This is not me saying the stage version is bad, in fact it is avery impressive show.

The stage version felt like he had too much fire in him to call it quits without trying to take revenge. His later performances in stars and Javert's suicide also had more emotional range and when he commited suicide he felt more like a broken man then this version did. He had an authoratative voice as the guard and yet there was a gruffness to him that made it more believable that he was a former slum boy who had come up in the world. With Javert, the stage had a good look for him however Russell Crowe's version felt more human and 3 dimensional than the stage one. Hugh Jackman had anger, sadness, and relief of the end of his prison sentence that I could feel which made him more relatable then the stiff governor. Valjean in the play felt less like a prisoner and looked like (to me) a govenor in a night gown. The words and acting felt very stiff in the stage performance (partially because they could not interact with each other and just stood still in front of a microphone). My criticism is not based on their singing (which as someone without any musical training I cannot truly say who is the better singer, technical or otherwise).

I felt that Hugh Jackman and Russell Crowe acted the scene better then the stage actors. I am not just talking about the visuals (which comparing what movies can do compared to a stage is not fair and both looked great). I know I will be be drowned in hate for this but I prefered how the movie did this scene better. Look down, look down upon your fellow man

Look down, and show some mercy if you can

Look down les miserables full movie