The Phantom of the Opera (1924) (Silent Film Classic)
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Movie Reviews of The Phantom of the Opera (1924) (Silent Film Classic)
Movie Review: The Ultimate Version? Not quite... (Milestone Edition)
Summary: 4 Stars
While I have absolute praise for what is the most comprehensive edition of the original edition of the silent Lon Chaney, Sr. classic, what prevents this edition from being virtually flawless is the actual presentation of the 1929/1930 foreign reissue version, from the finest known surviving print courtesy of The George Eastman House.
Transferring what is essentially a hybrid of silent (approx 18 frames per second) and sound (24 fps) footage from this release at its closest possible silent presentation (except for the sound version chandelier sequence footage featuring Mary Fabian as Carlotta), mastering in Europe's PAL (25 fps) format, and converting it yet again to NTSC (30 fps) for North American Region 1 release makes this presentation very choppy looking.
Film preservationist Scott MacQueen did a fine digital cleanup to remove as much dirt and scratches from the video source provided by Photoplay productions, and the film has a pristine look, but the jerky appearance of the all the multiple frame-rate conversion cannot be saved. Having to match the Vitaphone soundtrack from the lost 24fps sound reissue to this sluggish presentation also affects the pacing. The supplemental sound reissue trailer (with soundtrack intact at proper sound projection speed) is a better indication of what the film should have sounded like. The Art Deco trailer also gives a glimpse of a cut scene as Chaney is first revealed by being brought up by the mechanism moving the mirror of Christine Daae's dressing room, instead of the more suspenseful hand on the shoulder.
In all fairness (and this may upset silent film purists), I believe a 24fps presentation would have been the best way to go.
That aside, the bonus materials make this a fabulous addition for Phantom fans, thanks to an informative audio essay by Mr. MacQueen, who documents the troubled production, the incompetence of 'director' Rupert Julian, and the sole savior of the film, actor/make-up master (and self-director) Lon Chaney. His body language is what makes the film most powerful, and his use of several variations of masks and facial makeup combined with critical lighting and photography under his direction make Chaney's Phantom one of the most iconic villians/monsters in movie history, while making him (like his other monstrous creations like "Hunchback"'s Quasimodo) a creature worthy of pity.
Another rarely-seen bonus is the inclusion of a 16mm print of the "show-at-home" 1925 general release version, first seen by laserdisc fanatics on Image Entertainment's 1990 double feature laserdisc. By the time this version of the film had been issued in 1925, it was the third such release for 'Phantom', and the hodgepodge of title cards vary from rewrites and reshoots that occured (the first two premieres were disasters). The 16mm 1925 version features several different (albeit better) takes of shots and additional sequences dropped from the later sound reissue and give a more cohesive story than the version commonly seen today, but its visual quality understandably leaves much to be desired.
Missing pieces of the Phantom's history are filled out in recreations of the first two premiere versions thanks to surviving shooting scripts and still photos.
The 'Ultimate' version of Chaney's Phantom has yet to be satisactorily released, but his package will do very nicely, thank you very much...
Movie Review: Discovery of an Icon
Summary: 5 Stars
The image of Lon Chaney as The Phantom of the Opera is one of those classic screen images, right up there with Karloffs Monster & Lugosis' Dracula, instantly recognisable. I purchased this Milestone 2 DVD release on a whim & have thoroughly enjoyed it. Despite Rupert Julians flawed direction, nothing can diminish the impact of Chaney's performance. As with all great monsters, the sympathy & understanding are with him. According to the excellent commentary by Scott MacQueen, it was rumored that Chaney directed his own scenes, & the performance of Mary Philbin does become remarkably 3 dimensional in their scenes together.
The new score by Carl Davis is a work of pure genius, brilliantly integrating excerpts from Gounods Faust in a tone poem of extreme beauty. The colour restoration is breathtaking, particularly the Lyre of Orpheus scenes. Nothing to complain about....treats all 'round.
Movie Review: Buy the Milestone Collection two disk edition
Summary: 5 Stars
There must be two dozen productions of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. My two favorites are the 1925/1929 Lon Chaney, Sr. silent thriller and the enthralling Joel Schumacher/Andrew Lloyd Webber 2004 opera. There are a lot of versions of the Chaney masterpiece to buy, including $5 drugstore copies with no music score. Kino has an outstanding copy, mastered from a 35mm European film archive print with a beautiful orchestra score. It sells for a reasonable $25. You can't go wrong with it.
But if you want the ultimate copy, and not have to buy a second copy of the film, go with the Milestone Collection double disk for only $25. You get a Lon Chaney double bill with Milestone-Disk 2 has the unrestored 1925 original. It runs 107 minutes with a Jon Mirsalis orchestra score. Disk 1 is the restored 1929 version, with talking sequences that are apparently lost. But some of the soundtrack exists as a bonus-with Christine and Raoul, not the Phantom. The 1929 film runs a tighter 95 minutes and offers two very different music scores: Carl Davis and a stereo orchestra score; and the original 1930 early talkie music score plus audio commentary by film scholar Scott MacQueen. Other bonuses include an audio chat with cinematographer Charles Van Enger and remembrances by Carla Laemmle. In any event, if you want to buy the Lon Chaney PHANTOM, by all means get the Milestone Collection double disk.
How does Chaney stack up against Andrew Lloyd Webber? I love both a lot. Chaney is a criminally insane escapee from Devil's Island; Lloyd Webber's Phantom is a tragic hero who actually doesn't look that bad without his partial face mask. Chaney is chilling as he drives his small boat with Christine through the Paris sewers. By contrast, Lloyd Webber's Phantom is almost a lounge singer when he does the grandly romantic"Music of the Night" and "All I Ask of You". And the chandelier falls in different places. (PLOT SPOILER ALERT!) It falls 1/3 of the way through Chaney's movie and at the Act one finale in the stage production because it takes twenty minutes to pull it back up to the ceiling. But it falls in a third spot in the movie, and maybe the best spot dramatically. And the film has a haunting flash-forward that becomes clear and poignant in the last scene. The Chaney film has a mob chase the Phantom into the Seine to drown. The 1925 version has a 20 second lovers' embrace epilogue.
Have a great Halloween with the Milestone Collection version of Lon Chaney's PHANTOM OF THE OPERA, but you won't go wrong if you pick the Kino version with just the restored 1929 version and an orchestra score and color tints. Save the swooningly romantic and elegant Lloyd Webber film for Valentine's Day!
Movie Review: An excellent choice for "Phantom" completists and film buffs.
Summary: 5 Stars
Lon Chaney's silent version of "The Phantom of the Opera" is one of the hallmarks of cinema (say what you will about the movie itself) and probably the strongest reason why the original book managed to survive the "death" of Leroux's other works.
The five-star rating above is for the DVD set. The movie itself (either version that's included here) would rank slightly less due to the less than stellar directing and performances. Chaney's performance and appearance, however, are still fantastic (and listening to the commentary just increases my admiration for the man), and the set design is absolutely wonderful.
This DVD set is the perfect compilation of the silent "Phantom"--or at least the best that can be made with the existing materials. It contains both the 1925 original, general-release version (by far the most fleshed out and faithful), and the 1929 "silent version" re-issue (the better presented of the two, including the primitive Technicolor moments that had been originally intended for the film). They each come with their own soundtracks. The 1925 version only has one--a servicable enough score by Jon Mirsalis that only lacks the necessary dramatic punch in a few areas (like the un-masking scene). The 1929 comes with two--a full orchestral score by Carl Davis, and as much of the 1929's "sound version's" soundtrack as can be edited to fit the film (the music for which is nice enough, but I could do without the histrionic voices myself).
The extras include an excellent and thoroughly informative commentary by Scott MacQueen, the additional soundtracks from the 1929 "sound version," theatrical trailers, a taped interview with Carla Laemmle, an old audio interview with cinematographer Charles Van Enger, an "opera extract" of a sequence from Faust (an interesting diversion, at least), and a large photo gallery that includes stills from the two preview versions of the movie (both containing cut scenes and characters).
This DVD set proves itself to be one of the finest and most complete that can be created for a movie of the silent era. A must for film buffs, and Phantom "phans" who like to have a bit of the Chaney version for their viewing pleasure.
Movie Review: A Terrifying Silent Masterpiece- A Review By Mary Sanders
Summary: 5 Stars
I saw this silent movie on television with my father when I was quite young, about eight or nine. I loved it and let me say for this film being made in practically the beginning of when films were being made, the people who made this film did a spectacular job filming it, and taking care of it so it wouldn't become lost, like so many infamous silent films have because of companies not caring for them. This one got lucky. Lon Chaney did a spectacular job playing The Phantom (Erick), a lonely man with a face so hideously deformed that he wears a mask, and lives within the basement of a Paris opera house. He falls in love with a beautiful young singer named Christine, who is already engaged. He talks her into coming to see him in the basement of the opera, and constantly tells her how beautiful she is and how marvelous her singing is. Christine isn't to fond of him, and disobey's his order never to remove his mask. When she manages to slip it off while he is playing the organ, he flies into a rage, which terrifies Christine. In the end, sadly, he dies. Anyway, unlike many early silent films, this one wasn't overacted and the film is clear with few little scratches. This movie is a masterpiece, BUY IT!!!!