ANDREW LLOYD WEBBER’S THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA
MPAA Rating:
 for brief violent imagesReviewed by: Charity Bishop Better than Average
Moviemaking Quality:
 Primary Audience:
Adults, Teens
Genre:
Drama, Musical/Performing Arts, Suspense/Horror
Length:
2 hr. 30 min.
Year of Release:
2004
USA Release:
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     “The world’s biggest musical!” Producer’s Synopsis: “This romantic musical epic is about a mysterious masked figure, Erik (Butler), who roams the undergrounds of 19th century Paris, centering his activity around (or under) the Opera Populaire, where he tutors a beautiful young soprano, Christine (Rossum), who goes on to upstage the city’s most famous opera singer, Carlotta (Driver). The Phantom thinks he’s found love, until Christine’s childhood boyfriend, Vicomte de Chagny (Wilson) shows up.” When originally penned in 1914, The Phantom of the Opera was not taken as serious literature but a sensational novel. It has spurred a number of horror spin-offs but only became known to the world as a tragic tale of romance and obsession through the ingenious musical on Broadway in the 1980's by Andrew Lloyd Webber who, after twenty years, finally has the scope to bring his massive production to the big screen. Opening after the turn of the century in Paris, the various set pieces and props from the Opera House are on auction, a legacy of forgotten memories for those who recall its former days of glory. As the chandelier rises, the dust and cobwebs are blown away from the magnificent architecture, taking us back in time to the height of the Opera’s popularity. Monsieur’s André and Firmin (Ciarán Hinds, Simon Callow) have recently undertaken the opera’s management and are being shown its intricacies by the former manager, who is overly eager to retire. Together with their wealthy patron, the young Viscount Raoul de Cheney (Patrick Wilson), they are introduced to the opera’s grand diva, La Carlotta (Minnie Driver). Temperamental and demanding, after an incident involving a falling backdrop, Carlotta storms from the stage and refuses to sing for the grand opening that evening. The ever-resourceful and all-knowing Madam Giry (Miranda Richardson), who oversees the ballet troupe and keeps everything behind the scenes in working order, suggests that they replace the grand diva with Christine Dáee (Emmy Rossum). The daughter of a famous violinist but orphaned at an early age, Christine has a strong, beautifully powerful voice that resonates throughout the theatre, drawing praise and applause from the crowds and critics alike, and enchanting Raoul, who is eager to remind her of their former childhood acquaintance. He is desirous of taking her out that evening after the performance in celebration of her success, but Christine cautions him on how strict her musical tutor is. Before she can protest, Raoul is out the door to fetch his carriage… and she is not there when he returns. Instead Christine is paid a visit from her “Angel of Music,” a mysterious composer (Gerard Butler) who dwells beneath the opera house. He has taken her beneath his wing, teaching her the true art of music and vocal talents, hidden from the world due to a hideous facial deformity. While his love is silent and eternal, Christine grows to fear his dark nature. Her only salvation lies in Raoul’s ability to free her from the Phantom’s power, but the ghostly presence that haunts the opera house will not relinquish his pupil easily. Ultimately a tale of romance, compassion, and revenge, “The Phantom of the Opera” is a glamorous spectacle from beginning to end. No expense was spared in bringing the Tony-award winning stage production to film, and it shows in every glorious frame. Candlelight flickering among the arches, the breathtaking first glimpse of the Phantom’s Lair, the beautiful costumes and jaw-dropping architecture. This film is absolutely breathtakingly gorgeous. I’ve never seen such grandeur, and yet it never overwhelms the actors. Everything audiences know and love from Broadway is here, in addition to a swordfight and the opportunity to view the chandelier crashing to the ground and bursting into flame in a massive explosion of light. Most of the music is intact, but lyrics have been tweaked here and there, and a few alterations made to strengthen and modify the title track. Fans of the original recording may find themselves initially disappointed in the vocal talents if they have not been forewarned. Gerard Butler is no Michael Crawford; his limitations are occasionally apparent, but it’s his presence that is utterly remarkable. He puts such passion into the Phantom that he commands every frame; we are so enthralled with him that we can forgive moments of vocal weakness. A perfect foil for him is Emmy Rossum. Her youth, beauty, and marvelous voice bring to life a very poignant Christine. Their scenes together are eclectic; sexual chemistry is evident, while her attraction to the quiet Raoul is very different and entirely innocent. Patrick Wilson’s voice is breathtaking and he brings empathy to a character that normally fades beneath the empowering presence of the Phantom. The cast member having the most fun is Minnie Driver, whose Carlotta drives the managers absolutely out of their minds and leaves the audience in peals of laughter. The supporting cast is fabulous but one of the greater performances is by Miranda Richardson as Madam Giry, the formidable ballet instructor whose presence is slightly menacing and mysterious throughout. There have always been mild content issues to contend with in this epic tale. Musical lyrics often carry subtle sensual undertones, particularly evidenced in Erik’s treatment of Christine in Music of the Night, and their duet for The Point of No Return, which is ultimately part of the opera Don Juan Triumphant in which a lord attempts to seduce an innocent young woman. In the former, while Erik encourages his visitor to give way to her senses and embrace the quiet, tranquil darkness that is his realm, he runs his hands over her in a briefly lingering caress. PoNR ends with violent and purposefully sensual embrace while the lyrics reflect on the lovers having “reached a point of no return,” intimating that they are now to share physical passion and wondering what new discoveries will be made entangled in one another’s arms. The Victorian audience in the Opera House is scandalized. The managers muse on whether Raoul has slept with Christine. She accuses the Phantom of intending to indulge in his “lust for flesh,” and Erik bemoans that his face has prevented him from such possibilities. One of the stagehands moons Carlotta as she passes by. Female nudity often appears in the Opera House sculptures. There’s also a dwarf who likes peeking under skirts, and very mild bawdiness appears briefly in an opera. One of the stagehands is strangled and dropped above the stage to terrify the ballet dancers. A boy is beat with a cane in a freak side show and then murderously turns on his attacker. A swordfight draws blood but the victor shows mercy at the intervention of Christine. A chandelier rips from the ceiling and comes crashing down into the audience, creating a massive explosion as people flee for their lives. Carlotta is hit by a falling backdrop but not harmed. The Phantom becomes physically violent with Christine on two occasions, once striking her to the ground after she’s torn free his mask, and then dragging her to his lair by force. There are a half dozen mild profanities and abuses of deity. The Phantom has many negative and even murderous flaws but is not painted as the villain of the piece; he is empathetic even when acting for his own benefit, his actions made to seem justified through the torments of his previous public life. While he occasionally kills for sport and takes pleasure blackmailing the managers into paying his expensive salary, ultimately he is redeemed through compassion and love. There are many moral discussions to be talked about after viewing the film, including whether or not the Phantom was given to madness or just obsession, if we are to have compassion for people with deformities or base our feelings on their actions (Christine tells him that his cruelty has turned her tears of empathy to tears of hatred), and if the heart can overpower hideousness. Raoul and Christine are both asked to make sacrifices for love. Audiences will have conflicted feelings about this one. Some may see the redemption of Christ in the role of Raoul and Christine, who eventually bring light into the Phantom’s life, but others may be shocked at the darkness pervading the script. The film may not be perfect, but for a Phantom “Phan” such as myself, was a remarkable and emotional journey into familiar places and events that have until now remained only on the stage. Violence: Mild / Profanity: Mild / Sex/Nudity: Minor  Positive - …there are some darker elements and the film
is not fit for young children because of the violence and sensual aspect
of some of the dance numbers, but the film is a powerful glimpse at the
nature of evil and redemption through love… Neutral - Very beautiful cinematography, this film had some breathtaking shots and sequences… that was the highlight of the film for me. At first I was certain it had the potential to be “amazing” because you can do so much more with a film then on a stage, HOWEVER after only a few minutes I realized that there is nothing comparable to the stage and I found myself quite bored at times. Positive - The Phantom is the Devils' child and hurt and rejected
because of his physical appearance. His love for Christine is demanding and
requires payment — love him only because of what he has done for her. The
Phantom sees himself as flawed because of vain value of external beauty.
She points out he believes that way because of his soul. Positive - Well, I must say this movie sent me to paradise with the
music! The cinematography was amazing and the acting stupendous! Full
Marks!!! The movie is alluring, yet dark and romantic, but not sexual. There is an
underlying sensuality that is continually prevalent throughout the whole
movie. The singing is phenomenal and the story fantastic. I never saw this
on the stage but my husband did and he enjoyed it more because it said it
helped him understand the story more. Positive - For one who has never been able to afford seeing the
“real thing” on stage; I thought it was remarkable and well worth the
movie ticket price. The movie is a bit dark and does raise some rather
interesting and well worth asking questions. However, if it’s a choice
between the “Harry Potter” movies or “The Phantom of the Opera” I’d take
my little sister to this one any day! Negative - I found the dances to be very sexual. There is violent and scary
content. This film is not for anyone under the age of 17. It should have
got an R rating. Positive - Simply the best movie I’ve seen this year. I did not find
anything offensive for a PG-13 rating. It’s a beautiful story of love,
compassion and redemption. The music was enchanting and emotionally
charged. It’s one of those movies I could watch over and again. Positive - A fantastic, must-see movie for any fan of the Broadway
musical! The sets are rich and lush and the acting superb. And of
course…the MUSIC! The famous music is powerful and transforming! I
LOVED this movie!! As for decency, the movie shows far less nudity than
it could have given the rather provocative plot. For example, the Phantom
kidnaps Christine and takes her to his underground lair, but when she
faints, he puts her in his bed and leaves, allowing her to wake up-
instead of taking advantage of her sleeping state. I didn’t notice much
foul language, if any. Some of the scenes between the Phantom and
Christine are a bit sensual, but nothing worse than you see on your
average television show. It is pretty violent, so I wouldn’t recommend
taking your children to see the movie. There’s a strangling (very
graphic) and a sword fighting scene, along with some grisly special
effects. All in all, everyone over age 16 or so should enjoy this fabulous
movie. Positive - This is a great story of good overcoming evil by wonderful acts of
love. Christine loving the Phantom by looking past his physical
disfigurement and his sins. Raul’s willingness to die to save his wife to
be… Christine. Be advised that there are overtones of Satan possession,
Satan worship, and a spiritual battle going on within Christine’s mind.
Based on this I would advise parents to see the movie first and then
decide if it is appropriate for their child. This movie does a much better
job of telling the story then the musical does. Positive - The Phantom of the Opera is the beautiful tale of love,
music and compassion. Christine, who is young and innocent feels that she
loves the mysterious phantom, until she meets with her childhood
sweetheart Raoul, who shows her that real love is selfless. The Phantom
was cruel and wicked if only to get revenge for the way people in the
outside world treated him, but Christine still showed him compassion. The
music is wonderful in this movie, everyone did a wonderful job. It is
visually stunning, and while the acting was pretty cheesy, the music made
up for it 100%. Positive - One of the pleasures of living in New York for the
last twenty years has been the ability to return to see “The Phantom of
the Opera” on stage year after year. A musical pilloried by the New York
critics (especially the New York Times) and snickered at by Manhattan
elites, it continues to pack in the crowds because it has a certain
something that cannot be defined, something that goes beyond the stirring
music, the mythical romantic story and the exquisite stage sets. Positive - As Christians we are the representatives of Christ’s
message to a world in need - what we are is what the world believes Christ
is. If we are cold, harsh, unforgiving, prejudicial, that’s all the world
can rightfully expect there to be. Although this isn’t a religious film,
it drives this point home: the Phantom has become a violent, obsessive,
murderous figure of mystery, because he has been treated with shame and
loathing from the very beginning on account of his facial deformity. His
mother was disgusted with him, as a youth he was paraded about like a
sideshow freak, and his only comfort and mastery were to be found in
literal and figurative darkness. Positive - As a fan of Broadway musicals, I was excited to see this
film. I expected it to be good, but it far surpassed my expectations. The
music was awe-inspiring, and the cinematography was absolutely amazing.
Gerard Butler did a tremendous job of capturing the essence of the phantom --
his love for Christine and his madness. Positive - …First, I would send caution regarding prevalent promiscuity.
There are many golden statues in the opera house that are nearly nude, and
the costumes most often show the upper breasts on the women, though the
costumes generally are quite stylish. There is also a scene of back
nudity when a man bares his bottom in protest to a certain opera singer.
Furthermore, this movie has the potential to be very disturbing to some,
especially young people or children, those easily frightened or disturbed
by a horror genre, or even those who are not very personally aware of the
reality of the struggle between Satan and Christ, evil and good in a real
sense. For such people, this movie would likely create unnecessary
disturbance. Positive - I absolutely loved this film. Apart from the mooning
scene, which really bugged me because it was so unnecessary, I had no
problems with it whatsoever. Sure it was sensual, but in a beautiful way.
There was nothing overtly sexual, implied desire, yes. Inappropriate, I
don’t think so. I did take my daughter, age 8. I saw the Broadway
version in NYC a month ago and was totally enthralled. I came home
playing the music constantly. My daughter, a music fan, fell in love with
the score. She would ask questions about the show, and then begged me to
take her to the movie. Her music teacher, a Christian, urged me to take
her for the music experience. I read several reviews on-line, and decided
it would be ok. I don’t regret this. She knew immediately the mooning
scene was inappropriate and thought it was dumb. She didn’t pick up at
all on the sensuality, she’s too young. They were just two (three) people
in love. Nothing more than that. The violence is no worse than anything
they see normally, and we are generally pretty picky. This is the only PG
13 movie she has seen or will see. We don’t see all PG movies. I urged
her to close her eyes at the point of the hanging, which she gladly did,
she’s not into violence at all. She loved the music, the drama, the
excitement of it all. Positive - I went to see this movie on opening day, and I must say it
was my favorite movie all year, and I can’t wait to see it again. It is a
definite must-see for all fans of musicals and/or operas. As a Christian,
I found many parallels to Christ, especially in the way Christine treated
the Phantom, with unconditional love and mercy. As she sings to him
towards the end, “The distortion I see is not in your face, but in your
soul.” Indeed, the movie greatly encourages us to love people, even your
enemies, as yourself and maybe by doing so, they can change. Also, there
is few objectionable content. There are a few scenes where the Phantom
kills people, but it’s bloodless, and there are a few songs that are
pretty sexually charged, but no sex or nudity occurs in the film. I
recommend this movie to everyone! Comments from young people
Positive - I am speechless. This is definately one of the BEST movies I’ve
ever seen. For being a 13 year old girl I’ll put this movie among the
ranks of Spiderman2 and above. The acting was wonderful; I felt as if I
were apart of the movie. However, I wouldn’t recommend this to anyone who
dosen’t appreciate musical theater because it is mainly singing and
dancing. The only objectional things would be a murder and about 2 bad
words, but by the time you find them you will be too drawn in to the movie
to even see them as wrong. In the movie things aren’t really portrayed as
“bad” like the cursing, because the wrongs are usually done by the phantom
whom had a distraught past. I am still speechless about this movie, wow,
and now want to go see it on Broadway! Positive - This was an EXCELLENT movie! Although there is
definitely some sensual chemistry between the Phantom and Christine and 1
or 2 dances that were somewhat sexual, it was an awesome movie and I
really enjoyed it. The Opera was incredible and the acting was
spectacular!! Although I wouldn’t advise you to see it if you are not a
big singing fan (there is singing in every scene). Positive - Wow, this movie was absolutely amazing!! I loved every
minute of it. I think it’s best summed up as saying it shows the line
between love and obsession, between romance and seduction, and genius and
madness. I think it’s important to know the difference. If nothing else
the music is amazing, the acting is spectacular, it is well worth your
time and money. Positive - I really enjoyed this film. It was extremely
well made and the acting was very good. I liked the fact that the movie
closely followed the plot of the play. The costumes and set were amazing! Positive - It was a great film for all ages. It has a great story
and beautiful music. You rarely see movies that could entertain both
sexes, and all ages, but finally - there is one. I recommend this movie to
anyone and everyone hoping to leave the theatre thinking they spent their
money wisely! Positive - I thought this film was amazing. The Film production was
absolutely amazing. I can’t wait to be able to see the Broadway
production. Anyone wanting to see a huge production with beautiful
costumes and music should go see The Phantom of The Opera. It wasn’t too
violent, if you knew what to expect. And nothing was really shocking. It
was an amazing movie that everybody should see. Positive - This was an excellent movie! The music was so beautiful,
and the special effects, the costumes, the acting, was all wonderful! The
language isn’t that offensive. (an occasional d*** word.) The romance
between Christine and Roual is very innocent, and sweet. I wouldn't
recomemnd it for younger children, because it might be too scary, and they
might not understand it. I would recommend it for children 10 and up. Positive - I really enjoyed this movie. The actors had awesome voices.
People keep saying that the Phantom was a disappointment, but I think he
fit the character of the Phantom perfectly. There was a lot of cleavage in
this movie, but that’s really the only negative thing in the movie. (That
and a guy who mooned Carlotta.) Some people might be offended by the
violence in the movie, but people have to understand that that’s just part
of the story line and the character of the book. (Which I would suggest
reading.) Violence is part of the Phantom’s personality because of the way
the world treats him. Positive - Wow! very very good movie, it’s just beautiful
and appeals to the senses. There’s nothing objectionable that I can see
except perhaps a some people being hung (hanged?) but there’s nothing
graphic or bloody, no language, except maybe a “damn,” or two. I’ve never
seen the musical on stage, so I have nothing to compare it too, but I
thought it was fabulous. Recommended for the whole family, though it might
be young for the little ones. It also teaches a good lesson that it’s not
how you look, but how you ACT that matters, and you might want to discuss
this with your kids afterwards incase they didn’t pick up on it. Positive - Beautiful, Spectacular, Absolutely positively breath
taking! I might add. What an outstanding performance by all cast members!
I Loved every moment of it. Although the movie does have its flaws, the
music, the scenery, the jaw dropping stage presence, allows you to forgive
the movie of its faults. There are some sexual elements to the film, such
as the dire relationship between Christine and the Phantom. He seduces
her in a sexual innuendo kind of way. As for any nudity, there are statues
of naked women all throughout the theatre, a man’s bare buttocks, and of
course the women’s style of dress at the time in era, which showed
cleavage. But keep in mind that the tale is about romance, lust, as well as
vengeance. Not recommended for all viewers, but all that aside what an
amazing movie. The performances were stupendous… Do I smell an Oscar
for Emmy Rossum? Positive - I’ve never seen the play, but I really liked this movie! It was a
little creepy for younger kids, and there was a couple sexual references,
but they weren’t really very obvious. Christine was very caring about
everyone. The Phantom was portrayed as someone who was misunderstood and
gave in to madness, but it wasn’t his fault that he had to live in the
opera house. It’s a good lesson to learn, not to mistreat someone just
because they’re different! Positive - I thought that The Phantom of the Opera was phenomenal. It had
breath taking talent with acting and singing. It was very sad and I was so
close to crying. When you see this I guarantee you will want to see it
again. It was absolutely positively outstanding! In my opinion, it should
get at least five Oscars and probably will get more. Positive - The care
which Christine showed at the end was very touching and had me crying. Her
innocent love for Raoul but fascination for the Phantom were clearly
defined and the love for Raoul was praised. One brief view of someone’s
bottom, which was not made noticeable in one scene. Altogether a beautiful
touching film filled with compassion. Positive - I really really liked this movie. There is just something about it
that enthralls you. The music is totally amazing and captivating, and
Christine has such a beautiful voice. It is slightly violent and there
were sensual undertones, and a few bad words, but I think the rating was
appropriate. It was definitely worth my money, and I’d deff. see this one
again! Movie Critics
“…less a horror film than a haunting tale of obsession, jealousy and unrequited love…” “…inappropriate for children, but this beautiful fantasy will mesmerize teenagers and adults…” “…lacks both authentic romance and the thrill of memorable spectacle…” |
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