The Phantom of the Opera Adaptations Ranked

Hello everyone, hope you are all doing well! To those who follow me over on Instagram know I am big Phantom of the Opera Phan! To those who don’t, I am a big Phantom of the Opera Phan! So I thought it would be cool to rank the Phantom of the Opera adaptations I have seen so far! I have seen most of the adaptations, the only ones I have yet to see are the 1943, 1989, and 1983 adaptations, and I refuse to see the 1998 adaptation. So every time I see a new adaptation I will come back to this post and update it!

When I was ranking these adaptations I based it off of how close it was to the novel. I didn’t base it off of the characters because some adaptations have different characters or completely new characters so I decided to leave out the characters in my assessment. I mainly based my assessment on the plot, like does the Phantom teach Christine in her dressing room before bringing her to his lair, is there someone representing the Daroga, and is there a final lair?

1925

1925 Phantom without mask

First place goes to the 1925 silent film with Lon Chaney and Mary Philbin! This was a well done film, I was pleasantly surprised! This book followed along with the book and I was really happy to see that! One thing that I found a bit weird was Carlotta’s mom was in it and from what I’ve interpreted she is an age where her mom wouldn’t be very involved in her career. One thing that I was super happy to see was the inclusion of Raoul’s brother Phillip! And not only did they include the brother but they also included !!!SPOILER ALERT!!! His death, no adaptation has had that. SPOILER OVER. The Daroga was in it but he wasn’t named the Daroga, instead he was a chief of police person which kind of made me sad but at least there was someone representing the Daroga. This movie is so far the one most similar to the book, which is why it is number one. And not only for what I mentioned above but there are also a of bunch other scenes from the book that made it into this movie. The only thing that really wasn’t like the book was the ending. I hated the ending, but that’s a whole other manner. Anyways, the ending wasn’t like the book but most adaptations seem to have a different ending. Bottom line, good adaptation and if you can sit through a silent film then I’d recommend you give it a watch!

1987

1987 Phantom without mask

Next is the 1987 animated film with Aiden Grennell and Collette Proctor. This one is very similar to the book. While watching I noticed that some lines were exact lines from the book so I thought that was cool. Besides being very similar to the book, the film overall was… interesting. I found the Phantom’s mask to be a bit more scary than his actual face in this adaptation. It’s only about a 40 minute movie so everything felt like it was happening so fast but they did get the important stuff in so that was good. So far this is the only adaptation to have the Daroga in it which I was happy to see! If you need a good laugh I would definitely recommend watching this! The Phantom in this adaptation is quite funny, especially when Christine takes off his mask for the first time, he says after his little meltdown “I’m a very good looking fellow am I not… I’m a kind of Don Juan don’t you know.” While this isn’t my favorite adaptation it is the one that is very similar to the book which is why it’s number two

2004/25th Anniversary

25th Phantom without mask

2004 Phantom without mask

Okay so in third place we have Andrew Lloyd Webber’s adaptation; I am including the 2004 movie with Emmy Rossum and Gerard Butler + the 25th with Sierra Boggess and Ramin Karimloo because they are both DVDs that can be bought. Anyways, while this adaptation isn’t quite like the book, it does have the base foundation of the book in it. I say this because while I was reading the book it was easy for me to see what songs would be taking place if I was watching the film. Something the 2004 movie has that is similar to what happened in the book is the Phantom/Erik putting Christine on a horse before the boat which I liked. One of the biggest similarities to the book is when Bouquet talks to the dancers about the Phantom and how he looks. The song is called Magical Lasso and Bouquet describes the Phantom very similar to how he does in the book. As a meme once said, this song is the only evidence that ALW skimmed the book😂 The final lair in this book isn’t exactly like the final lair in the book but I think it’s a pretty good adaptation of it, in both the book and this adaptation the Phantom tries to kill Raoul so that’s something! He also gives Christine the choice to save Raoul by marrying him or refuse to marry him and have Raoul die. In the book the Phantom also gives Christine the ultimatum but the consequences are a bit different in the book. While the Daroga is not in this, I feel like Madame Giry embodies the Daroga just a smidge. Like the Daroga she leads Raoul to the lair for final lair, and also seems to know stuff about the Phantom. Overall, ALW’s adaptation of the book is a pretty solid one and I highly recommend giving the musical a listen!

1990

1990 Phantom with mask

In fourth place is the 1990 mini series with Charles Dance and Teri Polo. I loved this adaptation so much, it is my second favorite adaptation, ALW’s being the first. Charles Dance’s Erik is often refereed to Cherik so if I ever mention that, this is what I’m referring to. Anyways, this adaptation is pretty far from the book. The biggest one is that there is a parental figure in this adaptation. The inclusion of the parental figure pretty much undermines the whole part of the Phantom being mistreated by society and shunning himself below the Opera House. One thing I love about Cherik is he’s kind of a sassy guy. One line that he says that I love is “this place really is haunted” and when he says this, he is referring to Carlotta who is singing at the moment. Anyways, this isn’t about my love for Cherik aha. As much as I love this adaptation, in regards to the book it falls pretty far from similarity. One difference is in the character Raoul, in the book Raoul reconnects with Christine after seeing her perform. In this book he hears her somewhere else and then sends her to the Opera House to be trained under Carlotta. But they are childhood friends so that is something! Also, there really is no final lair scene, I mean there is, but it takes place on the rooftop instead of in well, his lair. This is also the only adaptation I have seen that doesn’t show the Phantom without his mask on, when they take it off the camera shows it from behind so we never see it. Bottom line is this isn’t the best adaptation when it comes to following the book but I still recommend watching it!!!

1962

1962 Phantom with mask

In last place is the 1962 adaptation with Herbert Lom and Heather Sears. I don’t even know where to begin but this is the worst adaptation I have seen and I think it will continue to be the worst. There are so many things wrong with this adaptation and I think the only resemblance it has to the book is that the Phantom wears a mask, and Christine’s name(not her last though). Ugh so many things were wrong I don’t even know where to begin but I’ll start with the Phantom. The whole backstory of the Phantom was he was born with a deformity and was shunned and mistreated by society so he sought refuge under the Opera House. Well in this adaptation he wasn’t born with the deformity, no he got it from being burned in a fire when he was like 20. Not only that but someone was murdered in the beginning which like doesn’t make sense because this Phantom doesn’t have the tragic backstory that causes the real Phantom’s morals to be messed up and stuff so there’s literally no reason for the murder. In the book because his morals are messed up he believes murdering someone for Christine is okay, but that isn’t the case with this Phantom so there is basically no reason to justify this murder, he just straight up murdered someone. Also the Phantom has a minion in this adaptation like ??? so that was a weird addition. So in the book the Phantom gives Christine lessons in her dressing room and she doesn’t know what he looks like and stuff well in this adaptation the Phantom kidnaps her, no sorry the minion kidnaps her, and takes Christine to his lair and then he gives her the lessons. Excuse me, producers, that’s not how it happens!!! I’m not even going to get started on the ending, just the worst. There are so many other problems with this movie from an adaption standpoint, I cannot even describe how bad it was. Overall this is probably going to be the worst adaptation of Phantom to exist. 

So as I stated above, when I watch a new adaptation I will come back and edit this post to include that adaptation. Have you seen any of these adaptations, if so lets talk about it in the comments!

The Mummy|Movie Review

Tittle: The Mummy

Length: 2hr and 5 min

Release Date: 1999

Synopsis: At an archaeological dig in the ancient city of Hamunaptra, an American serving in the French Foreign Legion accidentally awakens a mummy who begins to wreck havoc as he searches for the reincarnation of his long-lost love.

Rating:★★★★(.5)

 

I have been to Universal Studios a few times before and The Mummy is one of my favorite rides there. So when I saw the movie on Netflix I just felt that I needed to watch it. I am so glad that I decided to watch it because I really loved the movie. This movie is about a librarian named Evelyn who discovers a map with her brother Jonathan to the ancient city of Hamunptra in Egypt. With the help of a man named Rick, the three of them travel to the lost city. There they awaken a mummy who wrecks havoc while he tries to find the reincarnation of his long lost love.

Non-Spoiler

This was such an enjoyable movie. It was full of action and a bit of romance. What I liked was how in the beginning there was a little background on the mummy who awakens. We get to know what he did before becoming a mummy and who he was. We also get insight on his and his love’s relationship. In the beginning as well we get a little preview on what Rick did before he met Evelyn and how he knew the ancient city, as well as another character. Although this was nice to see and get insight on, I was a bit confused on why he was there. I felt it was fine not knowing why he was there at the sight because to me it didn’t really play a big part into Rick as a character but it was still a bit annoying if I’m being honest. Other than that the movie was really enjoyable.

One thing I liked about this movie was how it had a good balance between action and nonaction. At times it would be like action action and at other times it would be just like action. There was also some comic relief spread throughout the move that had me laughing. There was this one part where the mummy kind of growled at Rick and he just growled back which made me laugh.

I enjoyed all the characters. I cared mostly for Evelyn and Rick, who were our main characters.

So that really all for the non-spoiler part. Overall I enjoyed this movie and I was excited to see that there were two other movies out so I can’t wait to watch those. So I am going to move onto the spoiler sections, if you have not seen the movie or do not care about being spoiled, then continue reading.

Spoiler

One of my favorite aspects of this movie was the bringing of the plagues. It was interesting to see them kind of brought to life. And it wasn’t just like one after the other. There was a plague, some time passed, and then another plague would come. So it was nice to have a little break between each plague. And when each plague came, it made the characters realize how dire the situation was and that they needed to put the mummy back in the casket. It was like the plagues were a sign that his powers were getting stronger and they needed to work faster.

So I was a little confused on why Evelyn was picked for the sacrifice. Was it because she resembled Imhotep’s love or she was just like the first girl he saw. It might of been mentioned, I feel like it was mentioned but I probably missed it. If it was not mentioned then I wish it was.

One thing I was confused by was why didn’t the Americans warn Rick and Evelyn and Jonathan not to read the book. Like I understand that they were “rivals” but if the book was so dangerous(which it is) they should of just told them. And yes, I understand that Evelyn reading from the book set up the whole movie, but I’m just saying it all could of been avoided if everyone was warned.

I was happy this movie did not really hold back on the deaths. I mean first we had the death of like the prison overseer. I’m not really sure as to why they brought him along if they killed him off so early. Maybe it was to introduce those little bugs, I’m not really sure but he was there for a solid 45 minutes I think. And then we had the deaths of the diggers that the Americans brought. I know death is not a good thing, but if I’m going to be honest, those were my favorite deaths. I just found it kind of cool and funny that they were just melted, whoever set up that booby trap was smart. So then we have the deaths of those who opened the chest, the Americans. Now when each American dies, not only does Imhotep get stronger, he takes a vase. Now it seemed that each American had a vase. What I didn’t get was how each one got one, like last time I saw them was they were all together, I don’t recall them getting split up. Not that it was a big deal, I was just like “oh, when did those get split up?”

So on the Mummy ride at Universal Studios, there is a part where bugs will show on the screen and then they do this weird thing to make them feel like they are crawling all over you. I was so happy to finally understand that part of the ride. There are a few scenes in the movie where these bugs(I’m blanking on the name sorry) will crawl all over you and basically like eat you alive. And when I saw that I was like “ohh, I get it now.” Okay also, when the bugs crawled inside of the characters, yuck. I found that really gross.

So overall this was such a good movie and it’s definitely making its way on my favorite movie list. I loved the characters and all the action, along with the comedy. I cannot wait to see the rest of the Mummy movies!

 

 

IO

Title: IO

Release date: January 18, 2019

Length: 1hr 30min

Rating: ★★

 

Hello everyone, I have decided to give it a go at movie reviews. For my first movie that I am reviewing is drum role please *cue drumroll* IO. So this movie has a pretty cliche plot I felt like but it was about how humans basically destroyed and intoxicated the Earth. Now instead of taking place from space and being about how the humans adapted in space. This was about a girl named Sam and how she still lived on Earth carrying on her dad’s research. Until one day she learns that there is only one last space shuttle leaving to IO. So she has the task of trying to get to the last space shuttle in time.

Non-Spoiler Review

So, to start off the review on a positive note, one thing I liked was how it was based on Earth. I feel like most movie where humans intoxicate Earth it is from like the space point of view instead of earth. I liked how this movie was based on earth and we could see how it became and what it looked like. It was also interesting to see how the main character Sam lived on earth and tried to survive. So sadly, that was all I really liked about the movie. Oh! and I also found it cool how Sam used a flame to see if the air was breathable.

So the main issue I had with this movie was that I was often confused. I was confused on how it was breathable in some parts of the earth but not others. I would think that the whole air would of been intoxicated but that was not the case and I was confused why. The ending was also confusing to me. I am not quite sure what happened. The ending just felt kind of abrupt in a way and didn’t really conclude things. It ended in like an image and what seemed like the main character reading a note. I also wasn’t sure if Sam made it to the shuttle or not. So overall confusing ending, not a plus.

Another issue I had was with the “love interest” if he can even be called that, because it just like happened. There was no chemistry brewing between the two whatsoever and I was just like “why is this happening.” Now no age is really given for the two but to me, it looked like there was a notice age gap between them. To me the main character Sam looked between 16-18 while Micah(the guy) looked between 20-25. So when things started getting heated between the two I was a little put off to say. The main character also said something like “this needs to happen” and I was just confused because like why did it need to happen. So yeah, not a fan of the “love interest.”

Lastly, overall this movie just fell flat for me. In the whole like hour and few minutes that this movie took, it felt like nothing was happening. I honestly don’t know why I didn’t exit out of this and watch something else. It just felt super anti-climatic and boring. I mean there was like less than 10 minutes left and nothing. happened.

So yeah, overall not a good movie and I do not recommend watching it. It was boring and super anti-climatic and it was a poor delivery. This movie I feel could of had so much potential and could of been really great, sadly however, it was not.