Les Misérables

In nineteenth-century France, Jean Valjean (Harry Baur) leaves prison after years served for stealing bread, and a policeman named Javert (Charles Vanel) will not stop hunting him. Raymond Bernard films Victor Hugo's novel across 281 minutes, first released as three films in three consecutive weeks. The chase pulls Valjean toward the student uprisings in Paris, and everything he has rebuilt hangs on staying one step ahead.