Classic Alfred Hitchcock movies- The Birds and Psycho

Both are classics. Hitchcock in general is a classic.

An American Werewolf in London

Saw this on a plane trip to Minnesota. I thought the movie was quite clever. This is what a werewolf is, if you use Taylor Lautner as your werewolf reference you automatically fail.

Dracula (1931)

I really do not think any movie adaptation can compare with the book, they all are pale in comparison. However Lugosi IS the real life image of Dracula.

Scream

Classic and wonderful movie. The biggest movie star is killed off in the first ten minutes, the audience has to expect that anything might happen. 

Nosferatu

This was one of the first silent movies I have ever seen. I think that it is an absolute classic.

Shadow of the Vampire

This movie is a fictionalized account based on the making of Nosferatu. When I first heard about the film I wasn't expecting much but I definetley think that it is worth a watch if you are into vampires/filimg/ or Nosferatu.

The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari

One of my all time favorites. It is a silent film but this is a movie which I would depict as the one that started the entire horror genre.

My favorite not really scary but still great Halloween movies;

Hocus Pocus

This is a Halloween movie that I have to see every year or someone's child will go missing.

It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown

I think that everyone and their mother have seen this. If you have not then please come out from under the rock you are living.

The Nightmare Before Christmas

When I was a kid I was not able to get through this film.Now I could watch it every single day and be happy.  I would recommend this movie to kids 8 and over.

The Corpse Bride

This is not only one of my favorite Halloween movies, but it is one of my favorite animated films in general. Great artwork and great voice cast.



I have probably forgotten quite a few on my list and will curse myself later for forgetting. Question of the day; what are some of your favorite Halloween movies?