The Phantom Of The Opera Is Here (The Phantom Of The Opera (DVD))

Member Name: AJ26

Product:	The Phantom Of The Opera (DVD)
Date:	18/09/09 (55 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Good songs, great scenery

Disadvantages: Not the same atmosphere as the theatre, lead role could have been stronger

I really enjoy musicals and have been to see several both in the West End in London and here in Edinburgh. There is a great atmosphere when you are in the theatre but how well does a musical translate to a film? This review is of The Phantom of the Opera film which was the 2004 version.

The Phantom of the Opera musical was written by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber and tells the story of Christine Daae a young woman who has a wonderful singing voice and has been coached by a mysterious tutor. This tutor is the Phantom of the Opera a man who covers half his face in a mask and lives beneath the opera house. He becomes obsessed with Christine and does all he can to further her career in the opera house and will stop at nothing to ensure he gets his way. The musical has some lively characters and some fantastic memorable songs.

Having seen The Phantom of the Opera on stage it was interesting to be able to compare it to the film. The obvious way that the film is better than the stage version is in its ability to produce some fantastic sets and make you feel that you are there. On stage although the sets are good they are not like a film which is much more realistic. The film does a wonderful job of catching the contrast between the colourful, vibrancy of the theatre and the dark, menacing side of the Phantom and his home beneath the theatre.

The music is also good although I have to confess that here the stage version is better as I don't think you can beat actually being in the theatre and hearing the live orchestra. That said the music is very good and the singing is fairly good although at times I felt that they were perhaps miming or it had been edited. The musical is of course famous for its well known songs including "Music of the Night" and "All I ask of You."

There are a few well known actors and actresses in the film including Minnie Driver as Carlotta the Prima Donna of the stage and Jennifer Ellison as Christines friend. Gerard Butler is the Phantom, I didn't actually realise it was him until someone told me, he certainly looks a lot different. He plays the role quite well. Emmy Rossum plays the lead role of Christine, she has a good voice but she doesn't really shine in the role. I think she is a bit overshadowed by Minnie Driver who just plays her role perfectly. I think the film could have been vastly improved with a much stronger actress in this lead role.

All in all it was an enjoyable film but it could have been better. It will appeal to those who like musicals but for those who don't I would advise giving it a miss as at 143 minutes running time you might be a bit bored!

There is a 2 disc version of the film which has special features but my DVD was just the single disc version.

Classification - 12
Price - Currently £4.98 on Amazon (for the 2 disc version)
Running Time - 143 minutes.

Summary: An enjoyable musical but could have been better with stronger actress