Rabat – How can one small mistake change your entire life? For Jean Valjean, stealing a loaf of bread leads to 19 years in prison. And his story actually begins when he walks free to live a long journey toward forgiveness and a new life.
French filmmaker Fred Cavayé directed “Les Misérables” (2026) and co-wrote the screenplay based on Victor Hugo’s famous novel. Eskwad and Curiosa Films produced the film in co-production with StudioCanal and TF1 Films Production, with support from Canal+ and Netflix. The film is now showing in Moroccan cinemas.
Victor Hugo published the famous novel in 1862. The film follows Jean Valjean, played by Vincent Lindon, who spends 19 years in prison for stealing a loaf of bread.
After his release, he struggles to escape his past and build a new life. He then breaks his parole and becomes a respected factory owner, hoping to leave his old identity behind.
According to Variety, Fred Cavayé’s Les Misérables is an ambitious adaptation of Victor Hugo’s famous novel with an impressive cast and dramatic scenes. However, the film struggles to offer something new to a story that has been told many times before.
One of the film’s main strengths is its talented French cast. “The role of Valjean is practically an earned honor at this point, a medal that can be pinned to the chest of any French actor maturing into his “national treasure” phase,” says Variety.
Tahar Rahim portrays Inspector Javert as a man whose obsession with justice gradually turns into cruelty, just like in the novel. He is sent to Montreuil, where he begins to suspect that M. Madeleine is hiding something about his true identity.
Meanwhile, the story introduces the greedy Thénardiers, played by Benjamin Lavernhe and Camille Cottin, stealing gold teeth from the bodies of soldiers killed at the Battle of Waterloo.
Fantine, played by Noémie Merlant, stops at the Thénardiers’ place with her young daughter, Cosette, leaving her in their care and hoping to give her a better life. However, Mme Thénardier takes advantage of the young mother’s difficult situation and plans to use the arrangement to get regular payments from her.
Fantine’s suffering and misery were portrayed very well throughout the film.
“Les Misérables” also keeps viewers engaged through its action scenes, such as prison escapes, chases, fights and street battles.
Yet, as Variety points out, the film moves so quickly that it often sacrifices psychological depth and social critique, as it mainly focuses on the events themselves, rather than exploring the causes of poverty and injustice or connecting these themes to issues in our lives today.