Director Fred Cavayé has released a new French-language adaptation of Victor Hugo's "Les Misérables" with a £37 million budget and a prestigious cast including Vincent Lindon and Tahar Rahim. The 179-minute film tells the familiar story of Jean Valjean and his conflict with Inspector Javert without musical numbers, instead aiming for epic scale through grand cinematography and elaborate set design. The adaptation is produced in partnership with Netflix, raising questions about why it received theatrical release rather than becoming a streaming miniseries.

The reviewer finds the film technically accomplished but artistically hollow—visually sumptuous yet emotionally inert. Whilst the film moves at a brisk pace and features polished direction and editing, it fails to distinguish itself from over a century of previous adaptations, instead serving as a generic, derivative rendering of Hugo's classic. The film opts for surface-level spectacle (sweeping battlefield vistas, digital cityscapes, costumed extras) rather than political or emotional depth, resulting in a production that feels paradoxically small despite its considerable resources and star-studded cast.