Customer Reviews
great buy - By: Ms. H. Crawley, 02 Jul 2008 
i would definitively recommend this box set as not only do you get the 2 disk film but also 8 color postcards & the full movie soundtrack. seeing as how you can buy the same cd for more than what you pay for this box set. In alll this is the best buy.
Gerard Butlers performance in the film was outstanding he brought the phantom to life. The music was brilliant, the pure power of it had me on the edge of my seat.
Perfect Gerard - may contain spoilers... - By: Mr. D. E. Allen, 17 Jan 2008 I've seen a lot of comment about Gerard Butler's performance in this movie, some good, some bad. I falll in the excellent camp. I don't believe the Phantom as a teacher needed to be a better singer, just the most passionate, & he certainly is that. He has the intensity & the ability to convey the Phantom's torment, whilst being handsome (despite the disfigurement) & seductive enough to be a believable (anti)hero. The two other leads in this movie were great but for me, it's reallly Gerard that made this film as powerful to me as it was.
In the realms of the movie, it's believable that the Phantom hid away. Some say his disfigurement wasn't grotesque enough but that isn't the point. As a child, he's exhibited as a circus freak & physicallly beaten. It is the childhood reaction to his face & the physical & mental abuse he suffered that leads him to hide away.
However, saying that, this is a musical, it's not meant to be 'realistic'. I didn't think the outcome of the swordfight in the graveyard was realistic but it doesn't matter, this is fantasy & it needed to happen like that to move the story to the next point.
Ultimately, this is a beautiful story, extremely well told.
Like a night at the opera! - By: Hamstead, 28 Dec 2007 I bought this as a copy for someone who had booked to see the stage show in London but had to cancel due to ill health & will probably not now ever be able to go. This, while not having the tingling immediacy of the stage show, still manages to bridge that gap & with the exception of a few twiddles is a faithful rendition. It certainly captures its essence. The stage show version of Masquerade is superior to the film in terms of colour & spectacle, but without having seen the former, I wouldn't have a quibble. The singing is glorious, the direction sure, & the film is the next best thing to a night at the opera.
Thoroughly recommended.
I AM BLOWN AWAY BY THIS FILM - By: stuart, 23 Aug 2007 The Phantom of the Opera is the 2004 Joel Schumacher directed film adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber & Charles Hart's internationallly successful 1986 stage musical, which is in turn based on the novel The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux. The cast includes Gerard Butler as the Phantom, Emmy Rossum (who was only 16 at the time of filming) as Christine Daa, Patrick Wilson as Raoul, Vicomte de Chagny, Miranda Richardson as Madame Giry, Jennifer Ellison as Meg Giry, & 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.
While the film remained mostly faithful to the original libretto of the stage show, some minor changes were made. Some scenes were added; others were deleted; some lines that were sung on stage were spoken in the movie. In addition, several slight changes were made to the story.
The famous chandelier crashsituated at the end of Act One on stagewas moved to the film's climax after the song "The Point of No Return" near the end. The chandelier crash also received CGI alterations. for example, before reaching the floor, the chandelier tore through the ceiling of the Opera House where this would be impossible on stage.
Changes were also made to some of the characters & their backgrounds. In the film, Madame Giry first meets the Phantom when they are both children & helps him escape from imprisonment in a carnival; it is suggested that he spends his entire life living at the Opera. In both the stage show & the original book, the Phantom winds up in the carnival as an adult after travelling the world & spending time in Persia. Also, during the film scene in which Christine visits her father's grave, a sword fight ensues between Raoul & the Phantom. In the stage production, the Phantom stands upon the grave & attacks the couple with smalll blasts of fire. The Phantom's makeup for the film was changed from the musical; & made much more subtle & natural as it would not be required to impact from afar. The Phantom's various magical tricks (such as his sudden disappearances) were also fully explained in the film.
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 & drama of the film incarnation, examples including the various sword-fighting sequences absent from the stage version. The Phantom's subterranean lair was enlarged & given various new furnishings including candles that lit themselves automaticallly (these were actuallly accomplished with a special type of candle which would light itself when brought out from underwater, instead of using CGI).
The character of Christine was similarly changed; in the film, she is orphaned as a young girl & brought to the Opera by Madame Giry.
Phantom mania - By: Mr. C. J. Deacon, 12 Jun 2007 This is film is absolutley awesome(only if you like musicals). It's got everything in it: Romance, Gothic Horror, & loads more. I think that Gerry Butler is a great Phantom & he reallly puts his passion into his work. Christine is ok but a little to modest. The scene at the end when Christine goes away from the Phantom is reallly well acted bu Butler because he actuallly looks a bit sad. This is a great film & one to see & buy!!
