Few people are unaware of the Phantom in one form or another. I've had various exposure over the years including watching the stage show, playing games based on the story and now reading the book. During Covid, the stage show was available online, and I watched it with my kids. They came to the conclusion that basically everyone was terrible, but I always had a soft spot for the Phantom.
New managers have taken over the Paris Opera House, and with it they inherited the O.G (Opera Ghost). I loved that they call him that, and I want to use it in the future. The new managers are skeptical, but events eventually bring them around. Raoul watches his childhood friend, Christine, sing and falls in love with her. The problem is the Phantom loves her as well. It creates a love triangle that is incredibly dangerous, especially when Christine decides she only loves the Ghost when she believes he's an Angel of Music.
I went into this with two versions in my head. First was the stage show. It focuses on the music, which is legendary for a reason. The other is more recent. It's the silent film starring Lon Chaney. All the strange things I noticed in that film were actually accurate to the story. I was surprised.
This book was really good. I found Raoul as infuriating as he was in every version I've watched, and Christine is irritating as well. What was different was Erik. The Phantom became even more of a person I sympathized with. From the time he was a child, he was feared and shunned even by his own parents. Even the man who risked his life to save Erik's called him a monster. When Erik thought he found someone who loved him for himself, his dream of living like a normal person was crushed. Who can blame him for his rage? And he didn't do that much actually. His "crimes" were mostly in the past, and they were encouraged. I'm Team Erik more than ever. Good Book!
No comments:
Post a Comment