It’s been a long time since a movie musical challenged for an Oscar, yet with the predictions and rumors starting to fly round there are suggestions that one could be in the reckoning to take the main Academy Award for the first time since Chicago triumphed way back in 2002.

In fairness, if Les Miserables was decent it was always going to have a chance; the book was considered one of the finest novels of the 19th century, whilst the musical was one of the most high profile of the last century. Switching it to film though obviously had a huge pressure, and people finally got a chance to see how British filmmaker Tom Hooper had handled that as his film of Les Miserables screened for the first time last Friday (November 23), according to The Hollywood Reporter.

No one at the screening, which took place at Lincoln Center’s Alice Tully Hall, was allowed to give their review of the film. What can be revealed is that Hooper himself was there and addressed the crowd. "I'm grateful that I finished it [the film]... “ he said in a speech, adding “I'm grateful to the thousands of people who have been on this journey, particularly the wonderful cast... and I'm grateful to Victor Hugo (who wrote the novel upon which the Broadway play upon which the film is derived), who unfortunately can't be with us." Starring Anne Hathaway, Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe and Helena Bonham Carter among others, the cast certainly has the chops for the Awards season, only time will tell whether the film matches up to the profile.