Okay, first of all, you need to be a fan of Musicals, and better yet a fan of Phantom of the Opera (On of the best musicals of all time.)
Now.. Personally, I have seen this musical I dont know how many times, and one thing that has always sucked is; Once you've seen it on Broadway, all other productions of it will never compare. Namely because for the most part the likes of Sarah Brightman and the others are irreplaceable.
That being said, the Big Screen version of the Play is almost exactly word for word, even down to the little things. An absolutely PERFECT translation, with the added benefit of REALLY sticking it to you with the visuals.. I mean hell, the opening scene alone showing the transition from the auction to the past opera house (That scene and the Phantom's Theme together... Excellent). I mean, you see it, and it just automatically sparks the moment. Absolutely and totally phenominal.
And... They replaced Sarah Brightman with a perfect young actress. She handled the role superbly, and fit it very well. In fact the entire cast fit perfectly even with Mini Driver. The only exception, and unfortunately the most IMPORTANT factor, was the Phantom himself. I don't know his name, but unfortunately, he wasn't very good. Very lack luster, but the others carry it so well, and the production is so great you really dont care. They also added some flashback scenes which were really unessesary and pointless, but you dont mind them. They support the story anyway so its okay. They were just unnessesary.
If you are fan of musicals, especially Phantom of the Opera, this is nearly perfect. Very very impressed. Faelynn LeAndris fucked around with this message on 06-05-2005 at 03:06 AM.
I do have to disagree with you about the phantom. If you think about it, his role was not supposed to be as the best singer. He was the teacher, the mentor, and the beast. That is at least my opinion.
However, I didn't enjoy her acting one bit. She irritated me, greatly. As a film, I think it was above average.
And I hated the phantom's voice. Something about it just didn't sit well with me.
I'm not discrediting it as a film, but it's not what I wanted to expect. And that's what matters to me.
It is held in thought
only by the understanding
of the Wind.
Adding this to my DVD collection as soon as I'm back to work.
Lyinar Ka`Bael, Piney Fresh Druidess - Luclin
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ACES! Another post by Lyinar Ka`Bael:
Was it a movie version of the musical story, the book or a little of both?
Complete and totally perfect translation of the musical. Not the book.
Lyinar Ka`Bael, Piney Fresh Druidess - Luclin
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Azizza had this to say about Cuba:
I do have to disagree with you about the phantom. If you think about it, his role was not supposed to be as the best singer. He was the teacher, the mentor, and the beast. That is at least my opinion.
The Phantom is supposed to be an artistic genious. With a voice like an angel hidden in the shadows. As well as the teacher, etc. 
He is supposed to be hauntingly beautiful. And, I dunno, he just didn't work for me. Everyone else did, just not him.
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Lyinar Ka`Bael was listening to Cher while typing:
Ah good. I liked the musical better anyway. Cut the unnecessary stuff out that the book had.
If you liked the musical, you are going to LOVE this. I highly recomend the DVD. I doubt you will be disappointed.
The opening scene will grab you, I can almost guarantee it.
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Xyrra stumbled drunkenly to the keyboard and typed:
Andrew Lloyd Webber is an overrated no-talent hack.
Yeah... Thats probably why Phantom of the Opera is just one of the biggest, and probably most well known musicals ever.
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Faelynn LeAndris wrote, obviously thinking too hard:
Yeah... Thats probably why Phantom of the Opera is just one of the biggest, and probably most well known musicals ever.
Yeah, but look at Starlight Express, By Jeeves, Tell Me On A Sunday (Based on Sex in the City, wtf?), and Bombay Dreams.
All flops excepting Tell Me On A Sunday (which is just out of rehearsal), and listening to the music... he follows a very trite formula. Phantom is popular because it has a longrunning basis in pop culture. 
Lyinar Ka`Bael, Piney Fresh Druidess - Luclin
Webber found a formula that works, and stuck with it. There's nothing revolutionary in staying within a comfort zone, and it annoys me when people think he's a musical genius. *shrug*
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Xyrra had this to say about John Romero:
Yeah, but look at Starlight Express, By Jeeves, Tell Me On A Sunday (Based on Sex in the City, wtf?), and Bombay Dreams.All flops excepting Tell Me On A Sunday (which is just out of rehearsal), and listening to the music... he follows a very trite formula. Phantom is popular because it has a longrunning basis in pop culture.
Phantom is also very well done. I wouldnt exactly call it "pop" culture really either, as Musicals aren't exactly "pop" culture to begin with.
Starlight Express wasn't that bad. By Jeeves was total crap. The other two I have not seen. However, just like any movie, music, or otherwise directorial situation, you can't always be a winner. 
ADW equates more to Phantom Making his carrer, and not having a follow up, rather than to a hack who shouldn't have made it to begin with. Because what he did with Phantom deserves the credit he recieved for it.
Also, in the musical arena. Creators are almost always one hit wonders in that regard. Which is why there aren't all that many memorable musicals to begin with. You remember the really big ones, and nothing else for the most part. And the really big ones you remember all have different creators with thier other works other than the big one, being crap. They all, also, tend to be very formulaic due almost entirely to the genre they belong to.
Phantom itself was unique in that respect, even if ADW was not. Basically he deserves the credit and praise he recieves for Phantom. It is well earned. The overhype comes from just how popular Phantom is, and the fact that he is the one who made it what it is, so he automatically gets shouldered with the expectations of being a genius. Which in that respect you are correct, he never followed up with anything really unique or credit worthy beyond Phantom. Although, neighther has anyone else (Followed up with another great work to match what made them big to begin with, that is.). Faelynn LeAndris fucked around with this message on 06-05-2005 at 03:40 PM.
I'd say it's pretty pop culture.
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Trent had this to say about Cuba:
I despise musicals and know VERY little about them, and even I know what Phantom of the Opera is.I'd say it's pretty pop culture.
Okay I'd be using a different definition of pop culture, as something that is actually popular in majority.
Phantom is definitely well know, and infamous, but I wouldn't say its highly popular except in the thespian/broadway crowd. Which is I guess is what I mean.
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Faelynn LeAndris stopped staring at Deedlit long enough to write:
Which in that respect you are correct, he never followed up with anything really unique or credit worthy beyond Phantom. Although, neighther has anyone else (Followed up with another great work to match what made them big to begin with, that is.).
What about Gilbert and Sullivan?
Some people are like Slinkys... Not really good for anything, But they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
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Jackman had this to say about Pirotess:
What about Gilbert and Sullivan?
Gilbert and Sullivan has nothing to do with Andrew Lloyd Webber.... 
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Nobody really understood why Jackman wrote:
What about Gilbert and Sullivan?
You're kidding right?...
Other than The Pirates of Penzance, and Princess Ida, very few even have a clue who you are talking about.
And if you are using them as example of my statement that "Neither has anyone else (Followed up with another great work to match what made them big to begin with, that is.)."
My point still stands, as you demonstrated. And really, where did you get that idea from? (Of Gilbert and Sullivan) Faelynn LeAndris fucked around with this message on 06-07-2005 at 06:33 PM.
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Xyrra thought about the meaning of life:
Gilbert and Sullivan has nothing to do with Andrew Lloyd Webber....
H.M.S. Pinafore
Premiere: May 25, 1878 - Opera Comique, London
At first, this tale of a common sailor competing for the hand of his captain's daughter with none other than the Lord Admiral of the Royal Navy seemed doomed to failure. It became an international sensation, reshaping the commercial theater in both England and the United States.
The Pirates of Penzance
Premiere: Dec. 30, 1879 - Bijou Theatre, Paignton
Premiere: Dec. 31, 1879 - The Fifth Avenue Theatre, NY
A pirate's apprentice, now out of his indentures, must choose between his deep sense of duty and his love for a Major General's daughter. Jointly premiered on both sides of the Atlantic to protect the author's copyright, it proved to be one of their most enduring works.
The Mikado
Premiere - Mar. 14, 1885 - Savoy Theatre, London
The residents of a Japanese town, anxious to please their strict monarch, almost behead the heir to the throne. A cunning send-up of British mores, this has been the most popular work in the canon from its premiere to the present, and is still one of the funniest musicals ever written.
The Gondoliers
Premiere - Dec. 7, 1889 - Savoy Theatre, London
One of two Venetian gondoliers is supposedly the king of a revolution-torn country. Lots of romance and giddy music make this one of the best known and most frequently performed G&S masterworks. With Pinafore, Pirates and Mikado, it is the fourth (and last) of their super-hits.
Rodgers & Hammerstein 
klahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I and the Sound of Music
I stand by my Original suggestion that G&S > Webber and that they managed to have follow up hits that equaled or surpassed the original hit that made their reputations.
I also offer Rodgers & Hammerstein as another example.
Some people are like Slinkys... Not really good for anything, But they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
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Faelynn LeAndris got all f'ed up on Angel Dust and wrote:
You're kidding right?...Other than The Pirates of Penzance, and Princess Ida, very few even have a clue who you are talking about.
And if you are using them as example of my statement that "Neither has anyone else (Followed up with another great work to match what made them big to begin with, that is.)."
My point still stands, as you demonstrated. And really, where did you get that idea from? (Of Gilbert and Sullivan)
I am and where does it say in your original statement that it had to be contempory musicals? I bet anyone who loves Broadway musicals has heard and likely seen all of those they remain popular and in production (somewhere) today.
Some people are like Slinkys... Not really good for anything, But they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
quote:
Jackman's fortune cookie read:
Other than the fact they both produced popular musicals?H.M.S. Pinafore
Premiere: May 25, 1878 - Opera Comique, London
At first, this tale of a common sailor competing for the hand of his captain's daughter with none other than the Lord Admiral of the Royal Navy seemed doomed to failure. It became an international sensation, reshaping the commercial theater in both England and the United States.The Pirates of Penzance
Premiere: Dec. 30, 1879 - Bijou Theatre, Paignton
Premiere: Dec. 31, 1879 - The Fifth Avenue Theatre, NY
A pirate's apprentice, now out of his indentures, must choose between his deep sense of duty and his love for a Major General's daughter. Jointly premiered on both sides of the Atlantic to protect the author's copyright, it proved to be one of their most enduring works.The Mikado
Premiere - Mar. 14, 1885 - Savoy Theatre, London
The residents of a Japanese town, anxious to please their strict monarch, almost behead the heir to the throne. A cunning send-up of British mores, this has been the most popular work in the canon from its premiere to the present, and is still one of the funniest musicals ever written.The Gondoliers
Premiere - Dec. 7, 1889 - Savoy Theatre, London
One of two Venetian gondoliers is supposedly the king of a revolution-torn country. Lots of romance and giddy music make this one of the best known and most frequently performed G&S masterworks. With Pinafore, Pirates and Mikado, it is the fourth (and last) of their super-hits.Rodgers & Hammerstein
klahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I and the Sound of Music
I stand by my Original suggestion that G&S > Webber and that they managed to have follow up hits that equaled or surpassed the original hit that made their reputations.
I also offer Rodgers & Hammerstein as another example.
Did you just randomly google this stuff up or what?...
Gilbert and Sullivan are almost as obscure as you can get. As I said before, aside from The Pirates of Penzance and Princess Ida (Possibly the Mikado) they aren't really "Out there" and as I was just telling Xyrra in IMs... If you walk out on the street, or even in most thespian circles, and say "Hey? You know Gilbert and Sullivan?" and most peoples first responce will be "Oh, the Bear/Liquor/Wine Cooler guys". Gilbert and Sullivan are relatively obscure.
And Rodgers & Hammerstein are more popular and more well known than even Andrew Lloyd Webber. So whats your point? It doesn't fall within the spectrum of any of this. Thats a bit off tangent.
Really, I think you're reaching, or aren't understanding what was going on here.
R&H or G&S don't have anything to do with a debate on whether or not ALW is an overrated hack who found a formula and stuck with it or a musical genius!quote:
Jackman got all f'ed up on Angel Dust and wrote:
I am and where does it say in your original statement that it had to be contempory musicals? I bet anyone who loves Broadway musicals has heard and likely seen all of those they remain popular and in production (somewhere) today.
It has nothing to do with contempoary or not.. Gilbert and Sullivan have ALWAYS been obscure, and not among the most reknowned. Do you realize how overshadowed they were? Even for thier day?
Also you'll note, thier productions were originally closed and very small circuit. It was latter adaptions that got any recognition whatsoever. (As in, someone else adapting their work and presenting it, thus making it not 'really' Gilbert and Sullivan anymore.)
Seemed to me that was a challenge to try to prove her wrong, so I tried to disprove it with G&S and R&H. Those two examples were the ones that came to mind of persons who followed up their great work with one of similar caliber and acceptance.
I wont argue wither ALW is good or bad or if my examples are better, because I am not an expert. I just know that they managed to produce some wildly popular plays which I enjoyed immensely.
Honestly I don't think that they are that obscure either, as you have heard of them and likly also seen their plays.
Some people are like Slinkys... Not really good for anything, But they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
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Faelynn LeAndris had this to say about pies:
If you walk out on the street, or even in most thespian circles, and say "Hey? You know Gilbert and Sullivan?" and most peoples first responce will be "Oh, the Bear/Liquor/Wine Cooler guys". Gilbert and Sullivan are relatively obscure..
I respect your opinion but I think you exaggerate a bit. If you really did ask some thespians about G&S I bet they could name at least two of their plays.
Anyway thats my .02 I am not a theater major, just what I was thinking thats all
Some people are like Slinkys... Not really good for anything, But they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
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Jackman enlisted the help of an infinite number of monkeys to write:
I respect your opinion but I think you exaggerate a bit. If you really did ask some thespians about G&S I bet they could name at least two of their plays.
But you see.. Thats just it. Even if you DID fing a group of Thespians or musical loves who actually DID (Not many, unless you are in a course of study and will be forced to go over it) know who Gilbert and Sullivan were, it doesn't help your argument any because as I said, thier ORIGINAL productions weren't even productions. They were small and closed, other people took thier works and adapted it.
This would be equatable to saying ALW adapted Phantom from the Novel (Or the earlier stage productions.) And as for the post before this one. No it did not meet the challenge, because they did not follow up with bigger and better productions, nor were they any less formulaic. In fact, the music for two of those pieces is almost entirely interchangeable.
Some people are like Slinkys... Not really good for anything, But they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
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And I was all like 'Oh yeah?' and Faelynn LeAndris was all like:
And Rodgers & Hammerstein are more popular and more well known than even Andrew Lloyd Webber. So whats your point? It doesn't fall within the spectrum of any of this. Thats a bit off tangent.
And again, if this is on the "Neither has anyone else" comment. They STILL fall within that realm. Yes, they have had many successfull peices, so has ALW, but none to match thier original success. And... They are also very formulaic. It's a curse of the genre.
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The logic train ran off the tracks when Faelynn LeAndris said:
To restate.And again, if this is on the "Neither has anyone else" comment.IT IS They STILL fall within that realm. Yes, they have had many successfull peices, so has ALW, but none to match thier original success. And... They are also very formulaic.
It's a curse of the genre.
Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I and the Sound of Music.
Assuming that their orginal success was Oklahoma are you saying that the King and I and the Sound of Music were not as good or as popular?
Some people are like Slinkys... Not really good for anything, But they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
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Jackman thought this was the Ricky Martin Fan Club Forum and wrote:
She said "Neither has anyone else (Followed up with another great work to match what made them big to begin with, that is.)."Seemed to me that was a challenge to try to prove her wrong, so I tried to disprove it with G&S and R&H.
Fae is hot chix lol
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Jackman stopped beating up furries long enough to write:
Rodgers & Hammerstein Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I and the Sound of Music
You forgot Cinderella Lyinar Ka`Bael fucked around with this message on 06-07-2005 at 07:38 PM.
Lyinar Ka`Bael, Piney Fresh Druidess - Luclin
Next I'll find out that Kait is a 7 ft 300 pound black dude.
Some people are like Slinkys... Not really good for anything, But they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs.
quote:
Jackman painfully thought these words up:
Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I and the Sound of Music.Assuming that their orginal success was Oklahoma are you saying that the King and I and the Sound of Music were not as good or as popular?
The King and I is thier crowning achievement. Oklahoma was just thier first collaberation, it is also the simplest of thier series to be adapted and reproduced. The Sound of Music is the only one of the series that comes close to the acclaim The King and I recieved. Carousel and South Pacific are lesser known, and almost to the obscure, although by no means failures or bad plays.
This is the same with just about any playwrite, or composer. In fact, it is the same for movie directors and the like as well. Hell, just look at Lucas.
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Jackman had this to say about Cuba:
Um, she has a penis like Katrinity? Christ is anyone here not a gender bender?
Next I'll find out that Kait is a 7 ft 300 pound black dude.
Kat is a real lady. Fal and Fae are both dudes. No comment on Kait. That's all I know of.
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This insanity brought to you by Jackman:
Um, she has a penis like Katrinity? Christ is anyone here not a gender bender?Next I'll find out that Kait is a 7 ft 300 pound black dude.
