Les Misérables (Sefiller)

Les Misérables is a French television miniseries first broadcast on TF1 in September 2000, adapted from Victor Hugo's 1862 novel. Directed by Josée Dayan from a screenplay by Didier Decoin, it was made as a European co-production involving France, Italy, Germany, Spain and the United States, and aired in four feature-length episodes. A shortened English-language version was also shot in parallel, with the actors re-recording their scenes.

The story follows Jean Valjean, a man sentenced to years of hard labor for stealing a loaf of bread. After his release he tries to build an honest life under a new identity, but police inspector Javert, convinced that a criminal can never truly change, pursues him relentlessly. Along the way Valjean takes in Cosette, the daughter of the destitute Fantine, and raises her as his own while constantly living on the run. The adaptation departs from the novel in places, adding new subplots and reshaping several characters. Gérard Depardieu, John Malkovich, Christian Clavier, Virginie Ledoyen and Jeanne Moreau head the international cast.