Anthony Minghella’s Metropolitan Opera production of “Madama Butterfly” survives for a few reasons. It’s popular. And it remains a bookmark for the moment when Peter Gelb’s tenure as general manager of the company began, back in 2006.

Since then, the promotional shorthand for this take on Puccini’s repertory staple has held that it is cinematic — a worthy extension of Mr. Minghella’s work in film. But does that reputation hold up? At Friday night’s performance, which opened this season’s revival, similarities between the forms seemed passing in nature.

An imposing rectangle suffused with a series of eye-popping colors continues to dominate the scenic background, suggesting a wide-screen aesthetic. Acts conclude with artfully arranged tableaus, underneath a smartly placed mirror. But during the bulk of the evening the narrative action can feel restricted as fate unfurls in front of movable doors, closer to the audience.

Hemming characters into confined spaces doesn’t preclude cinematic power — especially in stories about the economically precarious life of geishas. (For confirmation, just look to Kenji Mizoguchi’s “Sisters of the Gion.”) Though on Friday, Mr. Minghella’s chamber designs did not project big-screen impact. In the second act, when the baritone Paulo Szot’s Sharpless was ruing the possible consequences of informing Butterfly of her would-be husband’s intentions, he looked like he was managing a minor headache, instead of living through a tragic injustice.