There have been dozens of film adaptations of Victor Hugo's classic story, starting from the silent era. I've seen a few, and each version seems to have their own strengths and weaknesses. In the 1952 version, the strengths are the two leads playing Jean Valjean and Inspector Javert: Michael Rennie and Robert Newton. Michael puts his whole heart into this movie and tries as hard as he can to make it better, and of course, Bobbie is always a wonderfully menacing villain. Edmund Gwenn, in perfect typecasting, briefly plays the bishop in the beginning.
The weaknesses, I'm sorry to say, are quite large. Sylvia Sidney isn't bad as Fantine, but unfortunately, she has a very small part. The larger female lead is the role of Cosette. Debra Paget, who should never have been cast in a drama, let alone a period piece, plays Cosette. She could easily be the worst one in the movie, but her romantic scenes are paired with Cameron Mitchell as Marius. The character of Marius is supposed to be rather innocent, handsome, strong, hopeful, and above all, easy to root for. Cameron Mitchell is none of those things! I would have laughed at the idea that he was supposed to be trustworthy and sincere, but I was too busy cringing.
Everyone likes to put his own spin on things, so as you might expect, there are some slight differences to the plot in this one. As hard as Michael and Bobbie try to make their performances the only ones the audiences will remember, Cameron and Debra are overwhelmingly contemporary and miscast. This one isn't my favorite, but I've yet to see a perfect version. With so many characters, there are bound to be actors in every adaptation who threaten to ruin the rest of the movie.
The weaknesses, I'm sorry to say, are quite large. Sylvia Sidney isn't bad as Fantine, but unfortunately, she has a very small part. The larger female lead is the role of Cosette. Debra Paget, who should never have been cast in a drama, let alone a period piece, plays Cosette. She could easily be the worst one in the movie, but her romantic scenes are paired with Cameron Mitchell as Marius. The character of Marius is supposed to be rather innocent, handsome, strong, hopeful, and above all, easy to root for. Cameron Mitchell is none of those things! I would have laughed at the idea that he was supposed to be trustworthy and sincere, but I was too busy cringing.
Everyone likes to put his own spin on things, so as you might expect, there are some slight differences to the plot in this one. As hard as Michael and Bobbie try to make their performances the only ones the audiences will remember, Cameron and Debra are overwhelmingly contemporary and miscast. This one isn't my favorite, but I've yet to see a perfect version. With so many characters, there are bound to be actors in every adaptation who threaten to ruin the rest of the movie.