Film Review
It took Universal Pictures more than fifteen years to get round to
remaking their earlier adaptation of Gaston Leroux's celebrated horror
novel
The Phantom of the Opera.
The original 1925 version, which starred "man of a thousand faces" Lon
Chaney in one of his most memorable roles, was an early success for
Universal and encouraged the studio to embark on the production of a
series of horror films, the popularity of which transformed the
fortunes of the studio. Various attempts had been made to
remake the film in the 1930s, but these came to nothing, and it wasn't
until the early 1940s that circumstances conspired to give the masked
Phantom his eagerly awaited return to the silver screen.
The 1943 version of
Phantom of the
Opera is a mixed bag of a film and appears to suffer from
something of a Jekyll and Hyde identity crisis. Leroux's novel is
transformed into something that more closely resembles a musical comedy
than a Gothic horror film and the story of the Phantom is all but
overlooked. On the plus side, the film is visually stunning, and
won Oscars for its lush Technicolor cinematography and lavish artistic
design. It features some very popular actors of the day, notably
Claude Rains and Nelson Eddy. The sequences in the opera
house (which re-used the set of the original 1925 film) are well staged
and evoke something of the magic of the Parisian opera of the late 19th
century. However, any true enthusiast of the horror genre cannot
fail to be dismayed by the film's abject failure to capitalise on the
horror and pathos in Leroux's story.
Although his part is tragically underwritten (to make way for some
tedious burlesque involving the other characters) Claude Rains does
succeed in bringing some poignancy to his portrayal of the
Phantom. He doesn't quite convey the same level of menace that he
achieved in his earlier Universal horror flick,
The Invisible Man (1933), but
he does provide the film with the emotional centre that it badly
needs. Perhaps the most disappointing aspect of the film is
that it fails to explain Claudin's interest in the young singer
Christine Dubois. In the original screenplay, there was a scene
in which Claudin was revealed to be Christine's estranged father.
This sequence was excised from the film when the studio bosses became
anxious that it may carry incestuous undertones.
Despite its obvious imperfections, this whimsical take on
The Phantom of the Opera is
entertaining and was one of Universal's biggest successes. The
studio planned to cash in on the film's popularity by making a direct
sequel in which the Phantom returns to resume his reign of
terror. The unavailability of lead actors Claude Rains and Nelson
Eddy resulted in a major plot rethink and the film that
was made,
The Climax, wasn't
so much a sequel as a similarly themed follow-up - which proved to be a
spectacular box office failure. In 1962, the British film
company Hammer brought the Phantom back in a spectacular production
(directed by Terence Fisher and starring Herbert Lom as the masked
monstrosity), which, for all its failings, at least evokes something of
the Grand Guignol horror of Leroux's novel.
© James Travers 2008
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.
Film Synopsis
When Erique Claudin loses his job as a violinist at the Paris Opera
House he hastily sets about selling the concerto he has been working on
for years. All the money he has earned he has spent in providing
singing lessons for a young soprano, Christine Dubois, whom he loves and
who knows nothing of his benevolence. Reduced to desperation,
Claudin attacks and kills a music publisher who, he believes, has
stolen his concerto, only to have a dish of acid thrown into his face
by the publisher's assistant. Horribly disfigured, Claudin takes
refuge in the sewers of Paris and, his mind broken, plans a terrible
revenge. A short while later, a series of mysterious accidents
begin to blight the Paris Opera House. Biancarolli, the leading
diva, is drugged one evening and Christine is forced to take her
place. Believing that Christine's baritone boyfriend, Anatole
Garron, is responsible for this skulduggery, Biancarolli insists that
Christine be demoted to the chorus. In truth, it was Claudin who
drugged Biancarolli and, driven insane by his love for Christine, he
gives a dire ultimatum. If Christine Dubois does not sing the
leading part in the next opera, he will bring death and terror to the
opera house...
© James Travers
The above content is owned by filmsdefrance.com and must not be copied.