5. Movie Musicals Are A Good Idea - Les Miserables
Every decade or so a film comes around that tries to prove that movie musicals can actually work beyond toe tapping. In the naughties we had Chicago and last winter we got the teenies entry. But while it got some good reviews, great box office takings and put in a fair showing at the Oscars, Les Miserables shouldn't be used as a model for future music outings. The success of Les Mis is less to do with the films appeal as a musical, but the fact it was already a cultural phenomenon before the first shot was filmed. The West End stage musical has grown steadily in popularity, gaining a strong fanbase and things such as the Liam Neeson starring drama and Susan Boyle pushing I Dreamed A Dream to meteoric heights have only widened its appeal. And its the people who fall into the category of existing fans that led to the success of Tom Hoopers film. As someone new to the life Jean Valjean the film left me rather cold; there were some rousing moments, but these were punctuated with long stretches of numbers that just didn't engage me. Sat amongst an audience of those already enamoured with the show I stood out, but amongst the general film going public this is pretty common opinion. As few other stage shows hold the same adoration as Les Mis, the film proved less that movie musicals are a good idea and rather adaptations of popular works are. Well duh. OK, so not as heinous life lesson as some of the others I've raised, but bracing ourselves for the inevitable wave of imitators makes it worth mentioning.