Les Miserables‘s greatest strengths are also its greatest weakness in Tom Hooper’s muscular film adaptation of the classic 1862 Victor Hugo novel and eventual stage musical. Extraordinarily well-acted, often gorgeously shot, and finely sung, Les Miserables suffers under the weight of its own power in the latter half of an overly-long film.

Hooper wastes no time thrusting the audience into his world, as the film opens with an impressive rendition of “Look Down,” introducing Hugh Jackman as Jean Valjean in 1815 Toulon, a man at the end of his 19 year prison sentence for stealing a loaf of bread. Under the watchful eye of inspector Javert (Russell Crowe), Valjean is released under a strict parole. Valjean is a lost soul; physically weathered, psychologically broken. Spanning the next 33 years, Les Miserables chronicles Valjean’s break for freedom, and Javert’s endless pursuit of the fugitive as Valjean becomes a respected businessman and adoptive father.

With a vivid, bombastic approach, Hooper brings the stage play of Les Miserables to life in operatic fashion. With hardly a word spoken throughout the 157 minute running time, a lot of weight is put on the actors’ singing, and the cast meets the task head on – Hooper’s decision to have singing done live is a fantastic one. A Tony-winner, Jackman is no stranger to song and it shows from the first scene. With an immense power, Valjean guides the film from the start, as Jackman provides an emotional core to the film as best he can. Much has been made of Crowe’s presence in the film, and while he struggles a bit when singing in the higher register, he’s no slouch early.

Despite Jackman’s emotionally-charged performance, it is Anne Hathaway’s brief appearance as Fantine that is the film’s crowning moment. In a truly devastating single take, Hathaway’s “I Dreamed a Dream” is unlike anything you’ll see on screen this or any other year, and will leave you completely floored. Now a factory owner, Valjean’s kindness to the struggling Fantine leads to his adopting her child, Cosette.

Here again the story jumps ahead in time to 1832 Paris. Cosette, played during this time by Amanda Seyfried, lives quietly with Valjean while a revolution brews. With Javert lurking in the streets, forever on the hunt for Valjean, we are introduced to Epinone, played by a wonderful Samantha Barks, daughter to thieving innkeepers Thénardier and his wife (played by Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter), who raised Cosette as a child. We also meet rebels Marius (Eddie Redmayne), Enjolras (Aaron Tveit), and the young street urchin Gavroche, played by one of the film’s standouts, newcomer Daniel Huttlestone.

With a revolution at hand, a chance street encounter between Cosette and Marius leads to a strong love between the two. Perhaps it’s the length or general scale of the film, or even just the absence of Hathaway, but here the film begins to drag. With a fun rendition of “Master of the House” aside, Les Miserables is an emotional knockout, and Hooper’s commitment to the grandeur and general scale of the film grows tiresome after so long.

As the revolution builds, the general flow of the story grows a bit clunky and the commitment to song becomes difficult to maintain. With so much of the final act relying on the love between Marius and Cosette, their lack of chemistry hurts the film. Redmayne gives an admirable performance, but there is a spark missing between the two that is sorely missed. Bark’s rendition of “On My Own,” along with the delightful Gavroche, is the clear standout of the final act of the film.

The general gravitas of the production builds and builds, and what was exhilarating during the film’s opening hour grows tiresome as Crowe’s Javert continues his endless hunt of Valjean through a revolting Paris. What remains constant throughout is the film’s production design, as Eve Stewart and Hooper maintain a colorful palate and exquisite sets which blend perfectly with the film’s cinematography from Danny Cohen. Having read Victor Hugo’s novel and seen the musical on Broadway, this is truly as bombastic an adaptation as possible.

With fantastic performances from much of the cast, and an opening act as powerful and exhilarating as any this year, Les Miserables suffers under its own weight in its latter half. Director Tom Hooper seems intent upon emotionally exhausting the audience, and while fervent fans of the stage musical should be pleased, the absolutely massive story outlasts its welcome in an at-times stunning, yet overly long operatic adaptation of the Victor Hugo classic and Claude-Michel Schönberg stage musical.

Grade: B

Rated: PG-13 (for suggestive and sexual material, violence and thematic elements)

Les Miserables opens in theaters on December 25, 2012.