But I do not intend to give in. As long as I live I will fight for quality.
I also think they hurt themselves more than they realize. All of the bad word of mouth about Russel can't be good for the ticket sales. Although I realize too that most people don't care, because as this (casting names that can't sing) is the case with all the musical films, the audiences don't know any better and swallow everything, no matter how bad it is, and therefore the ticket sales will stagnate, as they don't draw in bigger audiences with quality.
It is easy for the producers and director to create stars. The role of Kim is a "star maker". The girls name will be big after the film. I'm talking about a Julie Andrews in Mary Poppins. About the fight against the nay sayers who did not want Julie in the film at the time because she was no big movie star, and simply wanted to take a lesser talented girl because of that. Wrong. Very wrong.
Roles in general are starmakers as long as they get cast well.
A Chris that isn't a fantastic singer will ruin Miss Saigon.
A Chris that is a fantastic singer will make the role soar. And the actor will become a star.
People like Russel Crowe should also worry about their status because wrong choices like this can really hurt his career. His so called "star-power".
Maybe I just have too much respect for this business and music and film in general. Maybe I should just follow the cattle and agree that not taking on Taylor Swift for the role of Eponine was a mistake as I'm sure she would have sold a couple of hundred more tickets. And don't care about the timeless quality of the film at all.
It's not one or the other. Neither box office, ability nor rightness to do a role. But all of them. And it's an imperfect science. Sometimes casting a big star works well. Other times making big stars from people who are ideal for the role but less known. It's a combination of these imperatives. Quality doesn't always win out in the marketplace, but it sometimes does. I'd like to believe if Oliver! were made today with a cast as little known (none of whom had big careers after either), and as good, and if it were as good a film, it would be a huge success. But, hey, that's Oliver! Les Mis may be quite a different matter. That doesn't change the fact that there are also big stars who should be doing musicals, and sometimes a big star who isn't the best musical performer can still be a revelation in the right role. Rene Zellweger may not be the greatest singer or dancer on the planet; far from it. But she was a superb Roxie.
Frankly, I thought Crowe was good if not great in the film (and I think the same of Jackman). He would have probably sung the part much more to satisfaction if it had not been live sung. The live singing made it much more important to have a Javert with a more natural musicality and a far better voice than Crowe's. Not that I'm finding fault with the live singing choice but it did make casting more important.
The best performance in the movie for me is Barks's. And I hope it does make her a star.
How are you "not giving in"? Are you not going to see any movie that has big names in it? Only go to art houses to see small budget films? Whining on a dicussion board isn't going to create any sort of change.
Again: on paper Crowe SHOULD have made a wonderful Javert. They don't know for sure until the film comes together that he didn't. (and yes, there are GADS of people that liked his performance.)
Stars are not made from ONE performance. One performance opens the door to other possibilities and the success of those determines stardom. Being the sweetheart du jour is short lived. And by your standard, it's the role that is important not the performer. No matter who they cast as Kim is going to be a star? Even Anne Hathaway wasn't a star after her first film, but she was smart and continued to look for varied work that combined made her the name she is today -- same with Meryl Streep or most other actors and actresses. It is their body of work that create high demand stars.
I love that you think you are so vastly superior to everyone else because you won't stand for anything less than a perfectly cast and perfectly executed film -- full of nobodies (beause you seem to think that stars are incapable of delivering a worthwhile performance). And who determines when it has been done so? When it means with your personaly approval? It's called OPINION.
Dave19 wrote: "All of the bad word of mouth about Russel can't be good for the ticket sales."
The bad word of mouth is only coming from fanatics and theatre queens on this board. Most people don't care and most people don't read this board. In fact most people seeing "Les Miserables" have heard of it but probably have little knowledge of the plot or the songs. Most audiences across this country are going to see the movie because it has Wolverine, Gladiator and Catwoman in the leads with Borat and Bellatrix thrown in as an added plus.
Why is "I Dreamed a Dream" being used in all of the television ads? Because of a hit single by Susan Boyle, that's why.
99.99% of the people seeing this movie have never heard of Aaron Tviet or Samantha Barks and 99.99% will walk out the theater still having no idea who Aaron Tviet and Samantha Barks are.
"For example, Russel Crowe in Les Miserables. It might be nice for a small group of people in their 40's to see a face they have seen before, but the whole new generation (under 25) is like, what the hell is that guy doing in this film?"
'Small group of people in their 40's?" Russell Crowe is a big name oscar winning actor whose work is known and liked by millions of people whose ages span several decades, and not a "small group of people in their 40's" Where did you get that idea? oy
Maybe next time a big movie musical is made they could shoot a second version at night when the set is closed to the main movie. They can cast all theatre actors and it will only add seventy dollars to the budget and then they could release that on dvd.
I don't mind them casting big box office names in movie musicals as long as the stars that are cast are right for their roles and do justice to the material.
Jamie Foxx is a big box office draw and coming off a victorious Oscar win for his performance in "Ray" when he was chosen to play "Curtis Taylor, Jr." in "Dreamgirls" and he was great in it.
Eddie Murphy was excellent as "James 'Thunder' Early".
Meryl Streep was wonderful in "Mamma Mia!"
and dare I add Minnie Driver into the mix? True she's not in the same box office league as Foxx, Murphy or Streep but as the only instantly recognizable name in the film version of "The Phantom of the Opera" she was the one true highlight of that movie...and she was dubbed!!
There was an article on here or on playbill.com that I read, asking Sir Cameron Mackintosh on why he did'nt cast Taylor Swift in the role of "Eponine,because of her large fan base that could generate lots of money for the film...his response was "Les Miserables is the star, we just didn't need that".
Ellen Greene, Anika Noni Rose, Emmy Rossum, Allison Reed, Sally Ann Howes, Shani Wallis, and Aileen Quinn were all positioned for instant "movie stardom" by studios. They all continue to work and have had admirable careers, but they are not bankable movie stars, any of them.
Dave, as Kad can explain better than I, names are important because they draw paying viewers to the opening weekend, raising the initial gross and getting the movie reported as a smash hit in a media-dominated world.
It's just a fact that most people in the industrialized world get a lot of their "word of mouth" from TV or the internet rather than chats in the village square.
So reports that LES MIZ is the "highest grossing musical since Thanksgiving" often IS the "word of mouth" that counts most in terms of drawing future crowds.
And your initial statement that artistic quality equals box office gross is just--well, you cannot believe that.
Am I the only person who goes to a movie--any type-- only for the content/material/story??Who is in the film comes waaaaay down my list of reasons for seeing a film--most of the time I have never heard of most of the actors except for the ones that are always in the tabloids[?] because they have a new baby or dog. PS--I went to Les Mis to see the film--not because of who was in it.
Bea Arthur Nude Sells For Nearly $2 Million At Auction
Drama Desk Award Winners - MATILDA, VANYA AND SONIA, PIPPIN, VIRGINIA WOOLF & More!
Gyllenhaal, Pine in Talks to Join INTO THE WOODS Movie?
John Bantay Talks to Richard Jay-Alexander About Musical Mondays Farewell
BWW TV Exclusive: Prince, Lewis & More Remember Kevin Gray
Blake Shelton & Sheryl Crow to Perform on THE VOICE Next Week
VIDEO: Full Trailer for THE WOLVERINE Released!
Rooney Mara is the Face for New Calvin Klein Scent
EA Announces Battlefield 4 for Xbox One and PlayStation 4
BWW Blog: Leah Edwards - Practice. Perform. Repeat
BWW Reviews: Blue Lapis Light's Encore Engagement of HEAVEN-EARTH-ONE is Heavenly
VIDEO: Must Watch - Mel Brooks AMERICAN MASTERS on PBS May 20!
joined:12/23/11
Posted: 12/31/12 at 12:46pm