The Phantom of the Opera is based off of both Gaston Leroux's novel, and Andrew Lloyd Webber's stage musical. It tells the story of a mysterious man that lives beneath the Paris Opera House, and is madly in love with a young ballet dancer. The managers of the opera house think he is a phantom. The young dancer believes he is the Angel of Music, sent by her dead father to watch over her. When the phantom begins to kill and cause damage to the opera house, the dancer's heroic suitor sets out to stop the phantom once and for all. With great music and stunning sets, this is the best version of the tale on film.

Joel Shumacher's career was pretty much destroyed after Batman and Robin came out, but after a few good movies to pick himself up, he was given a seemingly impossible task. To turn Andrew Lloyd Webber's world famous stage musical into a movie. Sadly, I've never had the chance to see the show, but I have been listening to the music almost all of my life. I was excited beyond words when this movie came out. I was worried about Shumacher a little bit, but as soon as I saw the movie, it didn't matter. He adapted the stage show almost perfectly to the screen. There are a few changes, but they work, and they make the movie so much better than if it was a straight copy. I loved the sets and the cinematography. Even if you're not a fan of musicals, I highly recommend you see this if you're interested in film at all. This movie is a visual necessity. You'll learn a thing or two. The angles at which certain scenes are shot, the black and white footage, the sets, they all make this movie so good. Of course, Andrew Lloyd Webber's music is genius, and I still get chills whenever I hear the overture.

The acting is great. I was worried about almost every actor in this movie initially. I mean, Gerard Butler was Dracula in Dracula 2000, Emmy Rossum was that chick from The Day After Tomorrow, and who the heck is Patrick Wilson. Well, all that went out the window after I saw the movie. Emmy Rossum was amazing in the role of Christine. I really didn't think she could sing. Gerard Butler was absolutely perfect in the role of the phantom. He played the character both sympathetically, as well as devilishly creepy. His singing was nowhere near bad either.

Overall, this is the best movie based off a stage show out there. The amazing acting, cinematography, and direction combine to make this one great movie.

9/10

I have seen it on stage a couple times. I know that critics don't like Andrew Lloyd Weber. There is this automatic response to anything he does. I know that there are some better musicals. I know there is better music. But I feel that you can fool some of the people, but not for as long as people say he has. He has presented wonderful stories, created very memorable music. The first time I heard the music from "The Phantom of the Opera" was when the Cadets of Bergen Country, a nationally known drum corps, used it for their field show. I thought, "What is that music?" Since then, I've been in love with this show. Granted, both stage shows work better than this movie (although the opening credits deserve their own place--they are awesome), it still captures much of the romance of the play. Some of the scenes away from the opera house and away from the sewers take a bit of the original punch out of the movie. The singers are not as strong. This always amazes me. I would think that singing would take precedence over acting. There must be some wonderful people out there. But they are not terrible. And the music wins out in the end.

There have been many versions of the Phantom story over the years, some great, some not so good. This one is slightly different in that it's a film adaptation of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, rather than being just another remake or version of the Gaston Leroux novel. I enjoy watching musicals from time to time and I have to say I liked this one. Obviously the quality of the songs is what makes a good musical and they're all absolutely fine here, with some wonderful breathtaking moments dotted throughout the lengthy production.

Joel Schumacher can be a hit and miss director, but he seems to have come on more strongly in the past decade, counting PHONE BOOTH and 8MM among his successes. This is one of his better films, a fine adaptation that makes good use of the genuine vocal talent of the leading actors and actresses. Emmy Rossum is astonishing as Christine, and she's ably matched by Gerard Butler as the Phantom; this is Butler in a star-making role, and very good he does too. Some overbearing supporting actresses flesh out the cast – Minnie Driver, Jennifer Ellison – while Simon Callow and Ciaran Hinds have a fine comedy double act although they just kind of disappear towards the end of the movie.

The film is shot through with Gothic sensibility and makes repeated use of beautiful visuals. The scene in the snowy graveyard is a highlight and of course the catacomb climax is another strong element. Complaints were made that the costumes were toned down for the movie but I can understand this; the camera's close up to the action rather than sitting away like an audience and bright red hats and skull masks would have become a distraction unlike in the theatre. In all, THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA is a solid musical and a film I enjoyed.