Erik (The Phantom of the Opera) In the 2004 film adaptation of the musical, Erik's makeup was made to look much less gruesome than previous adaptations of the story. Instead of a skull-like face, his disfigurement resembles that of a mildly malformed face, which he covers with the mask. Film critic Roger Ebert noted that Butler was more "conventionally handsome" than his predecessors "in a GQ kind of way". Onscreen, Erik has often been cast as a tragic hero but also a tragic villain, depending on the film's point of view. "See main list: The Phantom of the Opera" Erik (The Phantom of the Opera) Erik
The Phantom of the Opera (1962 film) its predecessors the current 'Phantom' seems a reasonable booking for average houses, without doing anything to erase oldtimers' memories of the earlier versions." "Harrison's Reports" gave the film a grade of "Fair", writing, "The story of creative fakery, revenge and danger is not only loosely woven together, but its believability is weak. Its dénouement is thin and vaporish." "The Hammer Story: The Authorised History of Hammer Films" wrote of the film: "Although distinguished by some fine acting, sets and music, "The Phantom of the Opera" seems decidedly half-baked." The author(s) called Terence Fisher's direction "misguided", and noted that distributor J.