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Phantom of the Opera (1943)
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Overview
User Rating:
Director:
Writers:
Release Date:
27 elokuu 1943 (USA)
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Tagline:
In flaming Technicolor! more
Plot:
This is the story of a disfigured violinist who haunts the Paris Opera House full summary | add synopsis
Awards:
Won 2 Oscars.
Another 2 nominations
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User Comments:
A film best appreciated by music lovers, if not by horror fans and purists…
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Cast
(Cast overview, first billed only) | Nelson Eddy | ... | Anatole Garron |
 | Susanna Foster | ... | Christine Dubois |
 | Claude Rains | ... | Erique Claudin |
| Edgar Barrier | ... | Raoul D'Aubert |
| Leo Carrillo | ... | Signor Ferretti |
| Jane Farrar | ... | Biancarolli |
| J. Edward Bromberg | ... | Amiot |
| Fritz Feld | ... | Lecours |
| Frank Puglia | ... | Villeneuve |
| Steven Geray | ... | Vereheres |
| Barbara Everest | ... | The Aunt |
 | Hume Cronyn | ... | Gerard |
| Fritz Leiber | ... | Franz Liszt |
| Nicki Andre | ... | Madame Lorenzi |
| Gladys Blake | ... | Jeanne |
Additional Details
Parents Guide:
Runtime:
92 min
Country:
Language:
Color:
Color (Technicolor)
Aspect Ratio:
1.37 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Mono (Western Electric Recording)
Certification:
Spain:13 |
Netherlands:12 |
Australia:G (cable rating) |
Australia:PG (original rating) |
Finland:K-16 |
Germany:12 |
Sweden:15 |
UK:PG |
USA:Approved (PCA #9388) |
Argentina:Atp
Company:
Fun Stuff
Trivia:
The budget was approximately $1,750,000, which included $100,000 to soundproof the still-existing opera stage from Universal's The Phantom of the Opera (1925) silent film version
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Goofs:
Revealing mistakes: The use of a stunt-double for Claude Rains at the climactic cave-in is very obvious! The double has a bigger physique than Rains, and curly hair.
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Quotes:
Enrique Claudin:
Mademoiselle, may I speak to you for a minute?
Christine DuBois: Why, of course.
Enrique Claudin: You weren't on the stage tonight for the third act curtain call.
Christine DuBois: Everyone seems to notice. It's really quite flattering.
Enrique Claudin: [Becoming concerned] Why weren't you there?
[Christine is puzzled]
Enrique Claudin: Forgive me, but I have been a part of the Opera for so long. Everybody, everything connected with it, I feel it is so much a part of my life.
[Christine pauses, then smiles]
Christine DuBois: Yes, well, Monsieur Villeneuve is waiting for you.
Enrique Claudin: You weren't ill, were you? You're not in any trouble, are you? Why it's impertinent of me, I know, but...
[...]
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Christine DuBois: Why, of course.
Enrique Claudin: You weren't on the stage tonight for the third act curtain call.
Christine DuBois: Everyone seems to notice. It's really quite flattering.
Enrique Claudin: [Becoming concerned] Why weren't you there?
[Christine is puzzled]
Enrique Claudin: Forgive me, but I have been a part of the Opera for so long. Everybody, everything connected with it, I feel it is so much a part of my life.
[Christine pauses, then smiles]
Christine DuBois: Yes, well, Monsieur Villeneuve is waiting for you.
Enrique Claudin: You weren't ill, were you? You're not in any trouble, are you? Why it's impertinent of me, I know, but...
[...]
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Movie Connections:
Referenced in Ace Ventura: Pet Detective (1994)
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Soundtrack:
MARTHA (Act III, opera excerpt)
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FAQ
This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.more (56 total)
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Related Links
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First of all, let me state that I am a lover of classical music. I am not a fan of horror films. This particular version of the classic horror tale is very different in plot and in tone from its original literary source material—as well as the previous silent film version starring Lon Chaney in the title role. But nevertheless, the 1943 film succeeds beautifully as a romantic melodrama rather than as a horror film. For those who love classical music and performing arts, you're in luck with this one. Those looking for terror and chills, as well as a more faithful version of the literary work, look elsewhere.
Permit me to express my adoration for this film from the beginning. I was only three years old when I first saw this film, and I was still crazy about the Andrew Lloyd Webber stage musical I saw during that time (it was my first time seeing it, and since then I have seen it thrice on the professional stage, most recently two years ago at the age of 17). I immediately fell in love with this grand old Technicolor film the first time I saw it.
But I will be brief in presenting the following elements. The story here is vastly different from the original Gaston Leroux work, yet it works wonderfully well due to its originality and freshness. The Phantom is presented here as a tragic antihero rather than the melodramatic "living skeleton" Lon Chaney gave us in the 1925 silent version. We have splendid acting from all the performers in this film, most notably Claude Rains in the title role. We are given a sympathetic, tragic view of a lonely composer/violinist who fails to achieve his most admirable goal, despite Rains' limited performance time in the film. This particular role is what earned Rains the status of one of my all-time favorite actors since he impressed me at such an early age. However, it is Nelson Eddy and Susanna Foster who are the real stars of the film, expressing their rich and unique vocal talents within the film's glorious opera sequences, which are the among the film's many highlights. And the Oscar-winning production values and Technicolor cinematography are rich and opulent, fully expressing the wonders of a 19th Century Paris and its magnificent Opera House interiors. The humor between the rivaling Nelson Eddy and Edgar Barrier is pretty good, too.
And the music! Under composer Edward Ward's Oscar-nominated score and creativity the opera sequences are magnificently staged, yet here I will solely express my love for one thing: Edward Ward's "Lullaby of the Bells." "Lullaby of the Bells" is the Phantom's musical leitmotif throughout the film, and its effectiveness is expressed within the world of the film, arranged for violin, solo piano, piano and vocal (sung beautifully by Susanna Foster and Nelson Eddy), and, most impressively, for piano and orchestra. How wonderful to know that Rains himself learned how to play this lovely song on piano and on the violin, even though he never played a musical instrument before at the time! Unfortunately, like Rains' tragic misunderstanding with his admirable goal, the song is barely available on CD and sheet music for the song is almost nonexistent. The only CD that contains a modern symphonic rerecording of the song is "Piano in Hollywood: The Classic Movie Concertos." However, that particular recording is unimpressive and weak compared to the lush and dramatic power of the original as heard in the film's unforgettable finale, yet it does have its moments here and there on the CD. Nevertheless, since I am always impressed with the universality and effectiveness of the song, it remains my all-time favorite song unto this day.
I simply can't praise this film highly enough, so please watch it and judge it for yourself. But as I said before, this particular version will best appeal to those who love classical music and the performing arts, including great acting and drama. For those of you who expect a Gothic horror tale of a masked "living skeleton" who creates torture chambers within the Paris Opera House catacombs, an "Angel of Music" who hides behind a young soprano's dressing room mirror, and a Phantom who laughs melodramatically, then this film is not for you.