The question at this point is whether " The Phantom of the Opera " is even intended to be frightening. It has become such a product of modern popular art that its original inspiration, "the loathsome gargoyle who lives in hell but dreams of heaven," has come dangerously close to becoming an institution, like Dracula, who was also scary a long, long time ago. Lon Chaney's Phantom in the silent had a hideously damaged face, his mouth a lipless rictus, his eyes off-center in gouged-out sockets. When Christine tore off his mask, she was horrified, and so was the audience. In the Lloyd Webber version, now filmed by Joel Schumacher , the mask is more like a fashion accessory, and the Phantom's "good" profile is so chiseled and handsome that the effect is not an object of horror but a kinky babe magnet. There was something unwholesome and pathetic about the Phantom, who scuttled like a rat in the undercellars of the Paris Opera and nourished a hopeless love for Christine. The modern Phantom is more like a perverse Batman with a really neat cave. The character of Raoul, Christine's nominal lover, has always been a fatuous twerp, but at least in the version, Christine is attracted to the Phantom only until she removes his mask. In this version, any red-blooded woman would choose the Phantom over Raoul, even knowing what she knows now. But what I am essentially disliking is not the film, but the underlying material.
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Relive the funniest moments that happened before the opening credits of " The Office. Watch the video. Title: The Phantom of the Opera
Skip to Content. Parents and caregivers: Set limits for violence and more with Plus. Parents need to know that this movie includes peril and violence, with some graphic images. There are mild and non-explicit sexual situations with predatory implications.
