[Megan the Phantom Girlie]

In Phantom, Raoul's older brother Phillippe disapproves of Raoul's love for Christine, whose career has raised her to a new social status.
In Corpse Bride, Victoria's parents disapprove of having to wed her to Victor Van Dort, whose father's fish business has raised the family to the status of the nouveux riches.

In Phantom, Christine fouls up Erik's onstage wedding proposal.
In Corpse Bride, Victor fouls up his wedding rehearsal.

In Phantom, Erik is described as a living corpse.
In Corpse Bride, Emily really is a corpse.

In Phantom, Erik gives Christine a ring and makes her wear it as a promise to him.
In Corpse Bride, Emily wears the ring Victor accidentally gave her and claims that he promised himself to her.

In Phantom, Erik snatches Christine away in front of Raoul when Erik realizes that she probably won't return to him of her own accord.
In Corpse Bride, Emily conjures Victor back to the underworld when she realizes he tricked her into letting her see Victoria.

In Phantom, Erik considers his superior talent and intelligence to be defeating advantages over Raoul.
In Corpse Bride, Emily prides herself on her musical and dancing abilities and considers herself superior over Victoria, whose parents forbade her to learn these things.

And in the end (which in both cases is a ruined wedding), Erik and Emily both have the chance to live happily ever after with their beloveds, but sacrifice their own happiness for the sake of those they love.

[Miss Daae]

Yeah, but I don't think Tim Burton or his writers looked to POTO for any inspiration.

[Megan the Phantom Girlie]

I don't think so either. Corpse Bride is based on a folktale from the Russian Jewish community, which goes (found on the Tim Burton Collective site):

The Corpse Bride


Once upon a time there was a young man who lived in a village in Russia. He was to be married and he and his friend prepared to go to the village where his bride-to-be lived, two days walk from his own village.

The first night the two friends decided to set up camp by a river. The young man who was going to be married spotted an unusual looking stick in the ground that looked like a bony finger. He and his friend started joking about this bony finger sticking out of the ground and the young man who was going to be married took the golden wedding ring from his pocket and put it on the strange-looking stick. And then he started to do the wedding dance around the stick; he danced around the stick with the golden wedding ring three times and he sang the Jewish wedding song, and recited the entire marriage sacrament as he danced around the stick, he and his friend laughing the whole time.

Their fun stopped suddenly when the earth started rumbling and shaking beneath their feet. The place where the stick had been opened up and a very bedraggled looking corpse emerged, a living corpse, she had been a bride, but now was barely more than a skeleton held together by shreds of skin, still wearing an old torn white silk wedding dress. Worms and spider webs hung on the once-beaded bodice and tattered veil.

The two young men were aghast.

"Ah," she said, "you have done the wedding dance and pronounced the marriage vows and you have put a ring on my finger. Now we are man and wife. I demand my rights as your bride."

Shuddering with terror at the corpse bride's words, the two young men fled to the village where the young bride was waiting to be married. They went straight to the rabbi.

"Rabbi," asked the young man breathlessly, "I have a very important question to ask you. If by some chance you're walking in the woods and you happen to see a stick that looks like a long bony finger coming out of the ground and you happen to put a golden wedding ring on the finger and do the wedding dance and pronounce the wedding vows, is this indeed a real marriage?"

Looking very puzzled, the rabbi asked, "Do you know of such a situation?"

"Oh no, no, of course not, it's just a hypothetical question."

Stroking his long beard thoughfully, the rabbi said, "let me think about it."

And just then, a big gust of wind blew the door open, and in walked the corpse bride. "I lay claim to this man as my husband, for he has placed this wedding ring on my finger and pronounced the solemn marriage vows," she demanded, her bony finger rattling as she shook it at her intended brigegroom.

"This is indeed a very serious matter. I'll have to consult with the other rabbis," said the rabbi.

Soon all the rabbis from the surrounding villages were gathered together. They went into conference, while the two young men anxiously awaited their decision.

The corpse bride waited on the porch tapping her foot, declaring, "I want to celebrate my wedding night with my husband."

These chilling words made every hair on the young man's body stand on end, though it was a warm summer day.

While the rabbis were conferring, the real human bride arrived and wanted to know what all the fuss was about. When her fiance explained just what had happened, she started weeping, "Oh, my life is ruined, all my hopes and dreams are shattered; I'll never be married, never have a family."

Just then the rabbis came out and asked: "Did you indeed put a gold ring on the finger, and did you dance around it three times and did you indeed pronounce the wedding vows in their entirety?"

The two young men who by this time were cowering in a far corner nodded their heads.

Looking very serious the rabbis went back to confer again.

And the young bride wept bitter tears, while the corpse bride was by now gloating at the prospect of her long awaited wedding night.

After a short while the rabbis solemnly marched out, took their seats, and announced, "Since you put the wedding ring on the finger of the corpse bride and you danced around it three times reciting the wedding vows, we have determined that this constitutes a proper wedding ceremony. Even so, we have decided that the dead have no claim upon the living."

Sighing and murmuring could be heard from all corners, the young bride was especially relieved.

The corpse bride, however, howled, "Oh, there goes my last chance for a life; I'll never have my dreams fulfilled now, it's forever lost," and she collapsed on the floor. It was a pathetic sight, a heap of bones in a tattered wedding gown, lying there, lifeless.

Overcome with compassion for the corpse bride, the young bride knelt down and gathered up that old heap of bones, carefully arranging the shredded silk finery and holding her close, half sang, half murmured, as if cradling a crying infant, "dont worry I'll live your dreams for you, I'll live your hopes for you, I'll have your children for you, I'll have enough children for the two of us and you can rest in peace knowing that our children and our children's children will be well cared for and will not forget us."

Tenderly she closed the eyes of the corpse bride, tenderly she held her in her arms and slowly and with measured steps she marched down to the river with her fragile charge, took her down by the river where she dug a shallow grave for her and laid her in it and crossed the bony arms over the bony chest, the one hand clasping the one with the ring on it, and folded the wedding gown around her.

Then she whispered, "May you rest in peace, I will live your dreams for you, don't worry, we will not forget you."

The corpse bride looked happy and at peace in her new grave, as if she somehow knew that she would be fulfilled through this young bride And the young bride covered up, slowly, the corpse bride, covered up the tattered wedding gown in the shallow grave, covered it all up with earth, then put wildflowers all over the grave and stones all around it.

Then the young bride went back to her fiance and they were married in a very solemn wedding ceremony and they lived many happy years together. And all their children and grandchildren and great grandchildren were always told the story of the corpse bride, and so she was not forgotten, nor was the wisdom and compassion she had taught them forgotten either.

So I'm aware that there was no actual Phantom inspiration in the movie; I just like finding parallels. Certainly I'm no further off than that person who found the similarities between Kill Bill and Sweeney Todd in the Todd forum.

[TR_Wolf]

Everything you're comparing are nothing remotely the same as each other!

You might as well be putting:

Christine has two eyes
Victor wears shoes.

Aha! Therefore it's just like Phantom!!!!!!!!

[nicnikniki]

Well if Dan Brown can do it...

[Megan the Phantom Girlie]

::rolleyes:: Okay... obviously this board has no room for analysis of literary themes...

[SimplyElymas]

[Jennifer Lynn]

[*Dark*Solo*Singer*]

I think that there is a connection.

[paiintmeblue]

[*leigh*]

I remember the first time I saw the trailer for Corpse Bride, I leaned over to my friend and told her in a very lound whisper how much it reminded me of Phantom of the Opera, to which she gave me an odd look and told me I was obsessed.

And then I remember seeing the movie and think the same thing over and over again, that it was like Poto...And no one else seems to see that connection...

Except you!

So, FINALLY there's someone out there who sees it, too!

I've always thought they were similar, though I don't think that Burton did that on purpose.

[lalala]

Seriously.. the 'similarities' you are describing are very contrived.

I agree with TR_Wolf..

[Kaiana]

I'm with lalala.

I'd never read the story before though! It was really sweet how the living bride buried the corpse bride and promised to remember her.

[lalala]

[MademoiselleMusicals]

I can sort of see it....Strange! Phantom also reminds me of Beauty and the Beast because of the physical side preventing love, but in Belle's case, love does prevail!