Holding On.

I'm not a hoarder. Far from it. Well, I'd like to think so anyway. I'd be lying though if I said there was nothing in my life that I hold on to for certain sentimental reasons.

For example - I have kept pretty much every card or letter that the husband has given me throughout the seven years we've been together. I most definitely am a sap that hoards all that... stuff. (Yes, I was going to say crap JUST TO RHYME but I sensed nagging would be imminent so...)

Last night I was just lying in bed trying to fall asleep when it hit me that there are things in my life I keep around not for sentimental reasons - but because it's a symbol of something, whether it's a symbol of where I came from or a symbol of a dream I had when I acquired that object. Let's concentrate on the latter.

Should I keep that object around? Why do I hold onto it so tight - because I still think the dream's a possibility or because I know it's impossible but can't admit it to myself? It gets even harder when the object itself is something you've always dreamed of owning, like a dream car for example. If you admit to yourself that you're not going to get that dream, unfortunately it means you have to give up that dream object, and what's worse you also have to deal with the fact that you'll probably never get that dream object back.

Nobody likes to admit their failings. It's even worse when those failings are going to pretty much be advertised. "Why did you sell it? Wasn't it your dream (insert object here)?" But how far do you let it go before you realise that your pride is just going to end up hurting you?

So you suck it up and give up the dream, and that beautiful object that's been making you hold on to that dream. And you admit to yourself that you were stupid for thinking you could ever achieve that dream. This is as good as it gets. You just have to learn to live with it.

Les Miserables... Mostly gushing, with some ranting.

If you follow me on any sort of social media, you would have no doubt seen my rants because Les Mis was released mid January here in England when basically every other country got to watch it on Boxing Day. That being said, I didn't have to become a recluse because (a) spoilers were not an issue and (b) I pretty much already knew which actors were going to bomb. That being said, I present my review.

The family went to watch it the day it came out - first showing at our local cinema. We live in a small village. Apart from us, the cinema was filled with 60 year olds. It was about 50-70% full. Let's run through my family shall we:

1. Me - Theatre & TV nut.
2. Julien - Relatively new to an obsession with theatre & TV, but has always been obsessed with movies.
3. Dina - Theatre & TV nut.
4. Azril - Hmmmm. I'd say not really obsessed with theatre or TV but actively enjoys them.
5. Salma - Everyone was watching the movie, so there was nobody to babysit her. She does enjoy what she wathes though.
6. Mother - The woman who got us obsessed with theatre.
7. Sara - Theatre & TV nut, but she doesn't really understand a lot that goes on in what she watches.
8. Father - The dad version of Sara.

I hate the Phantom of the Opera movie. The Gerard Butler version. It was so cheesy (bad cheesy as well not good cheesy like romcoms tend to be) and smoky/foggy and just blah. I'm not the hugest fan of POTO in general, but that movie was horrible. Since they announced Les Mis, my only wish was that it would be NOTHING like POTO. I got my wish.

It was gritty, flowed well, the new song actually fit, and overall just blew my mind. Do I have complaints? Of course. But my complaints are limited to casting choices and the way one song was performed in particular. I have absolutely no complaints about how the movie was put together. It. Was. Brilliant.

I was in tears pretty much throughout the movie. It started as soon as Colm Wilkinson appeared as the bishop. Why? Colm IS Jean Valjean. Seeing him in the Les Mis movie 27 years after the debut in the West End... There are no words. Of course then it continues because it's just a really sad movie. Let's face it. Even the few happy parts makes you cry. Then Russell Crowe and Amanda Seyfried started singing and I just kept crying because I just wanted them to stop.

Hey, Amanda Seyfried did well in Mamma Mia. I have no doubt she can carry a tune. But it takes a certain kind of voice to play Cosette and while I commend her for trying, she just ended up sounding like a kettle. It wasn't nice to hear. At all.

Then again, anything's better than Russell Crowe. You look at him and he's Javert. You hear him speak, and he's Javert. But then he sings. And you pray for him to stop. There were parts where I thought he didn't sound THAT bad, but then I realised those were the times he was basically talking in tune and if he managed to mess that up, then really, they probably wouldn't have cast him. I mean, Hadley Fraser was in the damn movie! I've never seen a better Javert! Why was he just an army officer?!

As for Hugh Jackman & Anne Hathaway - they did well. My only complaint is how Hugh performed 'Bring Him Home'. It's one of my favourite songs from Les Mis, and I wouldn't call myself an expert - but that is NOT how it's meant to be sung. I'm sorry. The best performance of it I've ever heard to this day was Alfie Boe's, and Colm's is a very close second. THAT'S how it's meant to be sung. I was very, very disappointed. I wasn't too happy when Jackman & Hathaway were cast, but they impressed me. I still feel they could have gotten people from within the theatre community who would have done better, but I understand why they cast them.

The stars of the show, in my opinion, were Samantha Barks, Eddie Redmayne & Aaron Tveit. No words. Just amazing. And guess what?! Theatre folk! GASP! I've seen Samantha live and let me tell you, she's brilliant.

Special mention to young Cosette & Gavroche - their performances were mindblowing.

All in all, I'd give it a 9 out of 10. I have no doubt I'm going to be watching it again, and again, and again...

To end, all I have to say is, "To love another person is to see the face of Colm Wilkinson."