Review of The Phantom of the Opera (2004) by Phoebe I — 01 Nov 2011

I stumbled onto this movie when Film4 screened it and wow, it blew me away on so many levels that I was shocked to find it had such poor ratings on RT. It's one of the most visually stunning movies I've seen in a LONG time, and the sets and costumes are right up there with Bram Stoker's Dracula and the Age of Innocence. I'd never heard the full score of Phantom and I was crying like a girl at the songs "Think of me", "Angel of Music" and "Wishing you were somehow here again". Reading more into the history of the film I learned there was a letter writing campaign by die hard Phantom fans, to have Michael Crawford be the star of the film, and not Gerard Butler. Having heard Crawford's often nasal and whiny tones, I'm glad he wasn't cast. The die-hards said that he was "the most seductive Phantom" but after seeing Butler sing "Music of the night" you REALLY don't get more seductive than that, I needed a cold shower after that scene :D.

Butler was an interesting casting as he's not a trained singer and I'll admit, he does murder a few of the lines of various songs and maybe could have beneffited with a bit more vocal training. But he was cast to be a rougher, more passionate and intense Phantom, and he pulls it off and looks fantastic to boot. I'd choose him over Raoul anytime!

Emmy Rossum is a revelation, she was only 18 when she filmed this and is a trained soprano. She has a perfect mix of girlish innocence and a heavenly voice to play Christine, but during "The point of no return" and "Music of the night" you can see the woman in her coming through as she responds to the Phantom's passion for her. Awesome :D.

Ignore all the bad reviews and make your own mind up about this movie, it's a feast for the ears and eyes!