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mad_mike2
Favourite Films:
1=)The Godfather
1=)Schindlers List
3)On the Waterfront
4)Lawrence of Arabia
5)In the Name of the Father
6)Dr Strangelove
7)Apocalypse Now
8)LA Confidential
9)The Mission
10)The Good, The Bad and The Ugly
11)All the President's Men
12)The Sting
13)Raging Bull
14)Toy Story
15)Serpico
16)The Royal Tenenbaums
17)Gangs of New York
18)The Silence of the Lambs
19)Last Tango in Paris
20)Brokeback Mountain
21)JFK
22)Master and Commander
23)Road to Perdition
24)Leon
25)Sense and Sensibility
26)Die Hard
27)Master and Commander
28)Julius Caesar (1953)
29)Amadeus
30)Midnight Cowboy
31)Closer
32)12 Angry Men
33)Ed Wood
34)Goodfellas
35)Withnail & I
36)The Insider
37)Reservoir Dogs
38)Glengarry Glen Ross
39)Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
40)The Dark Knight
41)Tootsie
42)Carlito's Way
43)Platoon
44)The Graduate
45)The Big Lebowski
46)Burn!
47)The Departed
48)Good Night and Good Luck
49)Munich
50)Truly Madly Deeply
http://www.imdb.com/mymovies/list?l=8276754
Actors Top 10 and their Greatest Performance:
1)Marlon Brando-Last Tango in Paris
2)Paul Newman-The Sting
3)Daniel Day-Lewis-In the Name of the Father
4)Alan Rickman-Truly Madly Deeply
5)Dustin Hoffman-Tootsie
6)Anthony Hopkins-The Remains of the Day
7)Liam Neeson-Schindlers List
=8)Johnny Depp-Ed Wood
=8)Al Pacino-Serpico
10)Albert Finney
Most Honourable Mentions: Richard Burton, Gary Oldman, Peter Sellers James Spader, Philip Quast, the cast of The West Wing
Notables(in no particular order): Ian McKellan, Gregory Peck, Robert De Niro, Jeremy Irons, Laurence Olivier, Robert Duvall, Tom Hanks, James Stewart, Sean Penn, Kevin Spacey, Leonardo DiCaprio, George C. Scott, Ciar�n Hinds, Christopher Walken, Alec Guinness, Bill Murray, Jack Lemmon, Ed Harris, Jack Nicholson, Jude Law, Geoffrey Rush, Russell Crowe, Richard Harris, Karl Malden, Rod Steiger, Robert Redford, Orson Welles, Michael Gambon, Michael Caine, William Holden, Laurence Fishburne, Nathen Lane, Robert De Niro, Alfred Molina, Kenneth Branagh, Christopher Plummer, Clive Owen, Kevin Bacon, William Peterson, Val Kilmer
Actresses
1)Faye Dunaway
(Im not to confident of ranking the rest so a list will have to do): Vivean Leigh, Cate Blanchett, Meryl Streep, Anne Bancroft, Natalie Portman, Eva Marie Saint, Keira Knightley, Kate Winslet, Emma Thompson, Judi Dench, Jodie Foster
Directors Top 10(in no real order):
Stanley Kubrick
Martin Scorcese
Oliver Stone
Francis Ford Coppola
Bernardo Bertolucci
Luc Besson
Elia Kazan
Sergio Leone
Peter Jackson
Ang Lee
Ratings
Most Recently Rated
Reviews
Great Performances: Les Misérables in Concert (1995)
Sensational
This is the closest it seems we shall get to a film version of the legendary stage musical (to my knowledge), and it is definitely a worthy effort. It goes without saying that the quality of music is incredible and the performances are excellent throughout, although a few are slightly unconvincing. To elaborate:
The Cast (Not in order of appearance as it is stated):
Colm Wilkinson (Jean Valjean): The original and arguably the best Valjean, his voice may not be to everyone's taste, (and seemed slightly weak to me early during the concert, e.g. Philip Quast seemed to out sing him in The Confrontation, before picking up at One Day More) but with a wonderful, practically unmatched emotional range and dynamic use of eyebrows he more than acquited himself in the role. His Bring Him Home is, in my opinion, unsurpassed.
Philip Quast (JAVERT): Wow. What a performer (3 well deserved Olivier Awards attest to this), able to emanate the harshness of Javert as well as securing great sympathy for an apparently unlikable character. Mr Quast steals the show in my opinion and acts as a great magnet each time he appears. His majestic voice, like Mr Wilkinson's, is capable of expressing a great range of emotions, and, again like CW, provides definitive renditions of Stars and Javert's Suicide. He has since become one of my very favourite actors and he is wonderful in Evita, currently lighting up the West End. If you can find it, his Live at the Donmar album is a must.
Ruthie Henshall (Fantine): Another deservedly well respected performer, whose voice at times breaks a little but is otherwise faultless. I feel she offers a clearer, more angelic Fantine than Patti Lupone on the Original London Recording, and I personally prefer this interpretation.
Alun Armstrong and Jenny Galloway (The Thenardiers): Two more perfectly cast actors. Armstrong is hilariously twitchy and shifty, but adds a sinister edge at The Dog Eats the Dog. Galloway is gifted with supreme comic timing and an intimidating physique, making her ideal.
Lea Salonga (Eponine): One of the minor flaws in the concert is that I cannot understand why anyone would choose Judy Kuhn over the short yet spunky, powerfully voiced and infinitely more attractive Miss Saigon. As performances go, her's is excellent. I think there is some merit in the arguments those who say that Frances Rufelle (Original London and Broadway) is probably closer to the original text, but it cannot be denied that Ms Salonga is exquisite. Her performance is especially moving during A Little Fall of Rain, and her On My Own is quite frankly show stopping.
Michael Ball (Marius): A Great British institution whose thunderous voice puts those of other students to shame. He makes a wonderful foil for Lea Salonga during A Little Fall of Rain, is both passionate and sensitive during Empty Chairs at Empty Tables, but before both of these is magnificently uneasy and tender during A Heart Full of Love.
Michael Maguire (Enjolras): A criticism that could be made of all the students in the Concert is that they are all far to old. This is most clearly shown by Mr Maguire. A fantastic voice to be sure, but he just seemed out of place to me, and at times he sounded more like a Marine than a student.
Judy Kuhn (Cosette): Another terrific voice, but as with Michael MAguire, she seems out of place. As i stated above, I couldn't understand why Marius would set his cap at someone who, dare I say it, resembles a horse. I am almost certainly being to superficial, but still, I wasn't convinced.
Anthony Crivello (Grantaire): Did good.
Adam Searles and Hannah Chick (Gavroche and Young Cosette): As Above.
One more criticism I have of the production is that the sections of The Robbery, Javert's Intervention and Eponine's Errand, amongst others, were left out, as I would die to hear them but don't want to buy the Complete Symphonic Recording (With only three performers worthy of note in my opinion). Otherwise, The Les Miserables Tenth Anniversary Concert is a great spectacle that is a must for any fans of the show and/or book. When watched for the first time, or the hundredth, it remains an inspiring work.