The Phantom of the Opera (2004)

Director:

Joel Schumacher

Writers (WGA):

Gaston Leroux (novel)
Andrew Lloyd Webber (stage musical)

Release Date:

21 January 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Drama | Musical | Romance | Thriller

Tagline:

Her voice became his passion. Her love became his obsession. Her refusal became his rage.....

Plot:

A disfigured musical genius, hidden away in the Paris Opera House, terrorizes the opera company for the unwitting benefit of a young protégée whom he trains and loves.

Plot Keywords:

Opera | Diva | Opera House | Disfigurement | Phantom Of The Opera

Awards:

Nominated for 3 Oscars. Another 5 wins & 27 nominations

Cast

Gerard Butler	...	The 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 (as Kevin R. McNally)
James Fleet	...	Lefevre
Imogen Bain	...	Carlotta's Maid
Miles Western	...	Carlotta's Wigmaker
Judith Paris	...	Carlotta's Seamstress

Also Known As:

Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera (USA) (promotional title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for brief violent images.

Runtime:

143 min

Country:

USA | UK

Language:

English | French | Italian | Spanish

Color:

Black and White | Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

DTS | Dolby Digital | SDDS

Certification:

Taiwan:PG-12 | Malaysia:U | Iceland:10 | Philippines:PG-13 | Hungary:14 | Philippines:PG-13 (MTRCB) | Netherlands:6 | Portugal:M/12 | Greece:K-13 | New Zealand:PG | Argentina:13 | Australia:PG | Brazil:14 | Canada:PG (Ontario) | Chile:14 | Czech Republic:12 | Finland:K-11 | Germany:6 | Ireland:12 | Norway:11 | Singapore:PG | Switzerland:12 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:12 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Zurich) | UK:12A (original rating) | UK:12 (video rating) (2005) | USA:PG-13 | South Korea:12

Filming Locations:

London, England, UK

Company:

Odyssey Entertainment

Trivia:

Andrew Lloyd Webber's 1986 musical "Phantom of the Opera" was inspired by Ken Hill's 1976 musical version of the same name. Hill's version is credited as the first Phantom musical and was a success. Sarah Brightman, who later created the role of Christine in Webber's version, was famously asked to play the role of Christine in Hill's 1984 revival but turned down the offer. Webber, who was then married to Brightman, had actually seen Hill's show and asked Hill to collaborate Phantom on a larger scale for the Victoria Palace Theatre in the West End; eventually Webber pursued the musical without Hill. Hill and Webber had previously worked together on a revival of "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat".

Goofs:

Crew or equipment visible: During Christine's first visit to the Phantom's lair, the shadows of the camera and camera crane are visible on her and the Phantom as he crosses in front of her at one point.

Quotes:

[first lines]
Auctioneer: Sold. Your number, sir? Thank you. Lot 663, then, ladies and gentlemen.

Movie Connections:

Featured in The 77th Annual Academy Awards (2005) (TV)

Soundtrack:

All I Ask of You (Reprise)

Superb Film - but stage to screen comparisons inappropriate.

I think some other comments here are harsh, especially towards the performance of Emmy Rossum, who I thought made the film. Her performance visually (i.e. expressions etc) is mesmerizing. I'm sure a lot of this is down to Joel Schumacher who successfully steers the film away from just putting the stage show on to film, but has actually created something powerful in its own right, so I believe comparisons of the stage show to film are unreasonable.

My only niggles are technicalities, the Phantom wears a mask which only goes just above his eyebrows in the Ball scene (and shows no deformation) and yet when the normal white mask is removed later the entire left side of his face is deformed. The lip sync hing is often poor, especially in 'Think of Me' which is disappointing, especially in the knowledge that all but Minnie Driver recorded their own singing parts anyway.

The Soundtrack has been given a spring clean and it really benefits from it, removing some of the synthesized feel of the original and giving it much more of an orchestral grandeur.

All in all, this film really took me by surprise. As I said above Stage to Screen comparisons do feel somewhat inappropriate with this film, but I was never that fussed about Phantom before or after seeing it on Broadway. I can safely say that this film has converted me.