Set in early 19th-century France, "Les Mis" is the story of French peasant, Jean Valjean, and his quest for redemption after serving nineteen years in jail after stealing a loaf of bread to feed his sister's starving child. After a kindly bishop shows him an unexpected act of kindness, Valjean decides to start his life anew, but is relentlessly pursued by police inspector, Javert. Along the way, Valjean and a cast of many characters are swept into a revolutionary period in France, where a group of young idealists make their last stand at a street barricade.