The Phantom of the Opera (Two-Disc Special Edition)

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Although it's not as bold as Oscar darling Chicago, The Phantom of the Opera continues the resuscitation of the movie musical with a faithful adaptation of Andrew Lloyd Webber's blockbuster stage musical. Emmy Rossum glows in a breakout role as opera ingénue Christine Daae, and if phantom Gerard Butler isn't Rossum's match vocally, he does convey menace and sensuality in such numbers as "The Music of the Night." The most experienced musical theater veteran in the cast, romantic lead Patrick Wilson, sings sweetly but seems wooden. The biggest name in the cast, Minnie Driver, hams it up as diva Carlotta, and she's the only principal whose voice was dubbed (though she does sing the closing-credit number, "Learn to Be Lonely," which is also the only new song).

Director Joel Schumacher, no stranger to visual spectacle, seems to have found a good match in Lloyd Webber's larger-than-life vision of Gaston LeRoux's Gothic horror-romance. His weakness is cuing too many audience-reaction shots and showing too much of the lurking Phantom, but when he calms down and lets Rossum sings "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again" alone in a silent graveyard, it's exquisite.

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Those who consider the stage musical shallow and overblown probably won't have their minds changed by the movie, and devotees will forever rue that the movie took the better part of two decades to develop, which prevented the casting of original principals Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman. Still, The Phantom of the Opera is a welcome exception to the long line of ill-conceived Broadway-to-movie travesties.

DVD Features
The special edition of The Phantom of the Opera has two major extras. "Behind the Mask: The Story of The Phantom of the Opera" is an hourlong documentary tracing the genesis of the stage show, with interviews of composer Andrew Lloyd Webber, director Harold Prince, producer Cameron Macintosh, lyricists Richard Stilgoe and Charles Hart, choreographer Gillian Lynne, and others. Conspicuously absent are stars Sarah Brightman and Michael Crawford. Both do appear in video clips, including Brightman performing with Colm Wilkinson at an early workshop, and Crawford is the subject of a casting segment. Other brief scenes from the show are represented by a 2001 production. The other major feature is the 45-minute making-of focusing on the movie, including casting and the selection of director Joel Schumacher Both are well-done productions by Lloyd Webber's Really Useful Group.

The deleted scene is a new song written by Lloyd Webber and Charles Hart, "No One Would Listen," sung by the Phantom toward the end of the movie. It's a beautiful song that, along with Madame Giry's story, makes him a more sympathetic character. But because that bit of backstory already slowed down the ending, it was probably a good move to cut the song. --David Horiuchi

More on The Phantom of the Opera

The Phantom of the Opera (Special Extended Edition Soundtrack) (CD)
The Phantom of the Opera (2004 Movie Soundtrack) (CD)
The Phantom of the Opera (Original 1986 London Cast) (CD)

Evita (DVD)
Andrew Lloyd Weber: The Royal Albert Hall Celebration (DVD)
More Broadway DVDs

Description

Musical Drama based on Andrew Lloyd Webber's celebrated musical phenomenon. The Phantom of the Opera tells the story of a disfigured musical genius (Gerard Butler) who haunts the catacombs beneath the Paris Opera, waging a reign of terror over its occupants. When he falls fatally in love with the lovely Christine (Emmy Rossum), the Phantom devotes himself to creating a new star for the Opera, exerting a strange sense of control over the young soprano as he nurtures her extraordinary talents.

DVD Features:
Additional Scenes:"No-one Would Listen" Approx. 4 Mins.
DVD ROM Features
Documentary:Behind the Mask - The Story of the Phantom of the Opera
Easter Eggs
Featurette:The Making of The Phantom of the Opera in 3 Spellbinding Acts: Preproduction, The Director, Production

Customer Reviews:

Poor -Unable to view.......2007-09-17

Disappointing. This was our first purchase through amazon and unfortunately we are unable to view the movie; it comes up "bad disc" on all comp and players. We had thrown out the return slip for shipping and had not yet contacted amazon about an exchange. So any assistance would be appreciated to rectify this situation.

Wonderful!.......2007-09-16

Wow...the music, the sets, the acting...I loved this DVD! After hearing Brighton and Crawford on the original soundtrack my expectations were high, but they really pulled it off with this DVD. Rossum is no Brightman, but she does have a beautiful voice and Patrick Wilson, wow! What a beautiful tenor voice he has!

I liked the way the movie starts out when Raoul is old and remembering, and ends that way, too. Great touch. This retelling of the story is a little different, but again, they really pulled it off and did a great job. There has never been a more beautiful score than The Phantom of the Opera. Andrew Lloyd Weber is a genius.

Wonderfull!!!.......2007-09-12

First,I have to say that I have not seen the Broadway version of The Phantom of the Opera. However, I have listened to the CD of the Broadway version many many times. I checked this movie from my library. I absolutely loved this movie. The opening scene draws you into the story. I loved Gerard Butler's acting and singing in this movie. I think he did a wonderful job with the part. Emmy Rossum also did a wonderful job as well.

Movies.......2007-09-04

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. I love musicals and this one touched my heart. I gave it four stars only because I didn't want it to end.

Holds true to the Broadway musical.......2007-08-29

I've seen Andrew Lloyd Webber's Broadway production and traveling production of this play. The movie holds true to both and actually makes the play easier to understand. The storyline is strong, the music well done, and the acting superb. Even though this is a love story, this isn't a chick flick. I thoroughly appreciated it. And you will too.

Oh, and the video quality is second to none. I compared this version with the version that came on HBO HD, and the picture was superior on the HD DVD. It was a clear-cut improvement, but the edges were more well-defined on the HD DVD version. The sound quality is also superior. A big bonus when you consider all the singing going on.

The Phantom of the Opera (Full Screen Edition)

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The Phantom of the Opera (Full Screen Edition)
Starring: Gerard Butler , Emmy Rossum , Patrick Wilson , Miranda Richardson , and Minnie Driver
Director: Joel Schumacher
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B0007TKNIS
Release Date: 2005-05-03

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Those who consider the stage musical shallow and overblown probably won't have their minds changed by the movie, and devotees will forever rue that the movie took the better part of two decades to develop, which prevented the casting of original principals Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman. Still, The Phantom of the Opera is a welcome exception to the long line of ill-conceived Broadway-to-movie travesties. --David Horiuchi

Description

Customer Reviews:

Poor -Unable to view.......2007-09-17

Wonderful!.......2007-09-16

Wonderfull!!!.......2007-09-12

Movies.......2007-09-04

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. I love musicals and this one touched my heart. I gave it four stars only because I didn't want it to end.

Holds true to the Broadway musical.......2007-08-29

Average customer rating:

Great musical
If you love Phantom, this is a MUST HAVE
In dreams he came
Great transfer
Video Quality Review (Blu-ray)

The Phantom of the Opera [Blu-ray]
Starring: Imogen Bain , Paul Brooke , Alan Cumming , Ciarán Hinds , and Kevin McNally
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
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Binding: Blu-ray

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ASIN: B000JLSLZQ
Release Date: 2006-10-31

Description

Customer Reviews:

Great musical.......2007-04-13

I bought this movie from Fry's. My whole family loves it. It has beautiful musical, and story. It is totally beyond my expectation. On 50" 1080i plasma with HDMI, the image is crytal clear and gorgeous. A great buy.

If you love Phantom, this is a MUST HAVE.......2007-04-01

At less than $20, this is a no brainer. If you are planning to own the movie, have it in blu-ray.

Aside from the well known picture quality differences between DVD and the blu-ray, this disc includes special features that must be close to two hours. From how this phantom project got started, to the casting of the crew, to showing all the team members (singing to the tune of the phantom), these special features simply help complete the story.

I LOVE the original musical, this movie version only adds to it. Of course, movies are not as intimate as watching live theatre, however, the camera angles, the visual effects, the costume all makes this a really nice movie to own. Love the movie cast!

Last but not least, a DVD upscaled provides a nice picture already. However, having it in high definition just makes the scenes and details so real.

In dreams he came.......2007-03-19

Sumptuous, rich, lush and inviting. Like a gilt-edged dream, Joel Schumacher's "Phantom of the Opera" is a triumphant love note to beauty, song and scenery.

Adapted from Andrew Lloyd Webber's musical (and Gaston Leroux's novel), this movie ends up being beautiful in every scene, with solid acting and and a tragic antihero. The singing, the sumptuous sets, the acting -- all are the ingredients of a musical tour de force.

In 1870, a Paris opera house is under new management -- just as diva Carlotta (Minnie Driver, a glorious diva-from-hell) is almost killed by a stage curtain, and stomps out. Fortunately Christine Daae (Emmy Rossum), taught by a mystery tutor, can take over the soprano's role, and soon becomes famous for her singing. Even better, it catches the attention of her childhood sweetheart, Vicomte Raoul (Patrick Wilson).

But Raoul doesn't realize that Christine was taught by a disfigured, tortured genius who hides under the opera house. And the Phantom of the Opera is not only determined that Christine should be the star, but also be his wife. And he's willing to kill for it. Can Raoul break the Phantom's hold over Christine, or will she embrace "the music of the night"?

Watching this, it's hard to believe that it was directed by the same guy who did "Phone Booth" and the awful "Batman and Robin." Instead it looks as if the love child of Jean Cocteau and Peter Jackson decided to direct a musical, swathed in masks, roses, gilt angels, snow and velvet.

And it all wraps around Webber's solid songs ("Turn your face away from the garish light of day/turn your thoughts away from cold, unfeeling light/and listen to the music of the night!") from the stage musical. Most of the lines are sung, which surprisingly doesn't detract from their believability. And there's plenty of fun with the cameras, whether it's the dizzying views of the backstage, or a zoom through a stone floor to the Phantom's face.

Schumacher also adds a few extra scenes, including a sword fight between Raoul and the Phantom, which makes the vicomte seem more passionate; and a flashback to the Phantom's horrific childhood. What's more, the story is framed by scenes from forty years later -- sepia-toned scenes in the dusty remains of the Opera.

The three most prominent roles are what make or break this movie, and in this case, the casting is nearly ideal. Rossum has the ingenue looks -- and the powerful pipes -- to carry off the role of Christine, torn between her love and her passion. Similarly, Patrick Wilson gives some brains and strength to Raoul, and despite the romantic appeal of the Phantom, Raoul isn't hard to cheer for.

Gerard Butler is a bit more difficult. Most of the time his singing is solid, and his acting is powerful and tragic as the "loathsome gargoyle, who burns in hell, but secretly yearns for heaven." The scene where he tries to seduce Christine is deeply sensual. But occasionally his performance gets really hammy, such as the unmasking, where he flings himself around screaming, "You little prying Pandora! You little demon!"

And how does the blu-ray measure up? Well, the regular DVD was hailed for its sumptuous colours and visuals, as well as the lovely songs. Those things are all enhanced by the blu-ray release -- everything just seems so much more brilliant.

Lush, exquisite and passionate, "The Phantom of the Opera" is a solid adaptation of Webber's musical, with good acting and excellent direction. A triumph for "the music of the night."

Great transfer.......2007-02-19

I haven't seen the musical, but have the soundtrack to it. I think this movie is a faithful rendition of the musical. The video transfer is great quality, the colors are fantastic! There were some jerky frames at the beginning for some reason. The audio is also excellent. Great dynamic range and clarity. I highly recommend this disc!

Video Quality Review (Blu-ray).......2007-01-31

The Phantom of the Opera has been the premier demo disk for High Definition TVs and Projectors for some time now. When trying to show off, at various trade shows, not only the detail but the contrast of a new product the HD-DVD of The Phantom of the Opera would always find its way on screen. Now we have it on Blu-ray, the same encoding in fact. It isn't just the transfer, near perfect, which makes this disc such a treat but the lavishness of the film itself. Rich colors, ornate details, vibrant bright scenes next to detailed dark ones; a sense of depth is throughout this musical. What little film grain there is is in keeping with a perfectly maintained film source. This is a top shelf Blu-ray release that will bring out the full range of color and contrast that your TV can display.

(PS3 - 1080p projector - 92")

The Phantom of the Opera (Widescreen Edition)

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The Phantom of the Opera (Widescreen Edition)
Starring: Gerard Butler , Emmy Rossum , Patrick Wilson , Miranda Richardson , and Minnie Driver
Director: Joel Schumacher
Manufacturer: Warner Home Video
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B0007TKNII
Release Date: 2005-05-03

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Description

Customer Reviews:

Poor -Unable to view.......2007-09-17

Wonderful!.......2007-09-16

Wonderfull!!!.......2007-09-12

Movies.......2007-09-04

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. I love musicals and this one touched my heart. I gave it four stars only because I didn't want it to end.

Holds true to the Broadway musical.......2007-08-29

Average customer rating:

Ghost of love
Beautiful! Awesome!
Grand melodrama on an epic scale - a masterpiece!
No more eyestrain!

The Phantom Lover
Starring: Philip Kwok , Roy Szeto , Fong Pao , Lei Huang , and Chien-lien Wu
Director: Ronny Yu
Manufacturer: Tai Seng
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B00004WL3M
Release Date: 2001-01-16

Customer Reviews:

Ghost of love.......2007-06-03

What if Romeo and Juliet hadn't died? What if, instead, Juliet lost her mind and became a beggar, and Romeo became a scarred recluse, hiding in a decrepit opera house?

That's the whole idea behind "The Phantom Lover," a heartrendingly tragic story that is equal parts "Romeo and Juliet" and "Phantom of the Opera." It's crammed with lush sets, sweeping direction, and some truly brilliant acting and operatic vocals -- particularly from Leslie Cheung and Jacqueline Wu.

A troupe of actors arrive at a derelict opera house, and Wei Qing (Lei Huang) starts diddling around with singing scores there -- and suddenly a cloaked figure appears to give him lessons, even helping him when his voice falters onstage. Wei soon learns the story of the operahouse: it was built by a young opera singer, Song Danping (Leslie Cheung) who swept audiences away with his operatic adaptation of "Romeo and Juliet" -- which rankled the local officials.

Even more rankling to them was the love affair that bloomed between Danping, and the upper-class Wan-Yin (Jacqueline Wu). But her father forced her to marry a young man from a wealthy family, despise his cruelty to women. The resulting scandal destroyed their lives -- Danping was supposedly killed when the opera house was burned, and Wan-Yin went mad and was disowned by her family.

Of course, the Phantom Lover is Danping himself. Wei and his troupe determinedly revive Danping's old operas, to the delight of the townspeople. But Wei also becomes wrapped up in the miserable life of Wan-Yin, and forces the reclusive Phantom to emerge from the shadows, to deal with the demons of his ruined life...

It's never entirely clear why Danping allows his one true love to languish in poverty-stricken loneliness, but that's really the only plot hole in this movie. It occasionally slips over the line into melodrama, but most of the time it's saved from that great acting, and an obvious love of the beauty of music and tragic stories -- though this one has a happier ending for some.

The scenes are filled with starlit windows, dark shootings, sweeping operas with lush scenery, brightly coloured clothing, moonlit reunions, and gothic ruins filled with tattered luxury. It's a very sensual movie, and the fact that much of it is filmed in sepia tones doesn't really diminish that -- instead, it makes the powerful, passionate love of the past seem even more intense.

Ronny Yu's direction is full of sweeping shots and sensual lushness, and he emphasizes the beauty of the opera house and Wan-Yi, even when they're both in ruins. But Yu also peppers it with shocking moments, such as when Wan-Yin is savagely beaten and slandered in the streets by her old fiancee, and everyone except Wei is too terrified to move.

The main lovers are the most vibrant characters: Leung is magnificent as the Phantom Lover -- intense, compelling, and sometimes kinda frightening, although the character himself is rather self-absorbed. And Wu is even better as the pitiful, childlike Wan-Yi, who is perpetually locked in the last happy days on her life. Huang is also quite good as a young man who gains strength and confidence, but he's rather overshadowed by Leung and Wu.

"The Phantom Lover" is an intense, tragically romantic movie, with some great acting and magnificent direction. An excellent spin on the typical "Phantom of the Opera" storyline.

Beautiful! Awesome!.......2003-01-03

When a small, struggling acting troupe purchases a fire-damaged opera house, little do they realize that the opera house is haunted by two ghosts, one Sung Danping, a famous singer, and his lover Du Yuyan, daughter of a rich local merchant.

When the bank threatens to foreclose upon the troupe after an unsuccessful performance, the young actor Wei, encounters the ghost of Sung Danping. Sung Danping (in the tradition of Phantom of the Opera), teaches him to sing. Can Wei save the opera house before the bank forecloses? And what about the mysterious Sun Danping?

Phantom Lover was partially inspired by Andrew Lloyd Webber's 'phantom of the opera' but I liked this one a lot better, because it was set in China, and Sung's love for Yuyan was eternal. The musical score was simply beautiful, and Wei was convincing as a young naive actor, down on his luck.

I recommend this movie for fans of Chinese romantic movies. You won't be disappointed!

Grand melodrama on an epic scale - a masterpiece!.......2001-09-28

Teen idol Leslie Cheung Kwok-wing toplines Ronny Yu Yan-tai's superb Gothic melodrama "The Phantom Lover" (Ye Boon Goh Sing, 1995) as a famed actor in 1920's China whose affair with the daughter (Wu Chien-lien) of a scheming industrialist is opposed by their respective families, culminating in a terrible disaster which consumes the magnificent theater in which Cheung made his fortune. Ten years later, an impoverished theatrical troupe restores the now-derelict building, and the principal actor (Huang Lei, from Chen Kaige's "Life on a String" [Bian Zhou Bian Chang, 1991]) stumbles on the phantom-like Cheung, hiding amongst the ruins as a disfigured recluse. But the villainous factions which drove the ill-fated lovers apart are still active, and history begins to repeat itself, with potentially tragic consequences...

"The Phantom Lover" arguably ranks alongside John Woo's "Bullet in the Head" (Dip Huet Gaai Tau, 1990) as one of the crowning achievements of Hong Kong cinema. With spectacular Gothic sets designed by the late Eddie Ma Poon-chiu and swooping camerawork by world-class cinematographer Peter Pau Tak-hei (whose expansive images demonstrate the full potential of the Panavision frame), this sublime masterpiece represents a sensational marriage of old-fashioned storytelling with cinematic technique. The fast-moving narrative is heightened constantly by director Yu's operatic filmmaking style, a style which he perfected two years earlier in his acclaimed fantasy "The Bride With White Hair" (Baak Faat Moh Nui Juen, 1993), providing a near-perfect combination of plot, characterization and technical virtuosity. The script (by Roy Szeto Cheuk-hon, Raymond Wong Pak-ming and director Yu) is essentially a reworking of "Midnight Song" (Ye Bang Ge Sheng, 1937), an early effort by pioneering Chinese horrormeister Maxu Weibang, though Yu's film emphasizes atmosphere and melodrama over outright horror, and the film's central section - the heartbreaking disintegration of Cheung's relationship with Wu - is played to perfection by an attractive cast, and nicely underscored by Chris Babida's melancholy score. The only false note is sounded by Cheung's contribution to the soundtrack, a handful of feeble songs which struggle unsuccessfully to convey an appropriate sense of heartache and tragedy. Such blatant insincerity may help to explain his less-than-flattering appraisal of the film since its initial release.

Overall, there are few Hong Kong films as deserving of a two-disc special edition as "The Phantom Lover", but Tai Seng's region-free DVD (which runs 101m 47s) is a mixed bag. Whereas the 'modern' sequences (set in 1936) should have been sepia-toned with splashes of color - a deliberate artistic choice by the filmmakers - this DVD drains them to the verge of near-total black-and-white, and the full-color flashbacks pale in comparison with earlier laserdisc/DVD editions from the Far East (compare the clips in the accompanying featurette with the corresponding scenes in the film itself). The results are often drab and unappealing. Similarly, Tai Seng were unable to afford a new anamorphic transfer, so the image is merely letterboxed at 2.35:1, with optional subtitles in the lower masking. Though released in Hong Kong with a dubbed Cantonese soundtrack (included here, in 5.1 surround), viewers are urged to select the original sync-sound Mandarin track (also in 5.1), an effective remix of the theatrical DTS version. There's also an English track in 1.0 mono which is fairly sensitive to this particular film's demands.

Two separate commentaries are provided by the chief architects of the film's artistic success (Yu and Pau, respectively), and it's here that one learns the film's final cut was assembled in TWO WEEKS (!!), an astonishing revelation which is a testament to the remarkable skills of editor David Wu Tai-wai. By contrast, an equivalent Hollywood movie would have taken several MONTHS to work its way through the editing process! The second disc is a major disappointment: Three featurettes are promised, but they all turn out to be the same documentary repeated in English, Cantonese and Mandarin! In itself, it provides a fascinating glimpse into the filmmaking process, but the packaging seems to indicate three distinctly separate items, which is misleading. Trailers, photo galleries and biographies round out a pretty meager package. Tai Seng are to be commended for treating the film with due respect, but this two-disc set fails to meet expectations. Perhaps a single-disc arrangement (minus two of the three featurettes) might have been a wiser move?

Despite its flaws, this ambitious 'collector's edition' ultimately represents the best version of "The Phantom Lover" on home video to date, and is therefore highly recommended to anyone who loves the thrill of Pure Cinema. After all, it's the presentation which falls short of the mark, not the film itself.

No more eyestrain!.......2001-03-22

For years the various home video incarnations of Ronny Yu's sumptious follow-up to his popular 'Bride with White Hair' have been notorious for their miniscule subtitles, so Tai Seng has done fans of Hong Kong cinema a major service with this remastered release. Indeed, they've put together one of the most impressive and respectful packages any Hong Kong film has received in this country, including commentary tracks by Yu and cinematographer Peter Pau ('Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon'), a "making of" featurette, trailers for Yu's previous films, and an isolated music score.

Both the original synch-sound Mandarin soundtrack and the Cantonese dub sound great (lead Leslie Cheung's real voice is heard on both). The visual transfer, howeer, is not quite as impressive as I was expecting, as the image sometimes seems a bit fuzzy and drab, lacking the clarity one associates with DVD. Still, it looks better than most U.S. homevideo releases of Hong Kong movies (I'm particularly thinking of Columbia's recent 'Once Upon A Time in China' disk), and some of the "drabness" may be due to deliberate choices on the parts of Yu and Pau, with them favoring a softer image that doesn't work as well on disk as on the big screen.

But what about the movie itself? Although engrossing, it didn't bowl me over like 'The Bride with White Hair' did. The story is partially inspired by Gaston Leroux's 'Phantom of the Opera' (it's a remake of 'Song at Midnight,' a classic 1930's Chinese that was in itself a semi-remake of the silent 'Phantom' with Lon Chaney). Leslie Cheung's character is clearly meant to be the most sympathetic (and least murderous) Phantom in any version of this story, but he also comes across as cold and narcissistic, needlessly cruel to the woman (the luminous Chien-lien Wu of "Eat Drink Man Woman') who was supposedly his One Great Love. Cheung is a great actor and an accomplished singer, but I find his vocals a bit treacly, and the music isn't nearly as stirring as the score for 'Bride with White Hair.'

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Customer Reviews:

Poor -Unable to view.......2007-09-17

Wonderful!.......2007-09-16

Wonderfull!!!.......2007-09-12

Movies.......2007-09-04

I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. I love musicals and this one touched my heart. I gave it four stars only because I didn't want it to end.

Holds true to the Broadway musical.......2007-08-29

Average customer rating:

Sky Lover
Starring: Sky Lover
Manufacturer: Phantom
ProductGroup: DVD
Binding: DVD

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ASIN: B0002JC6TM
Release Date: 2004-03-09

Album Description

2002 film directed by Quingmin Jiang & starring Liu Ye, adapted from the award winning novelette 'Life Without Language'. NTSC/All Code. Original Mandarin dialogue with optional English & Chinese subtitles. Widescreen. 93 mins. Packaged in a slipcase. Mei Ah.

Average customer rating:

Great version of PHANTOM

The Phantom Lover
Starring: Leslie Cheung , and Wu Chien Lien
Manufacturer: Tai Seng Entertainment
ProductGroup: DVD
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ASIN: B000006C17
Release Date: 1998-05-12

Amazon.com

Your appreciation of The Phantom Lover, a 1995 film from director Ronny Yu, will depend largely on your appreciation of something I would never have expected in a Hong Kong movie: the music of Andrew Lloyd Webber. "Musical stylings" would be more accurate, as Webber did not write the songs in The Phantom Lover, but they were clearly written in rapt emulation. In the story, a ragtag acting troupe in 1936 China buys the rotting hulk of a theater that burned down 10 years earlier. Wei, the lead actor, learns the story behind the magnificent ruin: an actor named Sung Danping (Leslie Cheung, the star of Farewell, My Concubine) created this building to house his sumptuous and popular musicals. His affair with local beauty Yun Yan (Chien-Lien Wu of Eat Drink Man Woman) resulted in disaster when the father of the girl's fiancé had the theater burned with Danping inside. Yuyan went mad and was abandoned by her fiancé. The acting troupe stages a proletariat flop and is about to leave when Wei is contacted by Danping, who was disfigured but did not die in the fire. Danping gives Wei a copy of Romeo and Juliet, which rescues the troupe from financial ruin. But unfortunately for Wei, Danping's gift has some strings attached. Like many Hong Kong movies, this lushly photographed melodrama has more plot than three American features and is capable of outrageous sentimentality and cutting cynicism, often in the span of a single scene. The songs--curiously modern and western for a story set in the 1920s and 30s--may be a serious stumbling block for some, but for others they may only enhance the rapture. --Bret Fetzer

Customer Reviews:

Great version of PHANTOM.......2005-01-29

This film offers a wonderful retelling of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. The setting, China in the twenties and thirties, underscores many of the novel's themes: equality between the sexes, the choice between art and love, as well as a wonderful look into the theatre of China. The cinematography is remarkable--stunning.

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The Phantom of the Opera (Special Extended Edition Soundtrack) (CD)	The Phantom of the Opera (2004 Movie Soundtrack) (CD)	The Phantom of the Opera (Original 1986 London Cast) (CD)
Evita (DVD)	Andrew Lloyd Weber: The Royal Albert Hall Celebration (DVD)	More Broadway DVDs