Andrew Lloyd Webber's Love Never Dies [DVD]

I didnt understand the play when i was younger. Once i watched the movie and did my research from the first movie i was thrilled there was a sequal. Some of the songs seem to last forever. But over all i enjoyed this movie. I listen to it going to work. My van has a dvd player. The price is affordable. I recommend you watch the first movie. It is worth the money as well.

First a couple of notes to those who have never seen this production on DVD. The characters do not all have moles on their foreheads, but microphones. If seen live, I don't think the microphones could have been seen at all. I just ignore them just like I ignore the concert style mics used in the Royal Albert Hall, 25th Anniversary production. Also, there are many discrepancies in time line and in character and even in plot from the live production and the movie. I am as willing to suspend disbelief for this production just as I did for the book, the old movies and Andrew Lloyd Webber's fantastic play.It is not quite as good as the original Phantom. The music is as beautiful, but the lyrics are not as good as the the original Lloyd Webber Phantom. Every once in a while, the lyrics jar a bit.***Spoiler below***However, I have read the lyrics to the original Love Never Dies, and this is a great improvement and not just in lyrics. From what I can tell from reading those lyrics, the original play had a catastrophically bad ending. Thank goodness the folks in Australia did quite a bit of "cleaning up." I am not happy with the current ending, but at least I can use my imagination and change it.Mr. Lewis who plays the Phantom is a bit melodramatic in his acting, more like the acting in an opera which, like everything else, is subordinate to the voice of the singer.All of the above being said, this is a wonderful musical and a wonderful production. I wish I could have seen it in Australia to get a much better vision of the working of the sets which I found very impressive. The singing was magnificent and the music was as good as any by LLoyd Webber (and certainly better than JC Superstar). Mr. Lewis has a wonderful baritone which I have always preferred to tenor anyway. Ms O'Bryne has a beautiful voice also. Her makeup is a bit heavy, but probably not for a theater and she is as beautiful as the Phantom thinks she is. Maria Mercedes has a wonderful (if short) solo which shows she can belt them out as well as any Broadway legend.I was not happy with it when I first saw it, but since then it has become an addiction and I watch it almost every day - and it gets better each time I watch it. Ben Lewis is very good looking as the Phantom (with his mask on) and not as bad as the orignal Phantom, but worse than Gerard Butler in the movie, with it off. You have to be able to stop the DVD at just the right spot to see him.Whatever it's flaws this Andrew Lloyd Webber step child is a beautiful work with soaring music and singing. It also has a very sexy duo between the Phantom and Christine that is more explicit than Past the Point of No Return.Anyway, I now love it as much as the original Phantom which I have in three versions: the movie, the Royal Albert Hall 25th anniversary production and the original cast album. But this Phantom is a very calculating and dangerous man, but still more worthy of Christine than the other two. He is less hot headed and a little more sane than the previous Phantoms.

I always say that I am going to start reviewing items on Amazon more often... So here goes!Allow me to preface by saying that I generally cannot tolerate the stage production of musicals, nor theater! Oh and I have given them so many attempts to earn my appreciation. They usually irritate me more than entertain me. I will note that I do enjoy Opera and most of the productions I have seen.My first introduction to the "Phantom of the Opera" was the CD after hearing a version of "Music of the Night" when I was 18 in 1992 and loving it.... I have seen the stage production several times, the traveling group when in Dallas, and usually left disappointed because I always thought that Christine's performance and reactions were a contradiction to the music and lyrics. I never liked Christine. Not even Sarah Brightman when I saw the performance on TV. Also, I did not see the charisma and suaveness that the Phantom possessed in the book. I always listened to my CD and imagined the two, Christine and the Phantom, performances based just on that composition... Isolating the music and lyrics from the visual... Only the 2004 movie did come the closest to what my imagination always produced... but that is another review, altogether. This is for "Love Never Dies"!"Love Never Dies"..... WOW! What can I say about it?Ben Lewis.... I believe he nailed the Phantom! That suave charisma that the Phantom was known for, with the underlying insecurities and madness.... He was excellent!Anne O'Byrne.... Awesome Christine! You can see the internal conflict regarding her love for the Phantom.... And in the book, Christine did love the Phantom. Leroux wrote it as a serial gothic mystery and tragic romance. Although, it sold poorly and not really that great of a book, only one of the most amazing characters!The production value of LND? Well, it entertained me more than it irritated me! I cannot wait to see this one day on the stage. I would love to be in the first few rows during "The Beauty Underneath" and "Beneath a Moonless Sky"... The visual aspects of the filming of this stage production are beautiful!Fleck, Gangle and Squelch? I wanted to see more of them!!!!! They were so entertaining....The storyline? I thought it was good. I have known of the book on which it is somewhat based, "The Phantom in Manhattan", and never really had an interest in reading it. I do believe that Meg is not the antagonist in the novel... BUT, I always thought that Webber always portrayed Madame Giry as obsessive... and a little CRAZY!!! So, I can see the parallel in her passing that obsession onto Meg.I still gave this 5 stars because I think everyone who is a Phantom fan should give this a chance... But really it is 4 ½ stars... Wished Webber would have stuck to the timeline. I mean... he had an active role in the 2004 movie... AND I think he used that as his vehicle to re-characterize the Phantom and Christine, especially their relationship.... So why did he not utilize it? You know he has had LND in mind for a decade, at least!It does give those of us who always wanted Christine to acknowledge her love for the Phantom some closure... haha!

Arrived on time as described. Awful musical sequel to the iconic original, but a really fun watch all the same. So bad its good.

Excelente

本当にこの作品は好き嫌いが分かれるようです。しかし自分としてはロイド・ウェバーの作品が、また見れたということのほうが大きいです。怪人というより普通のおっさんになってしまったファントムだがこれはこれでいい。おっさんだから未練タラタラのほうが合うwwファントムより値打ちを下げてしまったのがギニー親子。何ですかあれは、あきれてものが言えませんね。ま、こんな安っぽいメロドラマですがさすがにロイド・ウェバードラマチックな音楽聞かせてくれます。前作「オペラ座の怪人」よりも、全体的にこじんまりした作りですが流れるような美しい旋律は物語の安っぽさを下げないようちゃんと支えています。メルボルンでの公演を収めたハイビジョンビデオですが色彩も綺麗で、古き良き時代のアメリカのショーを少しオーバーですが再現してます。部屋を暗くして音量は中くらいでのんびり見てください。多くを期待しなければ何度も見れますよ。ビスタサイズのほうがよかったのですが、シネスコ画面です。

Hatte zuerst die CD mit Karimloo/Borgess gehört und die Musik von A.L. Webber ist - wie immer - wunderschön und durchaus passend. Steltle mir vor, ein Film mit Joel Schumacher als Regisseur und den selben Darstellern wie im Phantom-Film wäre mit dieser Musik wieder wunderschön. Auch Conney Island wäre eine schöne Kulisse, man könnte da viel machen.Am Anfang musste ich mich umstellen, von der Perfektion des Films "The Phantom of The Opera" mit den Orignial-Stimmen, die ja unterlegt wurden, zur Bühnenshow, die ja im Original gesungen wurde. Doch jetzt mag ich diese Version sehr. Sie ist mit sehr viel Gefühl gespielt und gesungen, hat spontane Dramatik, ist bunt und schön. Manche Textstellen wurden leicht abgeändert und geküzt, das ist ja aus Zeitgründen nicht anders zu machen. Doch die geänderten Texte sind schön und eingängig und sehr romantisch. Auch habe ich das Gefühl, daß da viel Gefühl im Spiel ist. Die Darsteller kommen sehr viel netter herüber, als in der gesungenen Version. Auch wenn ich R. Karimloo auf der CD sehr genieße! Roul ist vor allem ein Schatz! Ben Lewis gefällt mir als Phantom wirklich sehr gut, er ist groß und gutaussehend. Doch! Ich muß zugeben, habe erst Zugang zu dem Musical aus Melbourne nach ein paar Mal Anschauen gefunden und genieße sie jetzt sehr. Habe - nachdem ich gestern nochmals "The Phantom of The Opera" angesehen hatte - den Eindruck, daß die Bühnenshow mehr spontanes Gefühl rüberbringt, öfter eine Gänsehaut beim Gucken. Ein paar Mal ansehen und ich bin überzeugt, man wird die Fassung mögen!Ich hoffe trotzdem sehr, daß A.L. Webber und J. Schumacher gesund und fit genug bleiben, um aus "Love never dies" einen schönen Film zu machen, mit den Darstellern von PdO. Die hätten ja inzwischen das richtige Alter und es wäre interessant zu sehen, wie die an das Sequel herangehen. Es wird ja inzwischen aus allem ein Musicalfilm gemacht, warum also nicht aus "Love Never Dies"? Ich denke, das wäre - Dank der schönen Melodien von A. L. Webber - ein richtiger Genuß!Der "Phantom of the Opera"-Film in der englischen Originalfassung (wegen den Songs, ist aber alles sehr gut zu verstehen, es wird ein schönes Englisch gesprochen und gesungen!) gehört zu meinen absoluten Lieblingsfilmen. Nach einer anstrengenden Woche, oder einem unangenehmen Tag gönne ich mir den Film immer wieder mit einem Gläschen Wein dazu. Wunderschön und opulent!

I am a fan of Lord Webber's music. Unfortunately, living in India does not give a lot of opportunities to see these on stage in a theatre. Though Lord Webber has been known to like Indian music, culture and food his shows aren't available for us to see here. Therefore we have to depend on recorded material to see the shows. In the course of time we have got Cats and a collection of numbers on video CD, Joseph, Jesus Christ superstar and birthday concerts on DVD, Phantom and Evita as movies on DVD and now Love never dies on Blue Ray. I hope Really useful group produces all their works on blue ray for those of us in countries where watching a live performance is a distant dream.