The Phantom of the Opera is a 2004 film adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Charles Hart's 1986 stage musical, which is based on the novel of the same name by Gaston Leroux. The film was written and directed by Joel Schumacher and Webber produced the film. The cast includes Gerard Butler as the Phantom, Emmy Rossum (who was only 18 at the time of filming) as Christine Daaé, Patrick Wilson as Raoul, Vicomte de Chagny, Miranda Richardson as Madame Giry, Jennifer Ellison as Meg Giry and Minnie Driver (whose vocals were dubbed by Margaret Preece, a professional opera singer) as Carlotta Giudicelli. Ramin Karimloo (who had been playing Raoul in the London production of Phantom at the time of filming) appeared in a cameo role as Christine's father.
The film was a USA/UK co-production that had various distributors worldwide. For example, Warner Bros. (a main production partner) distributed the film in the USA, and Universal Pictures (producers and/or distributors of the 1925, 1943 and 1962 adaptations of the book) released the film in Latin America and Australia.
Plot
Derived from the musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber, which was based on the novel by Gaston Leroux, the film begins in 1919, as the effects of a dilapidated Paris Opera House are being sold off at auction. RaoulVicomte de Chagny, now an old wheelchair-bound man, purchases a coveted music box. During the auction, Raoul spots a familiar figure: Meg Giry,daughter of Madame Giry, whom he met as a young man. Meg is now an old woman, almost 50 years later. But he is distracted by the next piece for auction, Lot 666; a chandelier in pieces which has been restored and newly electrically wired. As the auctioneers display the restored chandelier, the opening crescendo of music wipes away the years of decay from the opera house as the black and white turns into color, and the audience is transported back in time to 1870, the beginning of the story, when the opera was in its prime.
A disfigured musical genius called "The Phantom," played by Gerard Butler, lives within the deepest recess of the opera house. Tormented by his scarred face, the Phantom lives in the watery labyrinths beneath the Opéra Populaire in Paris. After nearly ten years of quiet obsession with the delicate, ethereal voice of Christine Daae (Emmy Rossum) and the beautiful young soprano herself, he plots to place his protégé at center stage.
Christine is torn between her love for Raoul (Patrick Wilson), a childhood sweetheart who has returned into her life, and her dark, undeniable attraction to and pity for the Phantom. Jealous and possessive, the Phantom plots to make Christine his, resorting to stalking her wherever she goes as well as killing several people including Piangi. An intense swordfight later ensues in the cemetery, where Raoul eventually disarms him and almost decides to kill him before Christine pleads for him not to, "not like this."(not to kill him because he is her angel of music) His rage seemingly augmented, the Phantom angrily states as Christine and Raoul walk away: "Now, let it be war on upon you both." During the night's play he steals Christine away and avoids the trap to be captured by Raoul and the managers. After a series of tense, chaotic sequences, the Phantom imprisons Raoul, who attempts to save Christine, and threatens to strangle him to death if Christine does not choose the Phantom.
Struck by the desperation of his actions as well as a revelation of how dark his past must be, Christine kisses him and displays her deep affection - showing that she loves both Raoul and the Phantom, but in different ways - something which he has never received from anyone. Her kindness and the love in her eyes so deeply touches the Phantom that, ashamed of what he's done, he allows Christine and Raoul to leave. Just before she departs with Raoul on the boat, Christine approaches the Phantom, who helplessly tells her that he loves her, and gives him the diamond ring from her finger. Heartbroken, the Phantom begins to cry. He watches Christine and Raoul row away together in his boat. After using a candlestick to smash every mirror in his underground lair, he disappears behind a velvet curtain into an empty glass mirror portal, before the police arrive. Upon entering, Meg Giry (Jennifer Ellison), the ballet mistress's daughter, finds only the phantom's white mask.
Later, the grainy black and white picture dominates as the elderly Raoul rides to a cemetery where we find out that Christine has since died. He lays the toy monkey at her grave site, and notices that on the left of the tombstone lies a red rose with a black ribbon tied around it (a trademark of the Phantom) with the engagement ring attached to it.
Casting the film
Unlike some of the Hollywood adaptations of the past, which relied heavily on dubbing the musical numbers, almost all principals sing with their own voices. The only exception is Minnie Driver, the actress who plays Carlotta in the film, whose challenging operatic songs are sung by Margaret Preece.
The casting for the two leading roles was a rather lengthy process. Patrick Wilson, who later got the part of Raoul, had initially auditioned for the title role of The Phantom. The director later felt he was better to play Raoul because his voice matched the character better. Several actors were considered to play the title role including John Travolta and Antonio Banderas. Originally offered the role, Travolta turned it down because he felt the film wouldn't work, while Banderas, a skilled singer, took several months off from acting to train for the part, before he was turned down. Hugh Jackman was up for the role, but he lost the role at the last minute. Gerard Butler finally won the role after several intense screen tests. Casting for the role of Christine Daaé took longer. Classical Brit Awards winning star Charlotte Church was the favorite for the role but turned it down as it was specified that she would have to lose weight for the role which she declined to do. Keira Knightley,Salma Hayek,Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Katie Holmes were also in the running. Anne Hathaway was under consideration as well. She was praised for her voice and auditioned several times, almost earning the part. Just as the contract was sent to her, however, she was forced to decline due to overlapping schedules with the Princess Diaries sequel, although she tried to make it work. Emmy Rossum, who was only 16, eventually won the part.
Stage version vs. film version
While the film remained somewhat faithful to the original libretto of the stage show, many changes were made. Some scenes were added; others were deleted; some songs were shortened or deleted; some lines that were sung on stage were spoken in the movie, as well as minor changes in the lyrics to suit the scenes. In addition, several changes were made to the story.
In the movie, the main plot takes place in 1870, but is 1881 in the musical.
The famous chandelier crash - used to close Act One on stage - was moved to the film's climax after the song "The Point of No Return," and becomes a crucial plot point in that it explains the destruction of the opera house, which is set on fire as a result of the crash. This, as well as some other changes, was kept for Phantom: The Las Vegas Spectacular!, a modified stage production modelled mostly after the film. The chandelier crash also received computer-generated imagery alterations. For example, before reaching the floor, the chandelier's cables rip through the ceiling of the Opera House where this would be all but impossible on a live stage.
Changes were also made to some of the characters and their backgrounds. In the film, Madame Giry first meets the Phantom when they are both children and helps him escape from imprisonment in a carnival, after which he spends his entire life living at the Opera. In both the original book and the stage adaptation, the Phantom winds up in the carnival as an adult after travelling the world and spending time in Persia. Also, during the film scene in which Christine visits her father's grave, a sword-fight ensues between Raoul and the Phantom. In the stage production, the Phantom stands upon the grave and attacks the couple with small blasts of fire from his torch. The Phantom's makeup for the film was changed from the stage and made much more subtle and minimalist in design. When the scarred face was revealed it had proved to be far less horrific than one would have anticipated given Christine's description of it as well as the Phantom's anguish, and proved to be a bone of contention with many critics. The Phantom's various magical tricks (such as his sudden disappearances) were also demystified and fully explained in the film. In the play, however, some believe the Phantom was actually a ghost because he originally sits in his chair with a blanket over him; Meg eventually takes the blanket off but the Phantom is gone, leaving nothing behind but his mask.
The pivotal unmasking of the Phantom was made more dramatic; unlike on the stage, close-ups could be afforded. Furthermore, there was a noticeable increase in the action and drama of the film incarnation, examples including the various sword-fighting sequences absent from the stage version. The Phantom's subterranean lair was enlarged and given various new furnishings including candles that lit themselves automatically (these were actually accomplished with a special type of candle which would light itself when brought out from underwater, instead of using CGI).
The ending of the movie was also very different from the play. The movie ends with the Phantom smashing all of the mirrors and walking through a passage behind one of them. There is also an added scene at the end which takes place after the auction at the opera house in 1919. The elderly Raoul visits the cemetery and places the monkey music box on Christine's grave. There he finds a rose tied with a black ribbon and the ring, which indicates that the Phantom is still alive at this time. The play, however, ends just after Christine and Raoul leave the lair in the boat; the Phantom notes of Christine that "you alone can make my song take flight; it's over now, the music of the night!." He sits in a large throne and covers himself in his cape. When Meg and the mob enter, she lifts the cape only to find the Phantom's white mask.
Cast
Notes
Minnie Driver herself does lend her actual singing voice to the film's end title song, "Learn to Be Lonely," written by Lloyd Webber and Hart exclusively for the film. The tune for "Learn to Be Lonely" was originally intended for an additional song to be sung by the Phantom during the film, called "No One Would Listen," (originally to have had lyrics by David Zippel who adapted a few lines of the musical for the movie due to changes in the staging), but the song was removed for pacing reasons (It is included as an extra on some editions of the DVD).
Trafalgar Square Publishing has issued The Phantom of the Opera Companion, which was a compilation of selections from an earlier book called "The Complete Phantom of the Opera," written by George Perry (for the stage version) as well as the complete screenplay and more than 150 photographs from both the film and theater productions worldwide.
The soundtrack has been released on CD.
Warner Home Video released the film on HD DVD on April 15, 2006 and on Blu-ray Disc on October 31, 2006.[1] It would be one of the earliest titles to be released on high-definition. The HD DVD audio track features Dolby TrueHD.
Awards and nominations
Wins
Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films
Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards
National Board of Review
San Diego Film Critics Society Awards
Young Artist Awards
- Best Performance in a Feature Film - Leading Young Actress - Emmy Rossum
Nominations
2005 Academy Awards
Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films
Art Directors Guild
Costume Designers Guild Awards
Golden Globe
Online Film Critics Society Awards
Young Artist Awards
- Best Family Feature Film - Comedy or Musical
Critical reaction
The film was met with mixed reviews upon its release, the general critical consensus being that it was visually spectacular but lacked any truly compelling sense of romance or danger.[2][3][4]
Gerard Butler, who had no formal vocal training prior to the film, was criticized for not having the full vocal range needed to play the title character. Joel Schumacher states in the special features of the DVD that he intended "to make [the film], probably about 14 or 15 years ago with Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman" to which Andrew Lloyd Webber adds "then frankly, I started to split up with Sarah and things were getting a bit bumpy between us" and Schumacher concludes "we had to put it on a shelf for a minute there". In many interviews, Andrew Lloyd Webber said that Butler was chosen specifically for the emotional, rocky quality of his voice as a juxtaposition against Patrick Wilson's much sweeter singing style.
Popular response, however, was much more positive, with the movie maintaining a spot in the top ten grossing movies of the week, for a month, even in limited release. As it was outgrossed by The Incredibles and The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, however, domestic box office receipts overall fell short of the film's $60-70 million USD budget. When foreign box office receipts were added in, it quickly made a profit, earning over $100 million overseas.[5]
The film has become popular on DVD, and has become a cult hit among Phantom of the Opera fans.
See also
References
- ^ Business Wire. Warner Home Video Announces Titles and Release Dates for HD DVD. January 5, 2006.
- ^ "Film version lacking" by Phil Villareal, Arizona Daily Star, December 22, 2004, retrieved September 1, 2006
- ^ "Andrew Lloyd Webber's The Phantom of the Opera (2004)" by Jeffrey Westhoff, Northwest Herald, 2004, retrieved September 2, 2006
- ^ "The Phantom of the Opera (2004)" by Staci Layne Wilson, horror.com, 2004, retrieved September 2, 2006
- ^ Business data for The Phantom of the Opera, IMDb.com, retrieved November 5, 2006.
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