Thursday, December 16, 2010

The Phantom of the Opera

I was first introduced to the story of the Phantom of the Opera when I was very young.  We had a recorded VHS tape of the 1990 TV miniseries version, and I loved it!  There have been many adaptations of the novel "Le Fantôme de l'Opéra" by french writer Gaston Leroux, but the only story I was familiar with was from the TV miniseries.  In this version, the plot focused on the Phantom's childhood and past while showing him in a gentler and kinder light as compared to other adaptations and the novel.  Also, unlike the other movies, we never see the Phantom's face as he is always hidden behind his various masks.  This version starred Charles Dance as the Phantom/Erik and Teri Polo as Christine.  What I also liked about this film were the comedic scenes they included every now and then.


Oh, and I recently found the entire miniseries on youtube!!  Go to CompleteMovies4U 's channel :)

I have also seen Andrew Lloyd Webber's 2004 musical film, starring Gerard Butler as the Phantom and Emmy Rossum as Christine.   Being an adaptation of the Webber's 1986 musical, it was more focused on the singing and performances rather than the Phantom's history... but I also enjoyed it; mostly because I love Emmy Rossum's voice.  On the other hand, I felt Gerard Butler's singing could have been stronger and more operatic... overall it was very entertaining!



I hope to read the original novel, when/if I find it....

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