The Phantom of the Opera

When I first heard that there was an animated version of the The Phantom of the Opera, I didn't believe it. It didn't seem like a story that could be adapted to that medium. Then I came across a copy. I was expecting it to be much like the Star Wars Christmas Special; so perfectly awful no one wants to think about it, and even the cast is in denial that it exists. I was wrong! This version is the closest adaptation to the original novel I have ever seen. The plot is kept faithful and there are a number of direct quotes from Gaston Leroux's classic work. I found the dialog and plot very moving, and, as funny as this will sound, by the end I was a bit choked up. I found the animated version almost, in some ways, better than the novel. It was far more emotional in my opinion.

The only thing that took away from the film was the animation itself. It was made on a low budget, and it very clearly shows. If you've ever seen an older episode of Scooby-Doo, you'll understand what I mean. At times I found the images' flaws very distracting. For example, there seemed to be only a few frames of Erik talking up close actually made, so there would always be the same pictures every time he spoke. At times, also, the lip-syncing didn't match up and the characters' faces didn't seem to display any feeling. Sometimes it was better to just ignore the visuals and focus on listening to the sound and dialog.

Despite that, I would recommend this movie. It had a few powerful moments and was overall entertaining. Maybe I'm giving it a bit too much slack since I'm a big Phantom phan, but I thought it was worth watching. So if you get the chance, take an hour and check out this film.