Lon Chaney did it in B&W, but it can't compare to all the latest techniques of cinematography. The Phantom of the Opera has been around for probably a century. The scenes were, however, very rich and compelling. The rest of the characters in this version follow suit, lacking in distinctive qualities found in abundance with works from decades past. Once Antonio Banderas did a scene from the Phantom, and he was highly impressive.
Even the Long Ranger showed character, with a rich voice and eye expressions. Just because a man wears a mask doesn't mean he can't show character. Although this version of the classic is about ten years old, you can see the lack of true acting. Too much of what is produced these days is fake. One of the treats of the proceedings is Minnie Driver's deeply exaggerated portrayal of the jealous diva, giving this PHANTOM a very appropriate dose of comic relief. Webber's memorable songs are performed with aplomb by Rossum, whose background includes singing with the Metropolitan Opera, and Wilson and Butler provide ample accompaniment.
But when his young student Christine falls for the rich and dapper Raoul (Patrick Wilson), the phantom descends into madness. Dwelling in the dark, damp chambers beneath the Paris opera house, the phantom lords over the cast and management with artistic autocracy-he writes the shows, casts them, and threatens all who disobey his plans with dramatically violent outbursts.
Christine Daee (a luminescent Emmy Rossum) is a tortured young star who is haunted by the voice of the phantom (Gerard Butler-who also played the lead in DRACULA 2000), a musician who hides in the shadows to hide a facial disfigurement, yet sings to her obsessively. In Joel Schumacher's film adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's Broadway musical THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, these moody set devices-and countless others-make every scene an atmospheric vision of souped-up 19th-century Gothic bliss. Those who thought that smoke machines and cobwebbed candelabras were the stuff of Halloween parties and dance clubs need to think again.
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