Adam Lambert has defended his controversial review of the cast of the new film Les Misérables.

The ‘For Your Entertainment’ singer drew a mixed reaction for a review of the musical, where he accused such as Russell Crowe and Hugh Jackman of ‘pretending to be singers’.

In the film, director Tom Hooper asked his all-star cast to sing live on set in order to capture the emotion on screen.

On 30 December, Lambert said: ‘With that cast, they should have studio recorded and sweetened the vocals.

‘I felt like I should ignore the vocals and focus on the emotional subtext – but the singing was so distracting at times it pulled me out.’

The comments provoked a response from Crowe, who acknowledged the American Idol runner up and said he had a point.

‘I don’t disagree with Adam,’ the actor tweeted yesterday (2 January). ‘Sure it could have been sweetened, Hooper wanted it raw and real, that’s how it is.’

Lambert reflected on his critique of Les Mis in another series of Twitter messages.

He said: ‘My movie review has gone viral. U can spend a whole year praising artists for inspiring work, but one critique gets all the attention. Funny.

‘Those raw and real moments when characters broke down or were expressing the ugliness of the human condition were superb. However... My personal opinion: there were times when the vocals weren't able to convey the power, beauty and grace that the score ALSO calls for.

‘I guess I'm a purist for the original LIVE broadway recording when the actors sang the f**k outta those songs. JUST an opinion... I should prob stop fanning the flames on this one..but i love a good debate- couldnt help myself.’

Lambert did profess his admiration for Anne Hathaway, who plays Fantine and sings the breakout song ‘I Dreamed A Dream.’

‘One last thing though: Anne Hathaway was so good – had me tearing up. Oscar worthy performance for sure! Ok. #donediscussinglesmis,’ he added.

Since 1 January, Les Misérables has made nearly $130m (£80m, €100m) worldwide.

Watch the trailer for the film below: