Review of Phantom of the Opera (1943) by Jessi T — 16 Oct 2011
The first talking version of the Phantom of the Opera. The movie looks just stunning--it deservedly won an Oscar for its incredible color cinematography. Everything looks perfect and Susanna Foster is just so incredibly beautiful in closeup. So it looks good but this movie has big problems. For one thing there's too much opera--WAY too much! All the operas look good and the singing is good--but I personally hate operas and I was bored silly. "Phantom" is supposed to be a horror movie--NOT an opera film. The Phantom himself doesn't show up until 30 minutes in! And they give the Phantom an origin--it's not bad but not needed...it was scarier knowing nothing about him.
It does have some good things: The Phantom's first appearance;; the chandelier dropping was very well done; Claude Rains gives an excellent (and very sympathetic) performance in the lead and Susanna Foster is pretty good too---and what a voice! Nice score too. But it's not a horror movie--it plays like an opera drama with horrific touches. Still it should be seen just for the stunning color cinematography alone.
This review of Phantom of the Opera (1943) was written by Jessi T on 16 Oct 2011.
Phantom of the Opera has generally received positive reviews.
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