Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom Of The Opera

[Ghostboy]

I just saw this, and as a film, it's pretty bad. I think fans of the show may love it (I don't know for sure, as I've never seen it staged), just because they'll appreciate seeing it adapted to the big screen, but the whole thing is terribly uncinematic and makes you long for Baz Luhrman's touch. Schumacher seems to shoot almost the entire film from static medium shots -- his approach is incredibly boring, and thus so is the film. The melodies are as beautiful as always, and the cast sings the awkward lyrics quite well. And I couldn't get enough of Emmy Rossum...she's the only reason I'd really recommend seeing this movie. Completely transfixing, and luckily she's in just about every shot.

[grand theft sparrow]

the whole thing is terribly uncinematic and makes you long for Baz Luhrman's touch.

Sounds like Chicago.  Thanks for the warning.

[Alethia]

it was nothing like chicago.

i agree with GB, this was quite a bore to sit through.

[Myxo]

Dallas Observer / Bill Gallo:

Runs two hours and 20 minutes and plays like 10 days in the county jail.

[grand theft sparrow]

it was nothing like chicago.

i agree with GB, this was quite a bore to sit through.

So it is like Chicago.

I didn't like Chicago.

[Movieman21]

I dont know why you guys are giving it such a harsh comeoff.   I saw it today, and I thought that it was actually well done.  I think that it did have its flaws, but so does every film.  The costumes were great, the choreography was awesome, the sets were very detailed and the visuals were decent.  I think that the cinematography was pretty good, and moved you well through the scenes.

The parts that I thought werent so good cinematically, had mostly to do with how i felt they didnt translate well from the play.  But that is becuase I liked the play so much, and if something was changed, but just a little, I picked up on it.  The main thing that could hurt it as a film, is the lack of character developement, but that is not the fault of Joel Schumacker, that is the fault of the story itself.  Though they did a great job of TRYING to fill in the gaps, such as with the Phantom as a child, and the same with Christine.

As a whole, if you are a fan of the play even in the slightest, then I think that you are really going to enjoy this movie.  I give it a  

[Gold Trumpet]

Yes, there is a reason to see this film and it is because of Emmy Rossum. Never once did I doubt the faithfulness of the film to the play. Thats not saying much though. Just in the first half hour I had 2 pages worth of critiques piled up in my head of what was wrong with the film and then I just dumped it all. I knew they were all worthless because it would go against the very identity of the musical. I wanted the film to be centered better, but it went everywhere - story and filmmaking wise. I wanted the tempo to be calmer, but it was a cast of seemingly a 100 and the film wanted to give everyone their chance to smile once at the camera. That took time to do. Everything I described is what musicals just are. They have life people adore and unofficial rules people follow religiously. I'm really indifferent to it and just have the surface enjoyment of good dancing and nice singing.

But, back to Emmy Rossum. She's pure gold. Every smile seems better than the next. She was born to be on camera and there even was a moment at the end when some good acting chops came out. I forget the scene specifically (and yea, i just saw it a few hours ago), but something happened really bad and she gave a look of complete shock that stunned me. The camera held on her face for half a second at best, but I couldn't believe how really devastated her face looked just like that. It reminded me of Emma Thompson's uncanny ability to do a 180 with her emotions in the middle of a scene only to get right back out of it and never for a moment feel fake. Emmy Rossum is no Emma Thompson (for my money, no one's in the same room as her anyways) but she really had an Emma Thompson moment just then that moved me.

Also, it was obvious The Phantom was played by someone too young to fit the character description. He was so young in fact that all through the film his face was likely unshaven for the maximum number of 3 days. It was desperate, but also the protaganist leading man was desperately pretty while being obviously dull. But, Emmy Rossum, folks, Emmy Rossum.

[SHAFTR]

the whole thing is terribly uncinematic and makes you long for Baz Luhrman's touch.

Nothing needs his touch.

[Pedro]

the whole thing is terribly uncinematic and makes you long for Baz Luhrman's touch.

Nothing needs his touch.

the touch of death

[Find Your Magali]

I liked it, but it only makes me appreciate even more how great the stage musical is. This movie can't touch the energy and continual forward momentum of the stage play.

But the movie does hit home runs in the area where it has an advantage over a stage play. The art direction is superb; you can truly feel the architecture and character of the opera house. It feels like a real place, stuffed full of props and costumes and memories and dark secrets.

The cinematography was great, although I do agree, in retrospect, with the complaint that there were a few too many medium shots.

Here's my biggest beef with the movie: Gerard Butler is too young for the role and, more importantly, couldn't sing the role. He was thoroughly mediocre as a performer, and that's supposed to be the central performance. Instead, Raoul outshine the Phantom, which hurts the film on numerous levels. Even though the Christine is in more scenes in the play, it's the Phantom's show. And the movie should be the Phantom's show, but Butler just didn't have the mileage or the vocal chords to pull it off. Which is a shame. With Rossum's performance and the lovely art direction, a powerful performance by the Phantom would have made this a real keeper for fans of the stage play. Of course, it's a thankless job trying to live up to Michael Crawford, but they should have cast the central role for VOICE first; hell, the guy's gonna be under a mask for 95 percent of the movie, he doesn't have to be a hunk.

Oh well. Good film, but an opportunity wasted.

[MacGuffin]

Warner has officially announced the release of its recent musical remake of Phantom of the Opera for 5/3 (SRP $29.95). The 2-disc Special Widescreen Edition will include anamorphic widescreen video, Dolby Digital 5.1 audio, 2 documentaries on the story and the musical's legacy, and 3 "making of" featurettes. A single disc edition will also be available (for $27.95) in both full frame and anamorphic widescreen versions.

[©brad]

i'm so glad i'm never going to see this movie.

[cron]

i hated the fact that two springbreakers played the male parts, and also that britney spears lookalike.  it was funny to see how the accents changed from time to time. at the begining of the movie the owners had a  french accent, then a british accent, and then an american accent.

his approach is incredibly boring

yeps.


and that Milos Forman idea makes perfect sense.