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The Phantom of the Opera
Mar. 26th, 2012 12:09 pmI watched The Phantom of the Opera last night - the black-and-white, silent, Lon Chaney version.
What I like about this version is that the phantom is totally hideous, rather than a handsome man with minor facial scarring and bizarrely enormous self-esteem issues, as he is in the 2004 version. Also, unlike the 2004 version, it never suggests that Christine finds being kidnapped a total turn-on.
What I don't like about the Lon Chaney is that, well, it's still The Phantom of the Opera. The story doesn't work unless you feel sorry for the phantom, and I refuse. He's a deranged, murderous stalker. He makes Edward from Twilight look like a cuddly kitten. Being way ugly is not an acceptable excuse for kidnapping and homicide!
He drops a chandelier on the innocent people in the audience in a fit of pique.
He ruins Carlotta's life because she's in his way. (I feel extra bad for Carlotta because I'm clearly not supposed to give a hoot about her. The 2004 version is significantly more horrible in this regard than the Lon Chaney version. The 2004 version has beautiful music, but it is otherwise filled with fail.)
He means to kidnap Christine and force her to live with him forever, and he has the gall to feel betrayed when it turns out that she was totally lying when she told him she was totally down with being locked up in his cellar for all eternity.
Of course she was lying to you, you monomaniacal serial killer! She's seen that episode of SVU!
Normally I'm against mob justice, but when they went after Lon Chaney with torches and pitchforks, I almost cheered.
What I like about this version is that the phantom is totally hideous, rather than a handsome man with minor facial scarring and bizarrely enormous self-esteem issues, as he is in the 2004 version. Also, unlike the 2004 version, it never suggests that Christine finds being kidnapped a total turn-on.
What I don't like about the Lon Chaney is that, well, it's still The Phantom of the Opera. The story doesn't work unless you feel sorry for the phantom, and I refuse. He's a deranged, murderous stalker. He makes Edward from Twilight look like a cuddly kitten. Being way ugly is not an acceptable excuse for kidnapping and homicide!
He drops a chandelier on the innocent people in the audience in a fit of pique.
He ruins Carlotta's life because she's in his way. (I feel extra bad for Carlotta because I'm clearly not supposed to give a hoot about her. The 2004 version is significantly more horrible in this regard than the Lon Chaney version. The 2004 version has beautiful music, but it is otherwise filled with fail.)
He means to kidnap Christine and force her to live with him forever, and he has the gall to feel betrayed when it turns out that she was totally lying when she told him she was totally down with being locked up in his cellar for all eternity.
Of course she was lying to you, you monomaniacal serial killer! She's seen that episode of SVU!
Normally I'm against mob justice, but when they went after Lon Chaney with torches and pitchforks, I almost cheered.
