OK, I’ll be honest, I’m not really a fan of movie musicals. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not that I don’t respect the craft– I’m well aware of the Sisyphean nature of making such a film– it’s just that the difficulty of their conception doesn’t necessarily make them any more enjoyable to watch. Of course, despite my distaste for them, there have been a few classics- The Sound Of Music, My Fair Lady, Cabaret– as well some modern examples, Chicago-well done on every level- and Mamma Mia-so much fun you couldn’t help but enjoy it- that defied the odds. However, for the most part, musicals on film generally end up being exercises in over-earnestness and or implausibility, in my opinion.
For this reason, despite it’s A-list pedigree, I put off seeing Les Miserables for quite some time. I’d been familiar with it’s inescapable songbook since I was a child, but something about two and a half hours of non-stop singing, not to mention Hugh Jackman and Anne Hathaway (two actors I love, but who both can be a bit too Broadway in their dramatic eagerness) kept me away. Well, I finally sucked it up and went to see the film, and color me wrong, because I actually enjoyed it!
It was in fact, too long, and some of the actors (I’ll be nice and not name names, Mussel Mow) were clearly in above their heads vocally, however Hathaway and Jackman were wonderful, and the film was actually rather touching. Yet the biggest surprise to me, was a young strapping ginger from Britain with a velvety-rich singing voice and model good-looks.
Eddie Redmayne invests Marius with true grit, making us feel the character’s revolutionary urgency, deep sense of loss, and redemption through love. You would think that such a dynamic performance requiring both singing and acting could easily have overwhelmed a performer with such a limited screen resume, but not Mr. Redmayne. Possessed of an otherworldly soulfulness, grounded by a collegiate physicality (he’s British but attended Eton-hey, it’s still college) similar to that of Matt Damon, this guy’s just getting started.
Les Miserables is only the hot actor’s second major film role. Despite some good work in television (The Pillars of the Earth) and small parts in movies like The Other Boleyn Girl, and The Good Shepherd, Redmayne’s background is primarily in the theater. With over a decade of experience on either side fo the pond, his accolades include both a Tony and an Olivier for his performance in John Logan’s Red. One could venture that perhaps his extensive stage experience is responsible for such a fully developed screen presence, but you can’t learn movie-star charisma, and boy is this bastion of new Hollywood chock full of it!
I initially became aware of Mr. Redmayne last year when I went to see My Week With Marilyn. Though the 2010 film is mostly remembered for Michelle Williams Oscar-nominated lead performance, Redmayne is a revelation. Perfectly capturing the joy of first love as well as the thrill of making one’s way in the adult world, the rising star more than holds his own with Williams and Kenneth Branagh-both at the top of their games. Commanding nearly every scene of the film, he gives a movie-star caliber performance that skillfully combines the subtly and attention to character arc that only a talented stage actor could bring to it. Redmayne grounds the film in a reality outside of Hollywoodland, while also serving as the perfect prism through which we, the audience both meet Marilyn, and are awed by her otherworldly charms. Dammit UK, how do you keep turning out these acting freaks?!
Speaking of UK acting freaks, Mr. Redmayne’s freckle-faced appeal and soulful eyes, not to mention accomplished theater background draw comparisons to another gifted actor from across the pond, Ewan McGregor. Eddie’s two big films hint that like McGregor, he’s an actor’s actor, anchoring his own performance in non-showy truth, and thus allowing his contemporaries to shine. Like Ewan did for Nicole Kidman in Moulin Rouge, or most recently, Naomi Watts in The Impossible, Redmayne as well clearly excels when playing anchor to a great actress. Echoing William’s beauty as Monroe in his shining blue eyes, or tenderly duetting with an angelic Amanda Seyfried, he truly makes us feel that the world begins and ends with his costar.
Yet, blessed with a ripe physicality, Redmayne’s appeal goes beyond his British-ness. As exemplified by the talents of Matt Damon, Redmayne’s own natural acting style and boyish collegiate charm make him both easy to root for, and more importantly, easy to see ourselves in. He doesn’t possess the overly self-concious mannerisms and foppish quirks of other young Brits, like Robert Pattinson, nor the pale, un-athletic intellectualism of those whose life rarely takes them outside the confines of a dark theater. Rather, he’s your college drinking buddy, your older brother’s best friend, your gym crush; A living, breathing embodiment of real people around us, only better looking and more talented.
You’d think that being handsome and skilled at his craft would be more than enough, but anyone whose seen Les Miz knows that this hot actor’s got another ace up his sleeve. Neither MacGregor nor Damon can sing like Redmayne (Damon’s creepy version of “My Funny Valentine” in The Talented Mr. Ripley was brilliant but hardly what I’d call vocally proficient, and MacGregor did his best in Moulin Rouge, but I’d hesitate to call him a born-singer). Trained as a soloist in Eton’s choir, he is as vocally sharp and skilled as Hugh Jackman, something that can’t be said of many A-list actors.
With such a talented specimen, the world is his oyster, and I think he’d benefit from branching out with a few diverse projects that both highlight his indie sensibility and talent, but also his movie star appeal. Perhaps his own franchise a la Damon in the Bourne Series ( I like Jeremy Renner, but he just didn’t seem to have the athleticism and everyday appeal to pull this one off) or a 500 Days of Summer– style quirky indie romance (remember- that had a stirring musical number). Either way, a glance at his IMDB page shows that his next project, Jupiter Ascending, with Mila Kunis and Channing Tatum, and helmed by the Wachowski’s promises to show us all a different side of this talented rising star.
If his brief career so far is indicative of anything, it’s that a movie star of Eddie Redmayne’s caliber doesn’t come around often. At once possessed of singular talent, matinee idol looks, and a rich baritone, he is truly one of my favorite examples of talented new Hollywood.
Look for Eddie Redmayne in next month’s Vanity Fair “Hollywood Issue”. I have a hunch he’ll be all over it!
CLICK HERE to watch Eddie Redmayne talk to WSJ about playing Marius in Les Miserables.
CLICK HERE for the official Les Miserables movie website.