The Phantom of the Opera

Question: What does the Phantom eat and what does he spend his salary on? Presumably he can't just go to the shops etc with his mask on. If he doesn't leave the opera house where does he learn his skills like driving a carriage, who does he practice sword fighting with? Wouldn't his health suffer if he spends decades living in this damp cold rat infested place wading through lakes all the time? He even complains about it being cold himself at one point. Surely if it snowing outside his lair can't be warm but he's not wearing much.

Answer: First, it is established in the movie that he is dependant on Madame Giry and it is presumed she does his shopping for him. As for learning skills, it is established he is a genius and one can assume he is very well read. Additionally, for single handed skills, like driving a carriage, he can possibly go out at night to learn them. As for his living conditions, the human body adapts well to continuous conditions, it is how the people in Siberia can tolerate lower temperatures better than those who live close to the equator. Lastly, one can easily assume he has other (warmer) clothes that he wears off camera.

OneHappyHusky

There is a character simply known as 'the Persian' He has known the Phantom his whole life and would have taught him horse driving. In the book, the Phantom has a life before the opera house where he would have learned fencing and torture. Also, the phantom knows all the secret passages. When it's cold he leaves his lair and lives someplace warmer.

You're totally right but also, in addition to your mention of The Persian, in the book it is he that is the Phantom's only "friend" or whatever but in the movie there is no Persian exactly but the two Characters Madam Giry and The Persian from The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston L. Are both combined as one, to be know as Madame Giry in the 2004 flim.

debbi.ee

Question: During point of no return, the phantom has no disguise on. If everyone was after him, why didn't anyone stop the performance and capture the phantom?

Answer: During "Point of No Return, " the Phantom shares a stage with the very vulnerable Christine. He is still masked, though it is a mask other than his trademark white face covering. The Phantom is well known as a murderer and an escape artist. This is the the equivalent of a hostage situation. To rush the stage might risk lives, and everyone in the know is proceeding with caution. During the song, we do get glimpses of police moving about, and Raoul and others looking concerned, subtly signaling one another and considering their next move. The stage crew seems confused. The dancers go on with the show. And law enforcement officers await the right moment to advance. It also gives us the opportunity to enjoy a dramatic musical number that rushing the stage would interrupt.

Michael Albert

Question: Who is the old man in the wheelchair who puts the music box with the monkey on Christine's grave at the end?I thought it might be Raoul but the box belonged to the phantom and he hated the phantom.

Answer: It is Raoul. He gets the music box because Christine obviously loved it, shown by the fact that she had obviously described and remembered it in such great detail many years after last seeing it. He buys it for her as a gift of love, even though she has died.

mandy gasson

Answer: It's also a symbol that Raoul recognized Christine still loved the phantom. Possibly more than him. The love triangle is complete as neither man truly had her. Raoul spent his life with her but she loved the phantom. The phantom missed out on spending life with her but got her love.

Answer: It's Raoul. When the auctioneer sells him the music box, he addresses him by his title, The Vicomte de Chagny.

Question: In the final scene, when we see the rose and ring that the Phantom have left on Christine's grave, we also see that she died two years before the scene takes place. Why did the Phantom wait two years to leave the ring on the grave? Was he previously unaware of Christine's death?

Answer: I like to think that he would always place a rose there, possibly every week or so, and they never had the ring on them. And he knew When Raoul would be there, so he placed them when he knew he would be alone with her. As for the two years later, since the phantom "knew" when Raoul came... he especially put that ring there. Just to let Raoul know about his love for Christine and the fact he is still living. He knew Raoul would visit then, and knew what to do. (This is only a theory I have proposed. As for a genuine answer... I am not aware of one.) Hope this maybe helped.

Answer: It may have been Christine's birthday, or anniversary of sort.

Question: When I was growing up in the 90's I saw a movie at some point that was pretty much a spin off of Phantom. A man taught a young girl how to sing at his house and I believe he forced her to live with him.anyone know which film I may be talking about?

Answer: Rigoletto (1993). You can find information here: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0107961/.

Jennifer30

Answer: I think you might be talking about Svengali (1920s I think).

debbi.ee

Question: Is Il Muto an actual opera? I rather enjoyed it and thought I would try to see it.

Answer: No. Andrew Lloyd Webber created it for his show's purposes.

Sereenie

Question: During "Masquerade/Why so Silent" Raoul looks around and leaves, where does he go?

Answer: He goes off to get a sword. When he comes back, he has the weapon and was intending to fight the phantom.

SexyIrishLeprechaun

Question: Why does the Phantom leave Christine's ring on her grave? It is the only personal possession of hers that he has and therefor very important to him.

Answer: That is open to each viewer's interpretation. I like to think it's his way of acknowledging Raoul, to let him know he too is still alive and has kept on loving her during all those years. They both end up leaving something of significance in each other's relationship with Christine.

Sereenie

Chosen answer: This is a very short, but very complex question about which dissertations are written. Here is my best attempt at a brief summary. Christine lives as a sheltered child-like woman in a highly patriarchal Victorian society. She is torn between two loves. There is Raoul, who represents safety, light, and a sort of romantic, adolescent view of what true love should mean. Then there is Erik, the Phantom, with whom Christine has had a long time bond. He has been to her like a guardian angel. He gave her music. He comforted her when her father died. And yet, as his role turns from that of protector and teacher to one of lustful suitor, he comes to represent darkness, passion, lust, obsession, and danger. He is unstable, driven to madness by a world of light he can never know. He is also, let's not forget, homicidal. Christine ultimately makes the only choice society makes available to her - the safe and sane choice. From the ending of the film, we learn that Christine remained wife to Raoul, but it is unclear how happily her life turned out. She probably always shared a connection to Erik, who possessed for her a depth of love she could never know from any other man. Andrew Lloyd Weber wrote a sequel to "The Phantom of the Opera" called "Love Never Dies." In it, we learn that the Phantom did, indeed, remain in Christine's life. I won't provide spoilers here, but more information about "Love Never Dies" can be found at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_Never_Dies_ (musical).

Michael Albert

The Phantom was controlling and abusive. Christine's love for him was based on pity and deception. The Phantom had planned to kill her right after marriage and blow up the entire opera house. When she offered him compassion and devotion, it was her bargaining for Raoul. Yes, Christine had a strong, complicated relationship with Erik, but they were not I love. When Erik realises this, he unites Raoul and begs forgiveness for his misdeeds.

The Phantom murdered, yes, but don't forget where he spent most of his life-it is said that he kills in/for love. And let's not even mention Love Never Dies, it's a whole mess.

debbi.ee

Answer: I believe some things stated are true, like Raou being thesafe choice the Phantom being the dark forbidden suitor. While the things I don't agree are the statements of the Phantom grooming her and kidnapping her. She always was willing to go. While yes he decieved her by saying he was her angel of music, he partly was. He gave her the chance to sing by coaching her. Did he do it from day one because he wanted to marry her? Who knows. I think she truly loved the Phantom but chosen Raoul out of safety. She would have had to live life on the run with the Phantom. The Phantom also told her to go.

Answer: First of all, Eric pretended to be a guardian angel sent from her dead father to teach her to sing. He continued this gaslighting throughout the movie / play, outright stating several times that he was her Angel of Music. Raul on the other hand, was her dear childhood friend, who represented memories with her father. Eric brought her down into his home under the pretense of having her sing for his music, then suddenly turned his tone into a romantic one and showed her and lifelike mannequin he made of her - that's incredibly creepy. At every point where things don't go his way, Eric throws a tantrum and ruins things for everyone in the Opera House. By the end of the show, Christine is terrified of him and is begging Raul to protect and hide her from Eric. We are led to believe that this is a love triangle, but this is an incel man forcing love on to an unsuspecting woman, and when she chooses another man he acts out in his typical fashion, putting them both in danger. It would be hard to love someone like that for anyone.

Question: The last few seconds in the movie - the rose with the ring lying beside Christine's grave - turns back to colour. I can't figure out the message behind. Can anyone help?

Airhead ESSE

Chosen answer: The rose tied with the black ribbon and the ring were left by the Phantom. The rose symbolizes the love the Phantom and Christine had for each other, and its turning to red shows that this love still exists beyond death.

raywest

Answer: It is revealed in the sequel, Love Never Dies, that when the Phantom disappears he makes his way to Coney Island with Meg and Madame Giry. However, he does stay in Paris for a short amount of time (but it isn't known where) because on the night before Christine's wedding, she finds the Phantom and they make love, but then he flees because he felt ashamed of what he did. This is explained in "Beneath a Moonless Sky."

I was trying to figure this out but how does the song 'Beneath a Moonless Sky' hint where and when the two of them met? How did Christine find him if he left through a secret exit (mirror) after Christine returns the ring?

debbi.ee

Answer: In my opinion, it is a comparison of who he is truly striving to be, in comparison to his physical appearance. Christine had an angel of music, who was her tutor. The phantom believed that the angel was him. Also, it could be that he sings so well (like the voice of an angel), but has a "hideous" physical appearance (like one might think of when they think of a Demon).

Question: How is the woman at the beginning of the movie Meg Giry, as is stated in several answers here? They call her Madame Giry, if it were Meg they would call her Mademoiselle Giry, unless she was married, in which case she would be Madame with whatever surname she received upon marriage. So wouldn't it need to be Meg's mother, Madame Giry?

Sarahjonesyy

Chosen answer: The honorific "Mademoiselle" is not an indication only of marital status, but it has a connotation of youth (and, ostensibly, virginity). Beyond a certain age, it would be considered inappropriate and possibly insulting or mocking to continue to use the term "Mademoiselle." "Madame" is generally adopted by women of a certain age, regardless of their marital status. It is not unlike "Señora" and "señorita" in Spanish. An interesting note - there is a currently a movement in France to remove "Mademoiselle" from French common usage, as it is considered by some sexist to classify women by age and/or marital status, when men in France are uniformly referred to only as "Monsieur."

Michael Albert

Answer: According to the original show, the Madame Giry at the beginning is the same Madame Giry who is Meg's mother. It is explained that her years as a dancer kept her in good health, so she aged better than Raoul did, who was in extremely poor health since Christine's death.

Answer: So that the Phantom didn't find out.

Question: I re-watched this movie recently. It seems everyone in the opera knows about the existence of the Phantom, which includes Christine. My question is does it ever occur to her that her angel of music = the Phantom (before he reveals this to her)? I know she doesn't from the movie obviously. But really imagine if you were her, it's hard not to relate your angel of music to the Phantom, both are hidden and happen only in the opera (coaching/singing etc) the years living there. And why are people afraid of the Phantom? Does he commit anything evil or murder before the movie (before Christine takes Carlotta's place)?

Answer: The "Opera Ghost" had actually been causing various acts of mischief and mayhem long before the events of the movie begin with the new owners purchasing the opera. The previous owners were being extorted for money. Fears and rumors about the Phantom were rampant. Early in the film, he causes a backdrop to fall near Carlotta, for whom he has had a lasting disdain. Christine probably should have made the connection between the Phantom and her "angel of music." But the "angel" had actually been introduced to her as a tutor and mentor by her father, whom she loved and trusted, so she had no reason to view him suspiciously. Christine was also very sheltered, incredibly naive, and captivated by her teacher and suitor. Their bond was so strong, and her dependence so great, she was blinded to what seems to us an obvious connection.

Michael Albert

Question: In the extras DVD of the deluxe boxset, there are a few videos of Michael Crawford and Sarah Brightman performing the opera (and from what I can tell the video looks from around the time or the original stage show). But it looks to be very much done for the camera (rather than just a recording of the show being performed live). Was the whole opera done in this way, using the original cast? And was it released? I can't find any reference to it at all on IMDB. If it has been released, where can I find it?

Gary O'Reilly

Chosen answer: In 1986-1987, before the show actually premiered, a few songs featuring Sarah Brightman were released to promote it, including the signature theme, featuring both her and Steve Harley (and not, as is often assumed, Michael Crawford). Although the song is from the stage musical, the lyrics used were not the definitive ones and the accompanying video was specially recorded for promotion purposes and was not from the actual show.

Sereenie

Question: Why are the audience members at Don Juan shocked at the "provocative" nature of the performance? I get people were more conservative during those times, but didn't the audience members choose to go to that play? Were people just excited to see a new play and did not expect to the performance to be provocative?

lala831

Answer: I do not think that the audience was shocked by the 'provocative' performance but the music being played. (I think that because of the conductor's reaction and whatever) But I do have an answer for as to why the audience reacted in a certain way.I suppose they are used to the kind of music that the Opera performed. I think that The Phantom purposely wrote the music in with that specific vibe and whatnot and it might be because he wanted Christine (and perhaps himself as well) to be the only performers with beautiful lyrics and music.

debbi.ee

Question: This question might sound odd, but how has La Carlotta become so successful if a lot of people don't like her voice very much (as seen when she sings "Think of Me" before Christine tries)?

Answer: The fact that the "in the know" people don't like her doesn't mean that she doesn't have a huge public and make a killing at the box office. On top of that, she was their "Diva." She may not have necessarily had many fans (in some versions they comment that there were no refunds, with Christine singing). Therefore, it can be assumed that given that she was the Diva if she didn't get her way, things would be bad on their end. Likely why her husband (who also did not sing well, due to his deep accent) was another main role in all the operas. They may have also thought there was nobody else who could handle the main roles. It takes a strong person to take on so many lines. And you need to project your voice, which heaven knows she had a loud one.

Sereenie

Question: Toward the end of the movie, why does Christine kiss the Phantom if she has decided to be with Raoul? Does this mean she had changed her mind to be with the Phantom after all?

Answer: It can be seen in so many different ways. Christine kissed Erik (the phantom) with passion and she even touched the deformed side of his face with tenderness! She truly wanted to kiss him at that moment. In the movie it didn't seem forced. She was probably heartbroken seeing not only Raul being threatened in that way, but Erik being tortured by his own hate and despair. She came towards him wanting not just to release Raul but to release him from his darkness and his feeling of hate and despair for the world and himself, showing that he can be loved, that she does love him and that he can love too, in her heart he is still her angel, she cannot help but do as her heart told her. And in her heart she felt the need to show him that he was not alone and to kiss him. She didn't kiss him because she wanted to stay with him but definitely not just to save Raul, what there was between the phantom and Christine will always be special, that connection... And when the phantom finally realizes that he has been loved in that way, even with his haunted face, her kiss made him more human, he truly realizes how much he loves Christine and so, because he loves her too much he lets her go, not wanting to force her anymore, also knowing that a life with him and his marked sad fate will be torture for her, and he cannot bear to see her unhappy even if that means that he will be unhappy and incomplete forever! Her kindness and love disarmed him and shed warmth to his heart, which was why he let them go and in the end was crying.

Question: If the Phantom is so in love with Christine why does he just let her go? We know that he is prepared to kill (and has) for her so it can't be that his moral compass prevents him from forcing her to love him. Seems to be slightly counter productive considering the fact that Christine actually consents to being with him.

Answer: It is often said that the biggest gift you can give someone that you love is their freedom. That is why the Phantom lets her go.

shortdanzr

The Phantom of the Opera mistake picture

Deliberate mistake: As Christine approaches the Phantom in his lair (just after he has abducted her), we see that she is wearing very dark black eye-shadow. Back in the dressing room after coming off stage, as she talks to Raoul, we saw her face in close up and she was not wearing any eye-shadow at all, even though the Phantom leads her through the mirror just after she has managed to slip on a robe over her undergarments and she has not yet changed to go out to supper (Raoul says she is to be ready in 2 minutes). Her hair becomes 'bigger' and wilder, too. The change in her appearance is a reference to her descending (voluntarily, I might add - he didn't drag her through that mirror) into the Phantom's dark existence and to her sexual awakening. (00:28:45 - 00:37:10)

More mistakes in The Phantom of the Opera

The Phantom: Softly, deftly, music shall carress you. Hear it, feel it, Secretly possess you.

More quotes from The Phantom of the Opera

Trivia: The candles that light instantly as they emerge from the water in the Phantom's Lair were not computer effects - special air-sensitive candles were used. Luckily, the scene was captured well in the first take, as when they tried to re-shoot the scene the candles wouldn't work again.

More trivia for The Phantom of the Opera

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