Thursday, January 10, 2013

Trés Misérables





Burn, bitches.


Like my good friend Maleficent and, probably, you, I was not invited to Resorts Worlds Manila's formal-attire only gala premiere of Tom Hooper's Les Misérables.

But fear not. There was no need to cast curses involving spindles and eighteen-year olds falling asleep for a hundred years.

Because schadenfreude is my middle name, I simply wonder - with much concern and sadness, to be sure - how tres misérable the chi-chi crowd felt at last night's disastrous non-showing of that famous film. 

Lame Misérables, as a pundit acquaintance of mine put it.

Technical difficulties, indeed. I understand Wilson Tieng looked ready to burst several blood vessels after this major major social snafu, the poor dear. All those VIPs dressed to the nines, with Christian Bautista, Karylle, Audie Gemora and other singers performing live numbers from the musical (accompanied on piano by no less than Ryan Cayabyab!) as a front act to a gala that was not to be.

Alors, alors, c'est-la vie, oui?

Et parce que plus de choses changent, plus ils restent le méme, regardez-vous cette nouvelle caravane pour Les Misérables: la nouvelle adaptation cinematographique de Tom Hooper. Avec Hugh Jackman étoile comme Jean Valjean, Russell Crowe étoile comme Javert, Anne Hathaway comme Fantine, et Amanda Seyfried comme Cosette.

Je ne connais pas la fille que joue Eponine ( Samantha Barks, en remplancement de Taylor Swift et Scarlett Johansson), mais n'en faire pas.

Oui, oui, j'adore, j'adore!



8 comments:

  1. Well, I was invited, but I didn't make it since I had to cover the annual Nazarene procession. So praise be Jesus, it was cancelled! My friends are still angry about it.

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    1. Hehe well, lucky you, dB.

      I thought about going to the Black Nazarene processionbecause I had never witnessed it in person. Then I thought about the crowds and the traffic and the pickpockets, so I watched Life of Pi and Jack Reacher instead.

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  2. i was actually watching "a little fall of rain" the 25th anniversary semi-staged concert.

    nick jonas was so disconnected from the song. he sounds like he's singing about a walk in the park.

    of course, that's invoking the age-old philosophy: should one sing beautifully or should one sing about the truth?

    and an even better thought: should these two schools of performances be mutually exclusive to begin with?

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    1. Nick Jonas couldn't evoke the callow earnestness of Marius, but I'd still fuck his brains out 17 ways till Sunday - and the day after.

      As for singing beautifully or singing "in character" : for the cast album, I would vote for beautiful singing. For anything else, sing in character. Like I hear Anne Hathaway does in this, her Oscar bid.

      She could sing more like a toothless, consumptive new whore, as far as I'm concerned, but Les Mis was a tragedy, not a comedy, last time I looked.

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  3. Saw it 2 weeks ago. Tom Hooper loves to assault ones senses. He's obsessed with close-ups. Sayang ang set.
    And Russell Crowe ruined "Stars".

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    1. My one fear was that Russell Crowe would ruin Stars.

      And now you have confirmed it for me, bien.

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  4. haven't seen the film and i don't expect the singing of some of the actors to be good.

    i mean this film was obviously produced for the love of Oscars and not for the love of everything beautiful in musicals.

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    1. Oooh, you sound even more jaded than I, Mr. Green Thumb!

      While I would normally say that the arts are a certain way to the poorhouse and not untold riches, the movie version of Les Mis is indeed a most Hollywood affair. So not only is it Oscar-baiting worthy of Harvey Fierstein, it was also conceived as a money-making machine that makes strange music-like noises.

      I understand that the future Miss Saigon movie rests on whether Les Mis is a box-office success. At the rate it's gone worldwide, I'm pretty sure Lea Salonga is ruing that she isn't 20 years younger.

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