cinemabon
05-07-2005, 09:06 PM
Classic Horror goes musical!
Those should be the headlines of some comic report on the state of Broadway about sixteen years ago. Times Square was trying to rid itself of porn and downtown New York was trying to shed its futuristic image of “Escape from New York.” On to this obscure stage steps their savior, Andrew Lloyd Webber, composer extraodinaire. Lloyd resurrects the old relict “Phantom of the Opera” and turns it into one of the greatest musicals of all time. The cast soundtrack album sells more copies than any soundtrack album before or since. We are all mesmerized by the expressive voices of Sarah Brightman and Michael Crawford. I couldn’t wait to get my ticket.
My wife and I went on our first date to “Phantom” and a year later, attended the first revival as a married couple. The play was riveting, to say the least. Never in the history of the theater had I ever seen such staging accompanied by one of the finest scores ever written, and not one spoken word. The complete libretto is sung, a tribute to the opera form of telling a story. The New York crowd has never let the show leave town. “Phantom” still plays to packed houses and it’s very clear why. The songs are compelling, the story fascinating and frightening. We love to be frightened. Ask psychologists why and they will tell you that the “thrill” factor has something to do with it.
Just as Richard Attenborough ruined “A Chorus Line,” so Joel Schumacher has ruined “Phantom of the Opera.” He didn’t set out to do it. There are plenty of film gimmicks that are very clever (they weren’t in the play, of course), but they cannot save this treatment.
For one, the key role of Christine, sang beautifully by opera trained Emmy Rossum, was awful. I don’t blame Ms. Rossum, I blame the director. For crying out loud, Joel, get the girl to emote! Her flat affect throughout the film is the fault of the person watching behind the lens. He should have gotten in there and mixed things up a bit. He’s such a pussy anyway. Look at how he ruined the Batman films, and many others. The only person doing any acting at all was Gerard Butler and that was to cry on cue.
In spite of the lavish sets, gorgeous costumes, and fine camera work the film failed in the key moments when we are meant to feel something for the lovers, for the phantom, for anybody, and we feel nothing instead. That’s because there is no acting taking place at a time when acting was needed to complete the scenes. I felt sorry for Emmy. She worked better with Clint Eastwood in Mystic River, albeit briefly.
The DVD is a bare bones package. The film was released in three versions. Two stripped down DVD’s that have NO extras and one “Special Edition” that has two discs and wasn’t available in most stores, not even Best Buy had it. I only saw it available on Amazon.
The New York crowd must have been holding their breath for the film’s release. One of their own, Emmy Rossum as the star? They’d been spoiled for the past fifteen years with great voices, great casts, and the ongoing joy to watch “Phantom” on stage. The widespread disappointment when the film was released fell like a cast iron biscuit.
However, you don’t have to settle for the film. If you’ve never seen a play, go to New York and see this one, well worth the trip. One of my best friends is a carpenter who hates musicals, and especially opera. If he was impressed, sitting in the seventh row orchestra, then anyone will be.
Unfortunately, this film will go down with Hello Dolly, Hair, and A Chorus Line as contemporary musicals that were battered, abused, and left in shambles when they made their transitions from stage to screen. “The Phantom of the Opera” film, like its main character, should disappear, and never be heard from again.
Those should be the headlines of some comic report on the state of Broadway about sixteen years ago. Times Square was trying to rid itself of porn and downtown New York was trying to shed its futuristic image of “Escape from New York.” On to this obscure stage steps their savior, Andrew Lloyd Webber, composer extraodinaire. Lloyd resurrects the old relict “Phantom of the Opera” and turns it into one of the greatest musicals of all time. The cast soundtrack album sells more copies than any soundtrack album before or since. We are all mesmerized by the expressive voices of Sarah Brightman and Michael Crawford. I couldn’t wait to get my ticket.
My wife and I went on our first date to “Phantom” and a year later, attended the first revival as a married couple. The play was riveting, to say the least. Never in the history of the theater had I ever seen such staging accompanied by one of the finest scores ever written, and not one spoken word. The complete libretto is sung, a tribute to the opera form of telling a story. The New York crowd has never let the show leave town. “Phantom” still plays to packed houses and it’s very clear why. The songs are compelling, the story fascinating and frightening. We love to be frightened. Ask psychologists why and they will tell you that the “thrill” factor has something to do with it.
Just as Richard Attenborough ruined “A Chorus Line,” so Joel Schumacher has ruined “Phantom of the Opera.” He didn’t set out to do it. There are plenty of film gimmicks that are very clever (they weren’t in the play, of course), but they cannot save this treatment.
For one, the key role of Christine, sang beautifully by opera trained Emmy Rossum, was awful. I don’t blame Ms. Rossum, I blame the director. For crying out loud, Joel, get the girl to emote! Her flat affect throughout the film is the fault of the person watching behind the lens. He should have gotten in there and mixed things up a bit. He’s such a pussy anyway. Look at how he ruined the Batman films, and many others. The only person doing any acting at all was Gerard Butler and that was to cry on cue.
In spite of the lavish sets, gorgeous costumes, and fine camera work the film failed in the key moments when we are meant to feel something for the lovers, for the phantom, for anybody, and we feel nothing instead. That’s because there is no acting taking place at a time when acting was needed to complete the scenes. I felt sorry for Emmy. She worked better with Clint Eastwood in Mystic River, albeit briefly.
The DVD is a bare bones package. The film was released in three versions. Two stripped down DVD’s that have NO extras and one “Special Edition” that has two discs and wasn’t available in most stores, not even Best Buy had it. I only saw it available on Amazon.
The New York crowd must have been holding their breath for the film’s release. One of their own, Emmy Rossum as the star? They’d been spoiled for the past fifteen years with great voices, great casts, and the ongoing joy to watch “Phantom” on stage. The widespread disappointment when the film was released fell like a cast iron biscuit.
However, you don’t have to settle for the film. If you’ve never seen a play, go to New York and see this one, well worth the trip. One of my best friends is a carpenter who hates musicals, and especially opera. If he was impressed, sitting in the seventh row orchestra, then anyone will be.
Unfortunately, this film will go down with Hello Dolly, Hair, and A Chorus Line as contemporary musicals that were battered, abused, and left in shambles when they made their transitions from stage to screen. “The Phantom of the Opera” film, like its main character, should disappear, and never be heard from again.