If you've been following the "Les Miserables" machine in these final days leading up to its Christmas release, you'll know that the Oscar buzz surrounding Anne Hathaway's performance as Fantine is becoming very buzzy indeed—and if you've been lucky enough to see an early screening of the movie, you'll know that it's because her performance of "I Dreamed a Dream" is a mad, passionate, rip-out-your-guts show-stopper the likes of which has never been seen on screen. So when we sat down with Anne to chat about all things "Les Mis," we had to ask: When she sees herself in that scene, does she weep hysterically along with everybody else?
"Thank you for saying that," Anne said, before confirming that yes, the scene has the same effect on her as it does on the rest of the audience...albeit not for the same reasons.
"I cry, but I think it's because I'm still connected to the experience of making it," she explained, going on to say that she still feels her character's vulnerability when discussing the film. "I have to be aware when I'm doing press, because it brings me a lot closer to Fantine, and she's so broken. I have to protect myself a little bit. So I did cry...just because I was back in the process of making it."
That said, Anne freely admits when it comes to all the other scenes in "Les Mis," her emotional response is as an audience member, not an actor: "The rest of the film made me bawl like a baby."
Will you be bringing tissues to your "Les Mis" viewing?