Les Miserables (episode 3)

Last night I was able to catch up on Les Miserables' episode 3 and as always, it did not disappoint. I LOVE that we're getting to spend time with subplots that were only hinted at in the musical versions; it's leading to a better and deeper understanding of these characters.  Episode 3 focused on Valjean's promise to Fantine to bring Cosette to her, Fantine's death, and Javert's obsession with finding Valjean and bringing him to justice for his past sin of stealing 40 sous from a young boy (you can find my review on that episode here).  Javert flushes out Valjean by telling him that he has found the "real" Valjean and he is standing trial in Arras for his theft of the 40 sous. Valjean, racked by a guilty conscience ever since the theft, goes to Arras to see for himself.  When the (innocent) man is being condemned for Valjean's crime, Valjean steps up and declares himself as Jean Valjean.  A powerful scene, as Valjean identifies 3 fellow former prisoners and calls out Javert for accusing the wrong man.  Having never really had clarity on this in the musicals, I appreciated the filmmakers for making this scene. I never knew for sure from the musicals whether or not Valjean actually went to Arras to reveal himself, or if he remained hidden to protect himself.  If this was explicitly stated in the musicals, I've missed it numerous times!

Which brings me to an observation: Valjean's acknowledgment of who he was.  He was guilty, taking the place of an innocent man who had nothing to do with his crimes.  A reverse picture, really, of how Jesus took our place. A completely innocent Man Who paid for guilty sinners with His blood.  Even with the risk of (re) imprisonment, Valjean took responsibility for what he had done.  He was clearly at peace with this decision, because he willingly turned himself over to Javert. He only escapes when he realizes that the woman he'd tasked with fetching Cosette refused. He makes a promise to Fantine, albeit after she dies, to find Cosette and take care of her.  He's put back into the Toulon prison hulks, but 2 years later, we see him free; he (presumably) escaped somehow.

This leads to him finding Cosette and forming a father-daughter relationship with her. He sees how harshly she is being treated by the Thenardiers, and because of his promise to Fantine, he buys her from the Thenardiers...at great cost.  This is another picture of redemption-it may be free for US, but it was NOT free for Christ.  The great cost wasn't 1,500 francs; it was His blood. Cosette did nothing to warrant being bought for such a high price; she just existed.  She was the embodiment of a promise, and Valjean goes to great lengths to ensure that promise is kept. We then see the development of a beautiful father-daughter relationship over the course of the last 20 minutes or so of the episode.  Valjean will stop at nothing to keep her safe, healthy and happy. The episode ends with Javert being angry at Valjean escaping yet again from his grip.

Next episode appears to be a jump forward in time with an older Cosette and Marius. If you have not yet gotten into this series, then what are you waiting for?

Avengers: Endgame (SPOILER WARNING!)

Well, I'm sufficiently heartbroken over fictional characters after Thursday's viewing of Endgame.  Marvel is requesting no spoilers, but since you've been warned, and it's your choice to scroll down, it's your own fault if you read them!  So, stop reading now if you haven't seen it yet and want to remain spoiler free.





































SPOILERS START NOW












I don't even know where to start, to be honest.  The movie was a sucker punch in the gut for Marvel devotees, and I'd go from laughing to crying back to laughing and then to sobbing within the span of a couple of minutes.  Infinity War was awful initially, but then you realize that multiple vanished characters had sequel films coming up and you knew that somehow they'd be coming back.  So, similarly to how I started my Infinity War review, I'll make a list of all those superheroes who either died or survived by the time the end credits rolled. Characters marked with an * have an explanation at the end.

SURVIVED/BROUGHT BACK FROM ASH
Captain America (yay!)
Sam/Falcon
Bucky/Winter Soldier
T'Challa/Black Panther
Shuri
Gamora*
Clint/Hawkeye
Scott/Ant Man
Hope/The Wasp
Henry Pym and his wife (I've forgotten her name)
Bruce/The Hulk
Thor
Valkyrie
Groot
Rocket
Quill/StarLord
Drax
Mantis
Nebula
Doctor Strange
Peter/Spider-Man
Wanda/Scarlet Witch
Carol/Captain Marvel (duh)
Wong

(*Gamora "returned" because the Gamora at the end of the movie was from a different time period. Yes, time travel is heavily involved in this film.)

DIED/VANISHED
Tony/Iron Man ( :( )
Thanos (vanished)
Natasha/Black Widow

Did not return:
Loki
Vision
Gamora (from the correct timeline/time period)


Whew.  I fully expected Iron Man and Captain America to be the ones who died, but I did not anticipate Black Widow, AT ALL.  This scene was one of many that was hard to watch, mainly because she's an original Avenger.  Can I just admit, that I completely ugly cried as Tony was dying?!  I started out in the MCU not even really liking Iron Man, but I didn't realize just how much I've grown to love him throughout the last few years.  Ugh.  So. Dang. Awful!  But the character development there is incredible.  The little pushes they've given Iron Man over the years to move him towards where he is in this film is evident. He's not anything like the arrogant, self-absorbed billionaire we met in "Iron Man" (2008), and I think that is saying something not just of the writing/directing, but also Robert Downey Jr.  What a great performance and what a fitting send off for the hero who started off the MCU as we know it.

As for Captain America, there's a *small* part of me that was pleased with how they wrapped up his storyline. I've shipped Captain Carter (my ship name for Cap and Peggy) since the first Captain America film, and I've always thought he got cheated by not getting his happy ending with her.  I'm so glad he was able to get that happy ending, but like a friend mentioned to me, I wish there had been more time spent on their relationship in the past. Who knows? Maybe it'll be done later on.  Captain America has been my favorite from the very first time I saw the first movie of his, and really he's responsible for me even being a Marvel fan-I had discounted the MCU with the Iron Man, Hulk, and Thor films but when I saw Captain America (and that Avengers teaser at the very end of the post-credits), I was sold. How fitting, also, that they brought up Steve giving his shield (i.e. his mantle) to Sam (as from the comics).  and, can we just talk about THAT MOMENT when STEVE WIELDED MJOLNIR?!  So. EPIC!!!

I may have cried some happy tears when all of the Avengers came back together for the massive battle at the end. Seeing them all return one by one was incredible!  But I think my favorite part was when all of the female Avengers (excluding Black Widow, 'cause you know...) assembled and went against Thanos. If we don't get a female Avengers film sometime soon, then I'll have to go assembling some e-mails to Marvel execs!

I feel like this should be a much longer review, considering the film ran for 3 hours and it's spanned 11 years + 22 movies. I think I'd have to see it again to really delve into everything. I'm hoping to see it again soon so I can fully appreciate everything there!

Les Miserables on Masterpiece (episodes 1 and 2 review)

I bet you can't read the title without at least one bar or measure of music from Les Miserables entering your brain.  Literally, every time I even hear the title "Les Miserables", I get "One Day More" stuck in my head for an hour or so. I love the musical (only the 25th anniversary concert from London, though) so I was a little skeptical about the new adaptation on Masterpiece that premiered April 14. I tried and failed in the past to watch the non-musical adaptation with Liam Neeson and Geoffrey Rush, and I couldn't make it past the first ten minutes.  But, the previews looked so enticing that I thought I'd give it a try. I'd even tried to start the book this year, but only got to about page 26 of 908 (or however many pages the novel actually contains). I was pleasantly surprised by not only the quality of the adaptation, but also how its lack of Broadway-style music didn't detract from the overall presentation.

The cast has so far been superb. Dominic West as Valjean, David Oyelowo as Javert, and Lily Collins as Fantine.  Dominic West reminds me a lot of Hugh Jackman...only with a little more depth in his acting.  Episode 1 was a great illustration of how the old man (the convict/criminal Valjean) fights with the new man (the redeemed/converted Valjean, will expound on that in a sec), and how a small act of seemingly foolish kindness and love can turn someone's life upside down.  I guess I'm new to who David Oyelowo is-I saw him in United Kingdom with Rosamund Pike and thought he was a very talented actor, and a shame I haven't seen more of his work lately.  As Javert, he's giving a very subtly crafty performance and it'll be interesting to see how that develops over the next 4 episodes.  Lily Collins' Fantine is a little more complicated-I've never been a fan of the character, maybe because of the way Anne Hathaway portrayed her.  Here, though, we get to meet a young woman who makes some wrong choices and they're costly. Yet, despite her poor choices and the consequences thereof, she does try to do the right thing(s) by Cosette.  I never felt like the musicals portrayed her desperation clearly enough. It might be because the musicals are not able to really delve into each character's backstory the way a miniseries can.

We see though, that Fantine is forced unwillingly into a life of prostitution. This is after she goes to great lengths to make money by other means (by selling her hair and teeth), and only when pressed by the Thenardiers to send an extravagant amount of money to "take care of" Cosette.  Episode 2 left us with Fantine on her death bed, Valjean being cornered by Javert and trying to determine whether or not running is the answer, and Javert playing a cat-and-mouse game with Valjean by telling him that the real Valjean has been captured and is awaiting trial.  Valjean's struggle between his "old" self of a convicted criminal and his "new" self of a criminal trying to make a life for himself outside of his prison, comes to a head at the end of Episode 1.  He steals 40 sous from a young boy who simply drops it on the road.  Valjean cruelly tells the boy to move along and refuses to give back the coin. As the boy disappears down the road, shouting, "You're nothing but a dirty thief!" all the way, Valjean is overcome with remorse.  He calls to the boy, but it's too late.  Presumably, it's this interaction coupled with the kindness of the Bishop that finally helps Valjean to pursue an upright life.  And we learn in Episode 2 that Valjean never actually spent the 40 sous that he stole from the boy, nor did he sell the silver candlesticks gifted to him by the bishop in episode 1.  Valjean's struggle, that continues throughout episode 2 and presumably will continue until episode 6, is a beautiful though messy depiction of how the old man and new man in Christ are constantly at war with one another.  We may be saved by grace when we become believers, but unfortunately it doesn't mean we don't have to struggle with our choices or the consequences those choices may/may not bring.  and, Valjean struggles with the concept of love and kindness, especially that of love and kindness of God in the middle of a dirty, ugly, evil-riddled world.

I had someone tell me on Facebook that they just couldn't imagine the story without the "uplifting" musical numbers.  I agree, the music is phenomenal and I'm not by any means trashing the musical version. However, I think the musicals gloss over and overlook certain important interactions between characters.  The time we spent with Valjean in the Bishop's house is a good example-I've felt like the musicals rush past how revolutionary the Bishop's treatment of Valjean really was.  A revolutionary treatment that Jesus exemplified in His earthly ministry (while not overlooking sin).  If you are a Les Mis fan, I encourage you to watch Masterpiece's adaptation. I think you'll find it worth your time.