"The book is a film that takes place in the mind of the reader." ~ Paulo Coelho

Monday, September 23, 2019

Movie Review: The Phantom of the Opera (2004)

Greetings, friends!

There are a ton of musicals out there. I'm usually really picky about them because either I like the songs, but not the story or vise versa. Whenever I ask people to tell me a few of their favorite musicals, one of them is almost always The Phantom of the Opera. It is really famous and I had never seen it until last Tuesday! Here we are onto the review!

My guarantee: On ALL of my reviews there are NO spoilers unless I give you warning.


The Phantom of the Opera (2004):
Based on: Le Fantôme de l'Opéra - by Gaston Leroux. 
When new owners take over the Opera house, strange things begin happening. They receive a note from the Opera Ghost, demanding certain things. After having trouble with the star Carlotta, a young girl named Christine takes the stage. She gets reintroduced to one of her childhood friends, but she is worried because she keeps hearing voices. Whom she thinks is The Angel of Music is actually the Phantom. Is he just lonely, or does he have more sinister plans?
Genre: Musical, Romance.
Length: approx. 140 minutes.
Costumes: 7, okay, so there are some really amazing costumes in here, but quite a few are a little low, or skimpy. There is also a scene where someone isn't wearing a shirt, or pants.
My favorite: Look at that dress!
Script: 8, they are one or two bad words and a name in vain. There isn't really a lot of talking besides the singing.
Crew:
Directed by: Joel Schumacher.
Written by: Andrew Lloyd Webber, Joel Schumacher, Charles Hart, Richard Stilgoe, & Gaston Leroux.
Starring:
Gerald Butler as The Phantom.
Emmy Rossum as Christine Daaé.
Patrick Wilson as Raoul de Chagny.
Is it weird to anyone else that Raoul and I basicly have the same haircut?
Miranda Richardson as Madame Giry.
Minnie Driver as Carlotta Giudicelli. (Margaret Preece as Carlotta's singing voice except for one song.)
Simon Callow as Gilles André.
Ciarán Hinds as Richard Firmin.
Jennifer Ellison as Meg Giry.
Victor McGuire as Ubaldo Piangi.
Murray Melvin as Monsieur Reyer.
Kevin McNally as Joseph Buquet.
James Fleet as Monsieur Lefèvre.
Ramin Karimloo as Gustave Daaé. (This is interesting because he also played The Phantom and Raoul in different stage versions.)
Cinematography: 7, there were some cool things, but there was a lot of potential that they didn't use.
Cinematography by: John Mathieson.
Music: 9, the music is very impressive! I thought that a few of the songs sounded too much like another, but all of the singing was amazing!
Music by: Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Quotes: 7, as I said, there isn't a lot of talking without singing.
Storyline: 6, there is drinking, gruesome things, death, hanging, and some very suggestive things.
Good For: Musical lovers!
Age Range: It is rated PG-13 because of some scary things, but I think it just depends on each person.
Overall Score: 7.5!

Why, of all times I could have watched this did I decide to now? Well, Rebekah Brannan, one of the bloggers at Pure Entertainment Preservation Society (PEPS), is hosting a blogathon in honor of all things about The Phantom of the Opera because it is the 110th anniversary of when the novel first started being a serial in a newspaper! I thought this would be the perfect time to finally watch this to join this party!
I am still trying to decide what I thought of it. I had heard the song "The Music of the Night" before watching (my dad plays it all the time). I was certainly surprised at the story, I thought it was going a completely different way! I definitely want to re-watch it, and see some different versions, so I think that means I liked it.

If you are a "Phan", they would love if you joined!

Thank you so much for reading! Am I the only one who has gone so long without seeing it? What do you think of it? Make sure to check out all of the other entries in the blogathon HERE!

MovieCritic

14 comments:

  1. I saw this film after I read the book but before I saw the stage musical, and honestly it wasn't my cup of tea...but I'm not sure why! Maybe this is just something that I prefer to see onstage. Either way, I do love Christine's costumes! (especially the dress you included).

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    1. Yeah, I understand that! My dad saw it live and loves it, but my mom can't stand it. I'm not sure what I think of it yet. I would definitely love to see a stage version, too, and read the book! Oh yes, the costumes were great, for sure!

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  2. DA MUSIC IS SO PRETTY. *clears throat* I've never actually seen this (just the non-musical 1940s movie) but I have gone on streaks where I listen to the songs. It's been awhile. I should remedy that.

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    1. YES IT IS! I had heard "The Music of the Night" a lot before I saw this, so it was fun to finally put it in context! Now I want to see some versions without the music to compare to this one. You should!

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  3. *pops up* DID SOMEONE SAY PHANTOM OF THE OPERA!!!??? My sisters bought this movie when it first came out back in 2004. when i was 4 haha. We watched it all. the. time! i have this movie memorized lol.

    I definitely have to check out this blogathon!!

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    1. YES I DID. ;) Haha, wow! I'm sure that you do have it memorized! I'm impressed by that because I'm not good at memorizing songs. Lol. ;) I can see myself watching this a lot in the future!

      Yeah! They've got some good posts over there!

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  4. At one time I tried to read the book, but never did finish it. Never really looked onto the movie. I wanted to watch a play of it once. Great review!

    astordetective.blogspot.com

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    1. I started an older movie version once, but didn't watch more than a few minutes, so I think you have to be in the right mood. Watching a play version would be awesome!

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  5. I've been wanting to rewatch this for fall! I love the aesthetics of it, but prefer the stage production.

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    1. I was impressed by the cinematography and costumes! I really want to see the stage production now. :)

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  6. One of my best friends loves this movie and it's so fun to watch it with her ... especially as we disagree about the love interests ;D

    MB: keturahskorner.blogspot.com
    PB: thegirlwhodoesntexist.com

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    1. We should talk! Is your opinion on the love interest what actually happens, or do you think of a different ending? I'm really curious now!

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  7. Yes, definitely go see the stage production!! The movie is a mere shadow of the stage musical, and the book makes for very interesting reading once you've already immersed yourself into the story through the show. I also recommend the 25th anniversary live performance of the show that was filmed at the Royal Albert Hall, if interested you can find it on Blu-ray and DVD. Spoken by a true Phan :)

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    1. I would love to! My dad saw it on Broadway and tells me how the whole stage was on fire! I'm just a little bit jealous. :) A friend of mine has been telling me about all of the differences between this and the stage play so I am looking forward to seeing it some time. Thanks for the recommendation! I'll have to check it out! :)

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To comment, or not to comment? That is the question. Whatever you decide, I would love to hear from you!! I am always open to suggestions, advice, and any other comments! Even if you don't agree with me, I would love to hear from you as long as you keep the comment respectful and on subject. And, please, no swearing. I love comments on old posts!!
My computer won't let me leave comments, so it might take a few days, but I will reply!

"If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, where you stop your story." -Orson Welles