Reviews Written by Jeff

A wonderful, marvelous, fantastic movie!

Pros: Virtually flawless in every aspect!

Cons: I can't watch it 24/7!

I absolutely love Andrew Lloyd Webber plays. Evita, Starlight Express, Joseph's, all are exceptional, up there with Camelot, South Pacific, The King & I, Oklahoma!, as the cream of the crop. However his stage rendition of POTO is so far above anything else that has ever been done that there are no peers. I have seen it on the stage many times and am still emotionally moved every time I see it.

I had HUGE misgivings mixed with great anticipation for the movie version. In the rumor mill for at least a decade I had all but given up hope that it would ever be done. Then all of a sudden, it popped up in the movie previews and hit the screens in December. I was at the first screening in my town and to say the least I was ecstatic at the movie they produced. They stuck very close to ALW's stage version (I have both sound tracks and it is hard to tell which I am listening to they are so close). The few story enhancements they added only served to clarify the parts of the story that were poorly depicted in the stage version. All were more than appropriate.

The movie shows the time and care that ALW gave to producing his masterpiece - virtual perfection in every aspect. True Gerry Butler is not the singer that Michael Crawford is but neither is Crawford near the actor that Butler is (evidence - get a copy of Disney's Condor Man to see Crawford at his acting best!). Butler's performance is brilliant, magical. I can't imagine any other contemporary actor coming even close. Of course all the other cast members were perfect for their roles also. Incidentally, if I were the loser in the Christine lottery, I would have made a move on Meg! What a cutie!! Criticisms I have heard are bogus; the phantom was too young – Butler IS 35, Rossum IS 16 – how much age difference do they want? He is only 15 years away from membership in AARP; Butler can’t sing – I beg to differ and his rendition packs SO MUCH drama it blows away any Broadway ‘perfect’ voice; Rossum looked like a deer in headlights most of the time – So what’s the point? THAT IS THE WHOLE BASIS OF THE PLOT!!!!!!!; Plot lines are totally unbelievable like the sword fight ending in a draw, Phantom killing people and they can’t find him in a tiny theater, etc. So . . . they think the plot of Terminator, National Treasure, Indiana Jones movies hold together better do they?; Phantom’s disfigurement is nothing more than a bad sunburn – This is a MOVIE, not CNN or The Operation Channel – it is a dramatic interpretation for heaven’s sake!!

The ONLY flaw in the movie was the TERRIBLE marketing program. It only hit half the screens that trash like the Folkers was on, was released in two stages so new theaters didn't pick it up on the second wave. A movie that should have swept the box office ticket sales and swept the Oscars didn't even make the roster. Sad. Hopefully DVD sales will rocket it to the top of the stack where it should reside. Let’s help! ...