Warbler said:

CP3S said:

That being said, as great as Crawford and Brightman sounded in that live performance, Gerard Bultler and Emmy Rossum are far, far, far more pleasant to look at.

just for that *Warbler tells Javert that he saw CP3S steal a loaf of bread*

I'd say it's not just a matter of prettiness, it's a matter of film presence too.

Chuck Wagner is probably one of the great baritones of his age, a 6 foot + juggernaut of charisma on stage, and one of the first "Javerts" as well as the first Mr. Hyde in "Jekyll and Hyde." I had the privledge to see him on the first and second nation tours of "Jekyll and Hyde, " and as the Ringling Brother's Circus ringmaster, and that man OWNS the stage.

That being said, the camera does not love the guy. His powerful presence comes off as somewhat cheesy on camera, in the old show "Automan" and his occasional TV spots.

Even in 1985, the short, slightly pudgy Colm Wilkonson would have had a tough time selling me on the dangerous, superhumanly strong Valjean under the unforgiving eye of the close-up.