Directed by: Joel Schumacher
Written by: Andrew Lloyd Webber and Joel Schumacher
Adapted from Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical of the same name.
Starring: Gerard Butler (Phantom), Emmy Rossum (Christine), Patrick Wilson (Raoul), Miranda Richardson (Madame Giry), Minnie Driver (Carlotta), Ciarán Hinds (Firmin), Simon Callow (Andre), Victor McGuire (Piangi), Jennifer Ellison (Meg Giry), Murray Melvin (Reyer), Kevin McNally (Buquet), James Fleet (Lefevre)
When I think of Joel Schumacher’s adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s monstrous hit musical The Phantom of the Opera, I think of dramatic overstatement. Consider the first (and really the most primary) flashback transition, the montage of scenes following right after the raising of the great chandelier. It’s the moment that we are transported back in time thirty years. Knowing we are the eyes of the older Raoul and Meg, we expect a subtle transition befitting their age and aged memories of the old opera house. (See footnote 1 below.)
Instead, Hurricane Andrew blows in to literally blow the cobwebs and dust away, fix broken seats, shine the gold-plated statues, refurbish the stone columns and oil paintings on the dome ceiling. It is a visual spectacle for sure, and probably helped them get Oscar nominations for Art Direction and Cinematography. But, in my opinion, overly dramatic for the circumstances.
(My hopes are that the fan they used to complete this transition is put out on the market! It could come in handy, don’t you think, i.e. "Ooops, honey, there went your bra!" "Whoa, there go my pants!")
Another dramatic overstatement occurs near the end of the song Masquerade. As Raoul and Christine swap spit in the middle of the ballroom floor, with all of the other dancers conveniently leaving them their space, the Phantom suddenly appears at the top of the balcony, dressed all in red. Gasp! Everyone stops what they are doing and pretends to be concerned while they look at him. And then, as the Phantom takes a step down each one of the stairs, this obnoxious beating of a synthesized drum echoes through the opera house. (It nearly created an earthquake under our home theater.) Not only was this effect overly dramatic but the Phantom walked like he had just had a lower endoscopy with a broom handle.
And while we are talking about the Phantom, what was up with him running up the backside of the giant Pegasus statue on the roof in order to scream-sing his revenge on Raoul and Christine. For crying out loud, the entirety of Paris would have heard that!
Other elements I found a bit too dramatic--
- Miss America-like shots of Christine’s face, especially when it is conveniently displaying a Mary Poppin’s-like expression.
- That Emmy Rossum was made up to look and act like Sarah Brightman.
- That Christine seemed drugged whenever she was in the presence of the Phantom, while he was singing. Now, I know how I get when I listen to Mariah Carey, especially when she hits that high note in the stratosphere, but I do not look or act as if I’ve had a frontal lobotomy.
On another topic: The vocal track wasn’t in line during the vocal numbers in many instances. Did these actors actually sing these songs? If so, they were just alright. I doubt anyone will ever forget Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman in the lead roles.
ON the surface, Joel Schumacher has created a lavish and beautiful adaptation. And for what it is worth, I think Webber’s musical is better on celluloid because they were able to create and define the Phantom’s underground labyrinth under the opera house. I thought the flashbacks showing the caged and abused Phantom boy were useful to the development of his psychological state as well.
Other than this, though, The Phantom of the Opera is entertaining and fun to sing along to. It’s been four days since viewing it and my kids are still walking around the house singing "The Phantom of the Opera....he’s here!"
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TRIVIA: I don’t know if you recognized the choreography to Masquerade but that was none other than a recreation of the choreography for Madonna’s Vogue music video. I wondered, and I didn’t have the time to validate this, if the main dancer in Vogue is the main dancer, choreographer. It sure does look like him. In all, it was nice to see those unique moves on film again.
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AWARDS: Emmy Rossum won a Saturn award for Best Performance by a Younger Actor; won a Broadcast Film Critics Association award for Best Young Actress; and won a National Board of Review award for Best Breakthrough Performance by an Actress. She received other nominations from the Golden Globes, Golden Satellite (International Press Society), and the Online Film Critics Association.
The film was nominated for 3 Oscars, 3 Golden Globes, 11 Golden Satellites, and 2 Broadcast Film Critics awards. It was also recognized with nominations by the Art Directors Guild, Motion Picture Sound Editors Guild, and the Visual Effects Society.
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FOOTNOTE:
1. In Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, it has one of the most amazing transitions. Before the children are to be driven to another one of their relatives’ homes, the caretaker drops them off at the place that used to be their home. They get out of the car, walk up the stairs, and walk into a beautiful entry hall. Then, before our eyes, and theirs, the beautiful hall slowly transforms itself into the ruins left by the devastating fire. It’s a scene in which the whole of the heart of the film rests -- this is the visual representation of the children’s passage from innocence into reality. Masterfully done.
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