What Annoys Me About The Phantom of Manhattan by Frederick Forsyth
All of the Leroux-bashing:
In the Preface, Forsyth repeatedly points out errors in Leroux’s novel, most of which are trivial and pointless (OMG! He said the chandelier was heavier than it really was! Shun Leroux!). And he keeps pointing out how Andrew Lloyd Webber “fixed” the errors, which brings me to…
Treating Andrew Lloyd Webber’s version like its perfect and the only “right” one:
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s stage show isn’t perfect. That being said, some parts of it were better in his version than in Leroux’s, but that doesn’t mean we should repeatedly say how wonderful it is. “Fredrick Forsyth not only captures the spirit and style of Gaston Leroux’s original novel but also the romance and trills that make the Phantom such an alluring character”~Andrew Lloyd Webber. Well, I wonder why he said that, maybe because Forsyth is saying how amazing his musical is?
He gave Erik a last name:
I’m not sure why this annoys me so much…I guess it just takes some of the mystery out of the character of Erik. Forsyth seems to do whatever he pleases with the characters, as if they were his own. Even Susan Kay had the decency not to give Erik a last name*.
The thing about Eriks father:
“My father never saw me”~The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux. In Kay’s Phantom, Erik’s father dies before he is born. Forsyth, of course, didn’t care about that, and wrote Erik’s father as an abusive drunk.
Christine has Erik’s baby:
Leroux did not insinuate in way that they had sex. This is also the one thing I hate about Susan Kay’s Phantom.
Erik dresses up as a clown:
Do I even need to explain this? This is just wrong.
Erik’s age:
Forgive me if my math is wrong or if I misinterpreted something, but from what I read, Forsyth is saying that Erik was somewhere around 27 during the events of The Phantom of the Opera. He’s 50 in Kay’s Phantom, and somewhere around that in Leroux’s. Even Joel Schumacher .made him thirty-something (Gerard Butler was 35-ish while filming)
Pierre going with Erik even though he didn't even know him:
Okay, so his mom gets killed and he finds out that Raoul isn't really his dad, Erik is. So of course, Pierre does the only logical thing: goes with the random psycho he doesn't even know. And then poor Raoul is left all alone!
*I apologize if I keep relating things to Kay’s Phantom, but it is one of the best spin-off’s on anything that I’ve ever read.
So in short...the book sucked
All of the Leroux-bashing:
In the Preface, Forsyth repeatedly points out errors in Leroux’s novel, most of which are trivial and pointless (OMG! He said the chandelier was heavier than it really was! Shun Leroux!). And he keeps pointing out how Andrew Lloyd Webber “fixed” the errors, which brings me to…
Treating Andrew Lloyd Webber’s version like its perfect and the only “right” one:
Andrew Lloyd Webber’s stage show isn’t perfect. That being said, some parts of it were better in his version than in Leroux’s, but that doesn’t mean we should repeatedly say how wonderful it is. “Fredrick Forsyth not only captures the spirit and style of Gaston Leroux’s original novel but also the romance and trills that make the Phantom such an alluring character”~Andrew Lloyd Webber. Well, I wonder why he said that, maybe because Forsyth is saying how amazing his musical is?
He gave Erik a last name:
I’m not sure why this annoys me so much…I guess it just takes some of the mystery out of the character of Erik. Forsyth seems to do whatever he pleases with the characters, as if they were his own. Even Susan Kay had the decency not to give Erik a last name*.
The thing about Eriks father:
“My father never saw me”~The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux. In Kay’s Phantom, Erik’s father dies before he is born. Forsyth, of course, didn’t care about that, and wrote Erik’s father as an abusive drunk.
Christine has Erik’s baby:
Leroux did not insinuate in way that they had sex. This is also the one thing I hate about Susan Kay’s Phantom.
Erik dresses up as a clown:
Do I even need to explain this? This is just wrong.
Erik’s age:
Forgive me if my math is wrong or if I misinterpreted something, but from what I read, Forsyth is saying that Erik was somewhere around 27 during the events of The Phantom of the Opera. He’s 50 in Kay’s Phantom, and somewhere around that in Leroux’s. Even Joel Schumacher .made him thirty-something (Gerard Butler was 35-ish while filming)
Pierre going with Erik even though he didn't even know him:
Okay, so his mom gets killed and he finds out that Raoul isn't really his dad, Erik is. So of course, Pierre does the only logical thing: goes with the random psycho he doesn't even know. And then poor Raoul is left all alone!
*I apologize if I keep relating things to Kay’s Phantom, but it is one of the best spin-off’s on anything that I’ve ever read.
So in short...the book sucked
I have seen T.P.O.T.O many times, and most of them have been the 25th anniversary performance. This performance is by-far my favorite. Ramin Kariloo is the BEST Phantom I have ever seen. Sierra Boggess is also the best Christine. Hadley Fraser is one of the best Raoul's I have seen. Even Meg and Madame Giry were fantastic. Carlotta was probably my least favorite actress. I enjoyed this performance so much better because the actors seemed like they were literally their characters. I hope you enjoyed this and you can watch the entire performance on youtube. Thanks!
Remind you of anyone?
