It's for a movie role. Big deal.

/Saw her in Love and Other Drugs. She gets naked a lot. It's glorious.

RoyBatty: hubiestubert: Yeah, when she gets super thin, she loses points. She's a healthy girl critter, and ought to stop listening to the advice of folks who consider teen age boys to be the most attractive sorts...

Reading the article is such a drag and wastes your posting time, isn't it?

Pretty much on this one. ;) Mea culpa.

Hathaway has been taking a lot of roles lately that have her looking more and more strung out--oddly enough, since those are kind of the characters--but it is sort of getting old. Yes, the roles have some meat to them, but she seems to be the "it" girl for making a woman appear miserable.

That is par for the course with Hollywood though. The prettier the gal, the more the directors want to muss her up. There's a line between telling a story, and perpetuating a theme over and over again. Women who enjoy their lives, have to be punished for that--again and again this occurs in film. She has to be saved. Rare are the roles where a woman just up and takes care of her own sh*t. There always has to be pain forcing her along. Fear of pain, fear of a monster, fear of some asshat finding her, fear for her child, fear of poverty. Fear as a crucible IS an age old theme, but Hathaway keeps getting roles where a pretty thing gets mussed up, and it's a shame that she's that girl now. As an actress that transitioned from The Princess Diaries and Ella Enchanted, I can see wanting to get grittier roles, but it just seems like she's been overdosing on tortured souls.

DamnYankees: Abe Vigoda's Ghost: azazyel: Anyone know if it's going to be a musical or just the story? (I LOVE les Mis)

It's going to be the musical

I don't see how they are going to do that. The people they cast can't sing (I'm assuming) the way that would be necessary.

Hugh Jackman can most definitely sing, as can Russell Crowe, Sacha Baron Cohen, etc.

Hugh Jackman singing (new window)

Bathia_Mapes: Hugh Jackman can most definitely sing, as can Russell Crowe, Sacha Baron Cohen, etc.

Hugh Jackman singing (new window)

They can sing, but they can't sing like people are used to hearing Les Mis sung. It takes serious, crazy-ass pipes to belt out many of those songs, especially those by Javert and Marius.

Who's playing Marius? Eddie Redmayne? I've never heard him sing, but I have a hard time imagining it.

Bathia_Mapes: DamnYankees: Abe Vigoda's Ghost: azazyel: Anyone know if it's going to be a musical or just the story? (I LOVE les Mis)

It's going to be the musical

I don't see how they are going to do that. The people they cast can't sing (I'm assuming) the way that would be necessary.

Hugh Jackman can most definitely sing, as can Russell Crowe, Sacha Baron Cohen, etc.

Hugh Jackman singing (new window)

And Anne Hathaway (new window).

Saiga410: MoronLessOff: [www.craigerscinemacorner.com image 300x400]

Scary thing for me is that people consider that skinny. What is he 5'10 and down to 135? I have never varied more than +-10lbs of 145 at 6'1".... yes I was at 135 at 6'1". Never diet, eat what I want and a general sloth.

He dropped down to 120 lb for that movie, and he's 6' flat.

KatjaMouse: However, the only thing in the casting that has gotten me all ragey is Taylor Swift as Eponine. Really? I mean... really?

Not really. She wasn't cast as Eponine.

Elzar: Even if she is only on this diet for 3 weeks, its absolutely nuts to do that to your body - especially since she isn't even overweight to begin with. Her body will be canabalizing far more then just fat.

No way in hell could I do 500 calories a day for more then a day or two...

Christian Bale did four straight months of 300 calories a day, supposedly.

Abe Vigoda's Ghost: Current Resident: I just don't get why she would want to make herself miserable for some dumb movie.

Must be a les thing

Well played.

hubiestubert: RoyBatty: hubiestubert: Yeah, when she gets super thin, she loses points. She's a healthy girl critter, and ought to stop listening to the advice of folks who consider teen age boys to be the most attractive sorts...

Reading the article is such a drag and wastes your posting time, isn't it?

Pretty much on this one. ;) Mea culpa.

Hathaway has been taking a lot of roles lately that have her looking more and more strung out--oddly enough, since those are kind of the characters--but it is sort of getting old. Yes, the roles have some meat to them, but she seems to be the "it" girl for making a woman appear miserable.

That is par for the course with Hollywood though. The prettier the gal, the more the directors want to muss her up. There's a line between telling a story, and perpetuating a theme over and over again. Women who enjoy their lives, have to be punished for that--again and again this occurs in film. She has to be saved. Rare are the roles where a woman just up and takes care of her own sh*t. There always has to be pain forcing her along. Fear of pain, fear of a monster, fear of some asshat finding her, fear for her child, fear of poverty. Fear as a crucible IS an age old theme, but Hathaway keeps getting roles where a pretty thing gets mussed up, and it's a shame that she's that girl now. As an actress that transitioned from The Princess Diaries and Ella Enchanted, I can see wanting to get grittier roles, but it just seems like she's been overdosing on tortured souls.

She's not doing anything Charlize Theron, Sally Field and others haven't done to be seen as credible. There is a short career span for actresses. Once they hit 40, they're lucky to get work at all, and when they do, it's usually as a younger, prettier actress' mom, or as a crone (See: Julia Roberts in that Snow White movie playing the evil queen). All the important, complex, matronly roles left as a rule go to only Judi Dench and Meryl Streep.

turbidum: Colm Wilkinson - was in Phantom of the Opera (the musical)

Colm Wilkinson was the original Jean Valjean. Dude has a crazy great voice.

Look, anyone "can" sing to a certain degree. I just think it's gonna be weird to hear these guys sing songs which are famous for having world class broadway singers record them.

tlchwi02: eh, marius has always been one of the weaker voices in that show. other than "empty chairs" his stuff is pretty standard male tenor.

I love Red and Black, and you need to have a booming voice to really make that song work. Maybe Redmayne has it, but I know Nick Jonas' inability to sing that song well really hurt the 25th anniversary show for me.

DamnYankees: Bathia_Mapes: Hugh Jackman can most definitely sing, as can Russell Crowe, Sacha Baron Cohen, etc.

Hugh Jackman singing (new window)

They can sing, but they can't sing like people are used to hearing Les Mis sung. It takes serious, crazy-ass pipes to belt out many of those songs, especially those by Javert and Marius.

Who's playing Marius? Eddie Redmayne? I've never heard him sing, but I have a hard time imagining it.

Here's him singing in the Eton Choir (he's the soloist). He starts singing about 1:10 (new window) in. He also said in a BBC interview that he's taking singing lessons in preparation for his role in Les Miserables.

Hugh Jackman has some decent Broadway experience, so don't sell him short.

Bathia_Mapes: Hugh Jackman has some decent Broadway experience, so don't sell him short.

I know Jackman can sing, but he usually sings in that "singy-talky" way of a lot of performers. I've never seen him really belt out a song with a ton of emotion, which is *really* required if you're playing Jean Valjean. I wish him the best, since I think he is a very good actor in general.

tlchwi02: He might be a decent enough singer in the world of popular music, but put him against the best people to tough the role over the course of 15 years and he's going to look shabby by comparison

This is basically my concern. I have no doubt they can all sing well enough, but I just dread being disappointed by comparison.

turbidum: I'd rather have a blockbuster musical that sacrifices some singing for a stronger movie than a musical flop with amazing singers (cf. Rent), if only because a flop will make studios less likely to produce movie musicals in the future.

I'd be happy to just go see the 10th anniversary concert in HD in the theater. I'm weird like that.

DamnYankees: tlchwi02: eh, marius has always been one of the weaker voices in that show. other than "empty chairs" his stuff is pretty standard male tenor.

I love Red and Black, and you need to have a booming voice to really make that song work. Maybe Redmayne has it, but I know Nick Jonas' inability to sing that song well really hurt the 25th anniversary show for me.

You could tell the rest of the cast were not that impressed with Nick Jonas either. I'm thinking he was cast to get some 13 year old girl asses in the seats.

KatjaMouse: Bathia_Mapes: DamnYankees: Abe Vigoda's Ghost: azazyel: Anyone know if it's going to be a musical or just the story? (I LOVE les Mis)

It's going to be the musical

I don't see how they are going to do that. The people they cast can't sing (I'm assuming) the way that would be necessary.

Hugh Jackman can most definitely sing, as can Russell Crowe, Sacha Baron Cohen, etc.

Hugh Jackman singing (new window)

Oklahoma is actually what landed him the meeting that got him freaking X-Men. As for Sach Baron Cohen, I don't know about stage work, but the man can really do some fantastic character work and had one of the most stand out performances in the movie version of Sweeny Todd. I'm certain that he can pull it off.

However, the only thing in the casting that has gotten me all ragey is Taylor Swift as Eponine. Really? I mean... really?

Yeah, I'm less than thrilled with Taylor Swift myself.

Sacha Baron Cohen, IMHO, is perfect for the role of Monsieur Thénardier. Not a big fan of Helena Bonham Carter's singing, but given the type of singing voice Madame Thénardier tends to have, she might be okay.

And I'm thrilled that Colm Wilkinson got cast as the Bishop of Digne. He was my first Jean Valjean.

And Sacha Baron Cohen will be portraying Freddie Mercury in an upcoming biopic.

Orange Guy: Why are they making this boring piece of carp into a movie?

The stage play of Les Miserables was so hard to sit through will all the snoring in the audience.

You just stumbled into the wrong thread. You may want to back slowly out of here.

DamnYankees: KatjaMouse: However, the only thing in the casting that has gotten me all ragey is Taylor Swift as Eponine. Really? I mean... really?

Not really. She wasn't cast as Eponine.

She was originally, but I forgot that the role ended up going to Samantha Barks (new window), who portrayed Eponine in "Les Misérables in Concert: The 25th Anniversary".