There was a possibility that Michael Jackson would appear in “The The Phantom of the Opera”⁉︎Legend of the musical world who was completely particular about making it into a movie

At first, the master was not moved by the ``stupid'' story...

Of course, there is also the luxurious production that is unique to movies, and the chandelier, which has a presence that can be called the ``main character'' of this work, has been changed in the stage version and the movie version, where it plays an important role.

It took four months to create the chandelier for the shoot by Thiesslin, a famous Parisian chandelier maker. It took four days just to assemble it in the studio. The chandelier, made with Swarovski crystals, is said to have weighed 2.3 tons and cost more than 100 million Japanese yen. As you can see, the gorgeousness of the art and costumes cannot be compared to the stage version.

By the way, director Joel Schumacher, who also handles the costume design, was also in charge of Christine's dress in this film. Lloyd Webber was satisfied, saying, ``I became like the girl in `` The Lost Boys .''

``The Phantom of the Opera'' shines brightly in the history of musicals, having set a record for the longest run on Broadway, and has satisfied fans around the world who have seen the stage version with its faithfulness to the original, and the attention to detail. By adding a movie-like twist, it attracts people who haven't seen the stage version. It was one of the most successful musical film adaptations.

"The Phantom of the Opera" special video

``The Phantom of the Opera'' is based on a novel by Gaston Leroux and has been made into a horror film many times. I can't help but admire Andrew Lloyd Webber's ability to create such a romantic musical, but I would like to end by writing down the reason why he started working on this work.

"There was already a musical version of ' The Phantom of the Opera,' and my then-wife Sarah [Brightman] was approached to star in it, so I read the script and it was a silly story full of British jokes. .Sarah declined the offer, and I saw the play in London, but I still thought it was just an idiotic world with phantoms and masks.This was created by the director of `` The Rocky Horror Picture Show .'' The Day After a year later, I happened to pick up Gaston Leroux's original work at a bookstore in New York, and when I read it, I realized how deeply love is involved in the story. I was confused. When I found out that the Phantom's body had been burned and Christine's ring was on his finger, I wanted to expand on this love story. That night, I had dinner with Harold Prince. He said, ``If you write the song, I'll direct it,'' and I was interested.''

Text: Hiroaki Saito

Became freelance in 1997, contributing movie reviews and interview articles to various media such as movie magazines, theater pamphlets, and movie sites. The column is constantly updated on Yahoo! News.

Watch now

View work information

"The Phantom of the Opera"

Blu-ray: 1,886 yen + tax / DVD: 1,429 yen + tax

Publisher: NBCUniversal Entertainment

(C) The Scion Films Phantom Production Partnership

*This is information for August 2020.

(c) Photofest / Getty Images