I've moved!

http://theblackbirdwhistling.tumblr.com/

Happy birthday to...

Tintin! My favorite comic book character.

He was my sesame street and barney growing up, and still means a whole lot to me.

Definitely my first exposure to journalism ;)

 Happy birthday, you immortal reporter, you!

A break from our sporadically scheduled programming.

To share this amazingness.

LesMis 30-something Challenge 3.

Who is your favorite Fantine? Why?

This might be a difficult question. The reason being that Fantine, strictly speaking as a novel-bound character, is difficult to imagine in terms of appearance. According to what I have read, she is supposed to be 'youthfully attractive' and innocent-looking. Having said this, one must remember how her appearance must've changed after being driven to prostitution in her desperation to provide for her daughter. I, personally, have not seen enough portrayals of Fantine (I was about to write, "I have not seen enough Fantines," but that would have been objectifying the poor woman) to effectively say that I have a favorite (that sounds just as objectifying). In terms of vocals, Ruthie Henshall would have to be who I prefer listening to the most. She has that subtle edge of someone who remains incredibly strong in times of strife, yet still finds vulnerability in her innocence (despite her misfortunes). She also treads the thread between being admirable and being pitiful. One does not necessarily wish to be her (at least, I certainly hope not); rather, one wishes to be like her in courage and determination.
Though I prefer Henshall's portrayal of Fantine over other recordings, I don't like her appearance. This is not to say that Henshall is not pretty (on the contrary) but she just isn't how I imagined Fantine to look. Now, if we're going to include film actors as well as musical performers, then I would have to say my favorite Fantine (in terms of appearance) is Charlotte Gainsbourg, who was in the 2000 tv film.
In the beginning of this scene, she's taken her daughter Cosette to an innkeeper and his wife, who offer shelter and food for her, if Fantine pays a monthly sum. Desperate, she agrees, unaware that they will abuse and neglect Cosette. Making things all the more tragic.

Gah! Charlotte, why are you so beautiful??

Turns out, Gainsbourg is also a singer. Hmm.

LesMis 30-something Challenge 2.

Who is your favorite Javert? Why?

Inserting a random line from the musical: “It is either Valjean—or Javert.”

Now here is something I will tell you. Javert was not always my favorite character. On the contrary—I feared and misunderstood him entirely. I remember reading bits and pieces of the novel some years ago: Javert was introduced to me as the police-inspector of Montreuil-sur-Mer, and who spoke heartlessly, without compassion, in court against a young woman who was driven to prostitution in order to provide for her child. Needless to say, my first impression of Javert was not overly pleasant.

Having said all this, I’m currently in the process of rereading the novel. Hugo, I salute you. I feel ashamed for not realizing the depth of Javert’s psychological turmoil the first time around.

I cannot begin to comprehend the concept of emphasizing the fact (excessive wordiness intended) that Javert is not the villain. He is the antagonist.

“But Ms. Obsessive-English-Teacher, Ma’am”, they’ll say. “Isn’t the antagonist the bad-guy?”

No. You will not pass my class with an answer like that.

I feel the urge to remind you that the antagonist is merely the alter-ego; that is to say, the opposite, of the protagonist. Javert is a foil. He consistently tries to recapture Valjean, take him back to prison, serve his sentence, etc. Valjean is able to start a new life, but continues to be haunted by Javert for years. Now, class, does this mean that Javert is a villain?

“Yes..?”

Need I point out the obvious? Javert is a police-officer. A legitimate upholder of the law. Why does his job make him the villain, if he is doing just that—his job?

Need I bring to light another obvious factor of the story? Valjean is a thief, ex-convict, parole-violator, imposter, scammer, and would-be murderer. Details are not needed. The only justification for Valjean’s continued attempts to escape (and for his theft in the first place) is out of desperation to feed his sister and her children. It means nothing if his intentions are honest, he has the potential to repeat his offenses (which he does) and be a danger to society. Javert would be a villain, but only if he did not uphold to his duty of keeping his district free of criminals.

I don’t mean to speak ill of Monsieur Valjean. I like him. Who doesn’t?

But am I defending Javert because he is my favorite character? Perhaps. I like to think it’s because I have read the book thoroughly enough to understand his physiological structure and subconscious tendencies. Call me arrogant and geeky. I’m an English student—expect nothing less.

Hugo’s novel is titled Les Miserables; translated, it roughly means, “the ones that suffer”, or “the miserable lives”. And aptly so. Every single character in this novel struggles in some way. There is no one who suffers more than anyone else. Even the ending, though somewhat optimistic, is not out rightly happy. And so, we must keep in mind that Javert, the cold-hearted and pitiless inspector, is just as miserable as everyone else.

Enough psychological analysis. My favorite Javert is Philip Quast (yes, he is just so amazing he deserves a link to a video).

He was the first portrayal of Javert I ever heard and saw. To me, he is the only Javert who stays true to his character and doesn’t overact. I hate to say that he is Javert in my eyes, but he is. The way he carries himself in that haughty and uptight manner, and looks at Valjean (here's Part 1 of the whole concert) with such complete and utter wrath. The thing is, Javert is such a subtle character that to do anything more than standing stock-still and glaring at everyone would be overacting. He is able to intimidate without much effort—people run off the streets when they hear him coming and his name is enough to make criminals cower. Though he is not as mechanical and distant in the novel (he has a few strange habits, to say the least), he is still incredibly reserved, professional, and cynical.

Back to Quast. Having portrayed Javert on stage in Australia, and in a previous recording (This is one of my favorite parts of The Complete Symphonic Recording. He comes in about halfway through.), he had the potential to exaggerate the character. But he didn’t. He projected all of Javert’s hatred, frustration, dedication, despair (and finally, stoic resolution) through his face and his voice, without ever having to do much else. 

His voice, damn it all.

He embodies Javert with such a deep understanding of the character. He seems to have realized Hugo’s intention to create Javert as a multi-faceted individual, with far more emotional depth than he lets on. If you look up other actors’ portrayals of Javert, you might find that they tend to over-emphasize his determination, therefore risking the consequence of making him downright evil. I have come to the conclusion that it is because of these ‘overactors’ that Javert is popularly believed to be the villain. Did I mention that he isn’t, though?

Lord, I could go on and on.

I’m not going to lie—I would give a lot to be able to go back in time and see him perform on stage. Oh, Philip. You should have been cast for the movie. 

This rant makes me sound like an obsessed fan. I don’t mean to imply that Philip makes Javert a physically attractive character (though one could certainly feel free to make that argument), but rather, he makes Javert a fascinatingly deep and psychologically rich character. That, to me, is much more attractive.

 

On an unrelated note, this just might be the longest entry I've ever written. Of course it had to be a psycho-physiological analysis of Javert. If only writing essays were this easy.

LesMis 30-something Challenge 1.

I should not be up this late. Or, I should be up this late, but I should be writing my essays instead.

I decided I won't be able to do these challenges in 30 days (why do I keep typing challenges wrong?). Hence awkwardly-edited blog post title. Anywho, here we go!

Starting with Les Miserables (by anonymi-who-read-my-blog-but-don't-have-their-own-blog popular demand)! This topic will most likely be more well-known than the second challenge I chose. Gah- enough procrastinating.

Who is your favorite Valjean? Why?

My favorite Valjean is whoever can embody his character and portray his true emotion the most honestly and passionately. Cliche, but true. I suppose I have grown used to seeing Colm Wilkinson as Valjean, and therefore am biased, but he isn't my favorite character so I have no favorite actor, only those whom I prefer or are used to.
This is not to say I don't like the character of Valjean- he has some of the best numbers in the entire musical (there is a very slight possibility that he is the main character). Alfie Boe is amazing too, but he is an opera tenor and I feel like he is unable to give Valjean the raw emotion and desperation through his voice. And he's too pretty. Seriously. Valjean is supposed to be a saint-like figure, and it simply won't do to have people crushing on him.

Soo, my answer would have to be Wilkinson, or J. Mark McVey (the latter only because I saw him perform live, and that's just an unfair advantage.) However, there are a couple things about Wilkinson that annoy me. Firstly, he holds his notes well, but much longer than necessary. It becomes slightly cocky on his part. Secondly, he's too old (no ageism intended). It's just that he's supposed to be the same age as Javert, and well. Javert is always cast much younger than he's supposed to be.

First question answered! You can count on the rest being at least a little more decisive. Next.

Current love.

Master and Commander. Brilliant movie, based on a brilliant book series. I have yet to finish the books, but have succeeded in finishing the movie several times ;)