The Story:
The classic novel that has become somewhat of a myth gets a slightly different treatment this time around. Aspiring singer Christine (Jill Schoelin) is a city girl heading for an audition. But she needs a piece that will knock 'em dead. Luckily, her friend Meg (none other than Molly Shannon in a very un-SNL role) finds the original score written by a psychotic composer named Erik Destler years before—a man who supposedly sold his soul to the devil to have his music heard, and in return was horribly disfigured by Lucifer. So Christine goes on the audition, and while doing her little opera bit, is the victim of an accident that catapults her back in time a century. She wakes up as a young woman named, well, Christine, who is understudy at the London opera house for a bitchy diva. But Christine hears voices…and music. Erik Destler (Robert Englund) hides in the shadows, whispering vocal instructions to her and making her sing his songs. He's infatuated with Christine, and must get her onstage. What better way to do that then to skin a man and hang his naked body in a closet so the bitchy diva will shriek herself voiceless when she discovers it, allowing the understudy to go on?

This adaptation of Phantom feels very much like a Jack the Ripper—uh—rip off. The Phantom is not confined to the theater. He goes out on the street every night after sewing the skin of dead men onto his face (some of the painstakingly gory effects you get to see over and over) and does a whole load of killing—and sleeping with a prostitute he makes call herself "Christine." And although this movie is a period piece with extravagant costumes, sets, and long moments of opera performance, it's really just a typical slasher in a classic's mask. The Phantom is angry and takes his anger out on those who cross his path. He also has supernatural powers it seems. His strength is unmatchable, and he appears capable of teleporting.

Jill Schoelin is completely miscast. She's too squeaky-voiced and not mature-looking enough to be believable as an opera singer. Nor is she all that good at lip-synching to foreign language arias. She looks like your typical slasher movie victim in a gaudy 18th century dress (after all, her other roles include The Stepfather, Popcorn, and When A Stranger Calls Back). And another unfortunate is Robert Englund's makeup. While the role gives him an opportunity to work his classically trained muscle, it seems the producers decided he should look and sound pretty much like Freddy Kreuger. His makeup and croaking speech make him practically a dead ringer for his famous persona. So much so that it's distracting. And then there is the finale, which teleports us back to the present for a small tie-up for the modern day Christine that is just plain weak—and leaves viewers assuming she's a reincarnation of her old self. In fact, the first few minutes of the movie and the last few are so disconnected from the core of the film that they could easily have been tagged onto the film after completion in an effort to better reach young viewers who aren't usually all that into period pieces. And finally, the movie isn't scary, just gory. No jumps or shocks whatsoever. All this film managed to do was give the classic story a contemporary facelift.

The DVD

Video:
The disc includes both full frame and widescreen versions of the film. The 1:85:1 anamorphic transfer has excellent dark/light contrast. The saturation is fairly even, and the skin tones quite natural. At times, there is some heavy edge enhancement, which leads to some softening of the fairly sharp image. There are only hints of specs and dust on the print.

Sound:
The Dolby 2.0 surround sound has Pro Logic decoding and makes excellent use of the rear track for ambience and atmosphere. The bass is also quite responsive, and the left/right separation is consistent throughout, too.

Extras:
Not much here. Subtitles are offered for English, Spanish and French. The original theatrical trailer is included. There are 16 chapter breaks. And, unfortunately, the disc is a double sided disc, with the widescreen on one side, the full screen on the other.

Final Thoughts:
Phantom of the Opera is a scare-free, gore-filled adaptation of the classic novel that modernizes the horror aspects of the story while keeping it in its original time frame. Robert Englund has little chance to escape Freddy Kreuger's shadow, because the makeup has him looking like Freddy Kreuger in Phantom's clothing. And modest scream queen Jill Schoelin as the damsel in distress is not in her element in a period piece. Watch this one only if you're a horror fanatic who is required to see it for trivial pursuits.