As you might know, this is the sequel to Phantom of the Opera (2004), and so after watching POTO and seeing the West End show, I must admit that Love Never Dies itself is a bit of a let-down. To be honest, the only people who would really be suited to watching this is super die-hard fans that want to see an ending where the Phantom and Christine end up together.
One thing I will say is that the Phantom was absolutely excellent, and really portrayed the emotions very well. Made me cry more than a few times, and not just a little! I loved his portrayal of such a complex character. The music is also absolutely beautiful, albeit a little haunting at times - however this only serves to strengthen the Phantom's character and make it more emotional. It is very deep in this respect, with more emotional details than POTO (in my opinion).
On the other hand, the style of the whole show/film is totally different from the original POTO, and I'm not sure whether the storyline is really very developed. To me it seemed like every single character (except the Phantom) were doing things that were quite out of character. The storyline is very bizarre and doesn't really link at all. Best watched as a standalone show/movie definitely.
In conclusion, this should definitely be watched either for the beautiful acting and character development of the Phantom, or just to say you've seen it. However, I've found that the best way to treat it is to think of it as an amateur 'fan-fiction' not written by the original producers - this accounts for its slightly 'wild' or 'off-topic' storyline, and clear standalone nature.
Note: Be aware that the actors in LND are not the same as in POTO, and that whilst POTO (2004) was a film, this LND 'film' is actually a recording of a stage production of LND, and not a studio-produced film. This means you can see things like the face microphones, and occasionally the set/scenery is not the same standard as you would see in a normal, proper film - It's more like a hybrid between film and stage production, as the close-up shots are views that obviously would not be seen in a production, but the film is, in the end, a recording of the production.
Review of Love Never Dies
