Continuity mistake: At the very beginning of the movie when Andre and Firmin first arrive in their coach in front of the opera house, you can see one footman (wearing red) running to meet them from some distance to escort them inside. The camera angle changes and now, that fotman turned into two, standing and even waiting at the coach. (00:05:55)
Continuity mistake: When Messieurs Lefèvre, André and Firmin interrupt the rehearsal, just as the conductor is saying, "Monsieur Lefèvre, I am rehearsing," André and Firmin get a lot closer to Lefèvre between shots. (00:08:45)
Continuity mistake: When the new owners of the opera are being introduced, one dancing girl says to another while looking at the new owners, "They must be rich." You can see Christine and Meg in the background. However, when they introduce Raoul, you see Christine and Meg climbing the stair to get to the stage and the "They must be rich" girls coming up behind them. (00:09:40)
Continuity mistake: As Carlotta is finishing the Hannibal song, she looks with contempt at André and Firmin and puts her hands on her hips, but in the next shot, her hands are by her sides. (00:11:45)
Continuity mistake: As Carlotta is saying "I hope he is as excited by the dancing girls as your new managers", she holds her hand up with one finger in the air, but in the next shot, her hand is near her waist with no fingers protruding. (00:12:15)
Continuity mistake: During the scene where Meg is looking for Christine backstage, we see her pass Firmin and Andre. Behind her Raoul approaches the managers and they turn to greet him. In the next shot they are turned round flirting with the chorus girls, Raoul is nowhere to be seen, and Meg passes behind them again. (00:22:00)
Continuity mistake: After "Think of Me", Meg is pushing through the crowd backstage, searching for Christine and she finally makes her way out of the crowd. Their actions repeat in a shot from a different angle. The next shot is a close up of Andre sharing a cigar with a woman and in the background, you can see Meg pushing through the crowd again, even though she already passed Andre. (00:22:00)
Revealing mistake: In a scene soon after "Think of Me," it shows a large crowd of actors, crew, etc. celebrating backstage. In one far-away shot, you can pick out Andre and Firmin in the center flirting with two of the women. Andre sticks his cigar in a woman's mouth, and she blows a puff of smoke. A few shots later, it shows the same thing, but much closer up and from the side. (00:22:05)
Continuity mistake: After Think of Me, when Christine is in the chapel, it shows her light a match on a candle, then use the lit match to light the candle next to it. In the following shot, the camera shows all of the candles on that stand-only one is lit. (00:22:25)
Audio problem: Right after Firmin says "It would appear they've met before." Andre replies "Yes." However, his mouth and the words don't match up. (00:26:25)
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)
Other mistake: When the phantom sings behind Christine's mirror in her dressing room, she starts to walk towards it, entranced. It's obvious he is behind the mirror, and it's a one-way mirror. But, when she touches his hand, wouldn't the mirror have to be opened up? They act like she can just walk into the mirror. (00:30:55)
Continuity mistake: As the Phantom and Christine approach the Phantom's lair for the first time in the boat, we see 2 sets of candle holders each with 3 layers of candles rise out of the water. When the approach scene finishes, there are 2 layers of candles lit on the left hand set of holders. However, on the long shot the 2nd row of candles are not lit, and light up shortly after. (00:33:55)
Continuity mistake: When the Phantom approaches Christine while singing "Only then can you belong to me" he places his hands on her face slowly moving them down her neck. When it cuts his hands are suddenly moving over her shoulders. His hands couldn't have moved that fast. (00:37:20)
Visible crew/equipment: During The Music of the Night, you can see a camera shadow pass over the Phantom's and Christine's face. It's around the part where he says, 'Let your fantasies unwind'. (00:38:00)
Continuity mistake: When the Phantom in "Music of the Night" goes to show Christine the wax figure of herself there is a tall lit candle behind him. When she faints he moves in front of it to catch her and when he then moves away the candle is out - the only way the flame could have been put out was if Christine's hair had smothered it (which would of course have set her hair alight). (00:39:40)
Continuity mistake: After Christine removes the Phantom's mask for the first time, he looks at himself in a mirror: his 'bad side' (the right one) shows no sign of deformity. (00:45:30)
Revealing mistake: The second time we see the Christine mannequin, we can see it sway from right to left. The swaying can't be due to a draft, since any sort of wind would have made the candles flicker. The moving is due to the fact that Emmy Rossum is the mannequin. They couldn't get a wax figure to so closely resemble her, so Emmy sat very very still (although not still enough!) and played the mannequin herself. (00:46:15)
Continuity mistake: After the the auction, the old Madame Giry bows her head at Raoul. In the following shot, we can see her reflection in Raoul's window, bowing her head once more. Furthermore, Raoul's car leaves before her head is back in the up position. (00:47:50)
Visible crew/equipment: As Raoul's car is leaving the Opera House, a crewmember is reflected in its windshield. (00:48:05)
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