My daughter and I took a trip to Europe when she was 14. Phantom of the Opera was the biggest play going in London, and we stood in line for hours to get tickets in case there were any returns. We got in, saw the play, and liked it. I’ve always felt, though, that there was something awry with its structure, that it went downhill after the first act and in the end wasn’t very edifying. Now the movie version has been released. My daughter was visiting for Christmas, and this time the whole family went to see Phantom the movie. We loved it and agreed it’s an example of the movie version being better than the play — a rare occurrence.
When Phantom opens, it’s 1919 in Paris. In a beautiful, mostly black-and-white sequence, a famous auction is held to sell off many of the items that figured in the past glory of the Popular Opera. A few of the principal characters of yesteryear are present, and we begin to look at the past through their eyes. Suddenly, in what has to be one of the greatest cinematic moments ever, we jump back to the time of the Opera’s heyday. As the famous chandelier that signaled the famous historical disaster is sold, we see it lift majestically off the floor and become restored to its original position as the Opera’s centerpiece. Black and white changes to rich color as we’re transported to the Paris of 1870.
There’s a lot more substance to Phantom than might be apparent at first glance. Underneath, it’s part Pygmalion and part Faust. The Phantom, a horribly deformed musical genius who inhabits the dark, secret places of the Opera, loves the young ingenue Christine Daae and seeks to turn her into his own creation. He’s a lot more tragic a figure than Professor Henry Higgins, however. The basic tension of the story concerns whether Christine will give in to him, in effect selling her soul, or marry Raoul, her childhood playmate, who is now a wealthy opera patron. Which way will Christine go? Whom will she choose?
There’s also a lot that relates to the Christian world view here. As 1 John 1:7 tells us, “But if we walk in the light, as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.” The Phantom appeals to the opposite of light. As he sings in Phantom’s most famous song,
“Softly, deftly, music shall caress you, hear it, feel it secretly possess you,
Let the dream begin, let your darker side give in to the power of the music that I write,
The power of the music of the night.”
I can quibble with a few things about the picture. Gerard Butler, who plays the Phantom, is not a singer (though his singing is at least satisfactory). Also, we see his deformed face too often; the Phantom is more powerfully mysterious if not seen too clearly. Emmy Rossum, who plays Christine and is trained in opera, sings beautifully but acts a bit woodenly. These are relatiively small flaws, however. What makes the movie effective is that we learn more about the Phantom’s history and his motivations than we do in the play. The story is completed in a way that the stage version isn’t. I don’t say Phantom of the Opera is the best movie this year, but it’s certainly one of the most enjoyable.
Film Rating: PG-13
My Rating: 3 ¼ stars
No comments:
Post a Comment