Dec. 24th is the day that I begin my annual quest to get caught up on movies. Every year I seem to fall behind right when the Thanksgiving award movies come out in full force. Today I started off with "Phantom of the Opera."
As a fan of the theatrical production I was eagerly waiting for the film version. The music contains some of my favorite scores of all time and I have always enjoyed the story and characters. I've seen both good and bad stage productions and now it was time for the movie.
First off - kudos to Minnie Driver. She has the part of Carlotta and this is a role that Minnie really brings to life in a both subtle and over-the-top performance. As Carlotta, Minnie Driver can steal a scene with just a glance and she has great comedic talent. The two leads of Christine and Rauol are well acted and sung and the actors have the on-screen chemistry needed to make their love story work.
The ultimate success of "Phantom" rests with the casting and portrayal of it's namesake and he's been played as dark, pitiful, charismatic & charming, in various productions. In the movie, our Phantom is a sympathic soul which works well at times but sometimes lacks the drive to make us all believe that he is a threat to our heroes. In fact, the Phantom is almost too good looking for the role and there are times when the disfiguring face make-up disappears and then reappears as needed. Our Phantom really came alive in the last third of the movie and then I thought "There he is! That's what we needed to see earlier in the film!"
With a running time of 143 minutes, there are some distracting elements added in to the film version which seemed redundant. If you've never seen the play, then you probably won't know the difference and you'll be fine with it. Overall, the movie is very true to the play and this is a strength for the movie.
The sets, costumes, make-up, and music are wonderful. This film is sure to win lots of awards. It's worth seeing if you just want to let your mind wander for a couple of hours. I rate it as not as good as a great theatrical productions but far better than paying big bucks for a B or C stage production. Enjoy!
As a fan of the theatrical production I was eagerly waiting for the film version. The music contains some of my favorite scores of all time and I have always enjoyed the story and characters. I've seen both good and bad stage productions and now it was time for the movie.
First off - kudos to Minnie Driver. She has the part of Carlotta and this is a role that Minnie really brings to life in a both subtle and over-the-top performance. As Carlotta, Minnie Driver can steal a scene with just a glance and she has great comedic talent. The two leads of Christine and Rauol are well acted and sung and the actors have the on-screen chemistry needed to make their love story work.
The ultimate success of "Phantom" rests with the casting and portrayal of it's namesake and he's been played as dark, pitiful, charismatic & charming, in various productions. In the movie, our Phantom is a sympathic soul which works well at times but sometimes lacks the drive to make us all believe that he is a threat to our heroes. In fact, the Phantom is almost too good looking for the role and there are times when the disfiguring face make-up disappears and then reappears as needed. Our Phantom really came alive in the last third of the movie and then I thought "There he is! That's what we needed to see earlier in the film!"
With a running time of 143 minutes, there are some distracting elements added in to the film version which seemed redundant. If you've never seen the play, then you probably won't know the difference and you'll be fine with it. Overall, the movie is very true to the play and this is a strength for the movie.
The sets, costumes, make-up, and music are wonderful. This film is sure to win lots of awards. It's worth seeing if you just want to let your mind wander for a couple of hours. I rate it as not as good as a great theatrical productions but far better than paying big bucks for a B or C stage production. Enjoy!
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