The Phantom of the Opera (2005)

 Disappointing
I loved the play and saw it several times. I was happy to hear that it was being filmed and hoped that it would prove to be a comeback for the Hollywood musical, but so many bad decisions were made it hard to know how to begin. Let's start with the casting. The guy who played the phantom was terrible. He couldn't sing! Maybe if you've never seen or heard Michael Crawford you might think him adequate, but his voice just couldn't do justice to the music. End of story. The play and original story had a lot of supernatural elements such as Christine walking through the mirror and the magical lasso that hung in the middle of the air. Part of the fun was wondering how the phantom did these things. In the movie all this was explained away. Christine finds the mirror to be a sliding glass door of all things. The phantom was way too good looking. He is supposed to be scary and hideous in appearance. He is just a handsome guy with a mask. When you do finally see him it is underwhelming. He just isn't scary enough. By taking away the horror and supernatural elements we are just left with a love triangle. Combine that with some of the cepiatone filming and it takes on the feel of a cheap harlequin romance novel. These changes, though small, have a great significance. All the fun and profundity are absent. There are many good performances and the score is well done, beautiful sets and costumes...When I think of how good it should have been. I have to scratch my head. What fools!
Don't mess with perfection. And get a phantom who is scary and can sing! May 8, 2008

 The closest we will come to the Play for many of us
The Paris Opera House is being sold to a couple of junk... oops scrap metal dealers. They inherit along with the opera and Opera Company but also an unwanted guest. Yes it is the Opera Ghost or Phantom. The ghost falls in love with a voice and before the story of a love triangle is over we see that genius has turned to madness.

Loosely base on a story written by Gaston Leroux in 1911 "LE Fantôme de l'Opéra" (with many improvements) and more than 10 movie adaptations, "Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera" is brought to film with only scenes and sights and full orchestral music at can only bee seen and heard on film (best in Blu-ray).

As with many movie adoptions this film pails compared to the famous stage productions. Yet is much better than the stage version I watched locally. We also are treated of insights, which even though lack the mystery of stage, from flashbacks to carriage chase scenes.

The costuming and sets are impeccable and spectacular. Of course even for the time Patrick Wilson could stand to have a haircut.

Most of the actors, of course not the stage actors, were well chosen especially Minnie Driver as Carlotta. Emmy Rossum as Christine is cute as a button and could have been a Disney hereon. The only downside is that with all the choices of singers thy chose a lead Gerard Butler as The Phantom who is not a professional singer and you can hear it.

Ignore the fact that you can hear Evita creeping in many of the tunes and prepare to be wrapped in the story.

The Blu-ray DVD has a great back story of the Making of the Phantom that almost rivals the movie.





Evita May 3, 2008

 Worst Phatom they could have chosen
Of all the singers at their disposal, the guy they chosen for Phantom sucks! He's flat and off key many times, and is just horrible. Sub par performance, plus really crappy makeup effect for the Phantom as well. Christine and Raoul are well played and are the ONLY glimmer of hope. This is a rental ~ not a purchase. It's not a movie you'll watch over and over. I've seen the play several times with many different actors from Michael Crawford to Robert Guillaume ~ and a muppet would have sung better than this clown. What a disappointment! April 29, 2008

 show stopping service
The Phantom of the Opera (Full Screen Edition)
I had wornout my last copy of this dvd. How nice to be able to order anew copy, and receive it in mere days.Now I can once again view one of my favorite musicals when ever I wish. April 27, 2008

 Phantom is Phenomenal!
The photography, character development, and music are awesome in this movie. The entire production is a combination of ultra sensitive yet powerful performances. This is my favorite blu-ray to date and nothing else has been really close. A classic for years to come and a can't miss! April 26, 2008

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