Sent to jail for stealing a loaf of bread, Jean Valjean has every reason for hating humanity and embarking on a life of crime when he is released twenty years later. The gesture of a kindly bishop changes his perspective and he decides instead to live the life of a good and honest man. Through hard work over many years, Valjean becomes a successful industrialist and mayor of a small town, respected by all as a great benefactor. But everything he has achieved is suddenly lost when Inspector Javert, a former guard at the prison where he served, recognises Valjean and decides to arrest him for a minor offence he committed years ago. Valjean would have submitted to arrest had he not already made a promise to one of his employees, Fantine, just before she died. Moved by Fantine�s tragic story, Valjean has agreed to adopt her daughter Cosette, who is currently in the care of the unscrupulous innkeeper Th�nardier and his wife. To fulfil his promise, Valjean must flee from Javert and assume a new identity. Some years later, Valjean and Cosette have settled in Paris, at a time when an uprising against the restored monarchy is fermenting. A young revolutionary, Marius, falls in love with Cosette, but events conspire to keep them apart. Meanwhile, the stone-hearted Javert is not far away, and he is as intent as ever that Valjean be brought to justice...