Phantom Craze

So I have started watching ‘Phantom of the Opera’ again. I think I took a little break after my birthday treat of getting to see the show live at the State Theater (I think it was the State… I don’t think it was the Orpheum…).

I read a blog entry by Beth who wrote something about the movie. It made me get a little nostalgic because it is one of the best movies I have ever seen. The music is… every word I can think of just isn’t adequate enough. I need an incredible synonym for ‘beautiful.’ The costuming is stunning, colorful, and artfully done. Carlotta’s seems to be the most complicated while Christine’s is rather dramatic—very fit for the theater and an opera singer.

A few of my personal favorite songs are ‘Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again’ (if you’re familiar with the movie or the musical/play, it’s the song that takes place in the cemetery. I seem to be impartial to cemetery scenes in cinema. Sort of a morbid fascination I guess…),

(Courtesy of the YouTube user 'carolynroxsox')

Passing bells and sculpted angels, cold and monumental
Seem for you the wrong companion, you were warm and gentle
Too many years
Fighting back tears
Why can’t the curse just die!

‘Past the Point of No Return,’

(Courtesy of the YouTube user 'carolynroxsox')

Past the point of no return

No backward glances

Our games of make-believe are at an end

Past all thought of “if” or “when”

No use resisting, abandon thought and let the dream descend…

and ‘All I Ask of You.’

(Courtesy of the YouTube user 'Julinhaaaa')

Say you’ll love me every waking moment

Turn my head with talk of summertime

Say you’ll need me with you now and always

Promise me that all you say is true

That’s all I ask of you…

Seriously, I have watched this movie so many times that I can now sing along with just about every one of those songs. I try my best to hit those high notes and in a few songs, I get them, but notes like the one at the very end of ‘Phantom of the Opera’ (the song) I cannot reach, no matter how many times I’ve tried. My voice cracks terribly, and I really shouldn’t even attempt to hit that. I can only imagine what wonders that does for my vocal chords… of course, I don’t do the songs much justice any way. It’s just for fun.

The only annoying thing I can find with this movie is Eric (that's the Phantom's name. It pays to read the book, no matter how tedious Christine's dialogue is) starts out with sleek and shiny black hair that you just want to run your hand over constantly and then, as soon as Christine takes off his mask at the end of 'Point of No Return,' it magically turns to blonde. Not white blonde, but blonde enough to tell that it's not the same color is was two seconds ago. That and when the Phantom chokes Raoul, he has a huge snot string (I know, gross and crude terminology) hanging from his nose. He must have had hay fever when they filmed this part or something like that. How unfortunate that they used that frame among any others the director might have filmed. I challenge you to look for that if you're really bored one day. I didn't even notice it until my little sister pointed it out.

Other than that, it’s just an amazing movie. If you haven’t seen it, I highly recommend that you go to your computer and get it from Netflix or go to your local movie store or Redbox and rent it there. Or borrow it from a friend, whichever comes first.