Les Miserables depicts one of the greatest Christian stories of redemption ever told in a powerful and moving, artistic manner. Told through incredible music with an awe inspiring and Oscar^® worthy cast, the audience is transported back to France during its pre-revolutionary days of depravity.

The story opens with Jean Valjean (Hugh Jackman) serving his last day in prison after 19 years of a 5 year sentence for stealing a piece of bread to feed his sister’s starving child. Police Inspector Javet (Russell Crowe) gives Valjean his walking papers and promises to bring him back to prison where all “dangerous” men should live out their existence.

Desperate for food and experiencing constant rejection searching for a simple job, while carrying papers that label him as a dangerous man, Valjean is taken in by a priest who feeds him a hearty meal and gives him a bed for the night. Before the sun rises, Valjean steals away with silver dinning pieces and is caught by the law.

When brought to the priest to validate the crime, the priest refuses to press charges and explains that the silver was a gift. He shows Valjean grace and gives him the prize candle sticks as well, questioning why he left the best part of the gift behind. Once the officers leave, the priest tells Valjean to use the silver to start a new life and be dedicated to help others in return for his life.

Valjean soon skips parole, takes on a new name and becomes an esteemed business owner who helps numerous families cope during the hard times in 19th century France. In the peek of his blessings, he stumbles upon Fantine (Anne Hathaway) who struggles to make enough money to take care of her little girl, Cosette. After selling her hair and a tooth, she lowers herself into a life of prostitution. Feeling responsible, after learning she was once his worker that was fired unjustly, Valjean promises to look after her daughter, demonstrating his newfound ability to give grace to others.

While he raises Cosette (Amanda Seyfried), Valjean learns about love. Stumbling upon a love note to Marious (Eddie Redmayne) he feels a tearing at his heart that drives him to learn about this man. Valjean finds Marious preparing for the revolution and is taken aback by his passion for freedom, something Valjean treasures most dearly. In those moments of standing side by side for the cause, Valjean is moved to show mercy and saves Marious from a gruesome death.

In order to protect Cosette and bring her true love to her side, Valjean finds himself with a new perspective of love, as he makes a sacrificial decision to be lonely in order for Cosette to experience the fullness of life and love.

The film closes with Valjean being found by his loved ones in time for them to say goodbye, as he passes into heaven and the true freedom he longed for. There he is greeted with the cheers of all others who died sacrificially for the ones they loved. Valjean was redeemed and not only understood God’s sacrificial love, but was able to live his life out in the same manner as Christ.

Hugh Jackman’s portrayal of an imprisoned man seeking true freedom was Oscar^® worthy – Yes, more than Daniel Day-Lewis’ performance of Lincoln, which was also Oscar^® worthy. Jackman took the audience on a journey that was started by a gift of grace, blossomed through a course of love, which led to an act of mercy, followed by true sacrificial love, and culminated in a real and true freedom in Christ.

Tom Hooper deserves an Oscar^® for Best Director and Les Miserables deserve to take home the Best Picture Oscar^®.

I was amazed at the production value and a couple days later I’m still reeling from the great performances. I was, however, perplexed by Christians on Facebook warning people not to see the film because it was loaded with prostitution, drunkardness, and thievery. While the film depicts these actions, it’s done in its proper light and reveals the depth and power of grace and sacrificial love. Without the contrast, God would seem awfully small.

This is the only film I’ve given 5 stars to in 2012. I did, however, give Lincoln 4.5 stars. And, I have high hopes for Katheryn Bigelow’s Zero Dark Thirty, but I haven’t seen it yet since its main release isn’t until January 11^th. So until then, get into the theater and see the most incredible movie of 2012 – Les Miserables.

Red Dawn is a remake that failed to reboot the original for a new generation. The film was created for release in 2010, but was shelved in order to replace the invading troops of Chinese with North Koreans. The decision was made to maintain access to the China box office. The original film was based on the Russians invading.

The story is about a small group of northwestern teens somewhere between Seattle and Spokane, who enter into gorilla warfare to take back their town from the invading army. The original took place in the midwest.

Chris Hemsworth (The Avengers, Thor, Snow White and the Huntsman) played the lead role of Jed Eckert who heads up the band of teens called Wolverine. Josh Peck of Nickelodeon fame played the younger brother who learns a hard lesson about team work and eventually steps up to become a great leader in the shadow of his brother’s training.

While the original would gain 4 out of 5 stars from most moviegoers, this remake lands some where around 3-3.5 stars. If you are a war film enthusiast that hasn’t seen the original, you might bump it up to a solid 4. However, if you prefer war-based films with more finesse and fewer explosions, I’d recommend you watch Lincoln.

Stephen Spielberg’s (Saving Private Ryan, Schindler’s List) Lincoln will obtain critical acclaim at the Oscars^®. Daniel Day-Lewis’ (My Left Foot, There Will Be Blood) performance of Lincoln was well executed and endearing to the audience. Sally Field (Places in the Heart, Norma Rae) was incredible as Mary Todd Lincoln. Both actors are sure to receive Oscar^® nominations.

The story is about America’s president struggling with the continued carnage on the Civil War battlefield and his fight with many inside of his cabinet on the decision to emancipate slaves. While history tells us the focus was more centered on the economics of the times, the film only referenced it once – focusing more on the passing of the 13^th Amendment.

The film was steeped in dialog of yesteryear, salted in with a handful of contemporary obscenities that jolted me out of the story a few times.  Aside from those poor choices, the film had my full attention and the 150 minutes went buy faster than many of the shorter films I’ve watched over the past few weeks.

If you appreciate the artistry of film and the incredible banter of earlier times in movies, you won’t want to miss this feature. The performances are excellent, but the cinematic production values are far more intimate than a blockbuster film. Spielberg kept his budget low in keeping with box office expectations for such a film, but he amped up the level of intimacy within the film’s characters to compensate.