The Phantom of the Opera (1925 & 1929) Review by Cameron McCasland

The Phantom of the Opera (1925 & 1929)
a review by Cameron McCasland

Universal Studios original monster man was, Lon Chaney. Following his
success in The Hunchback of Notre Dame in 1923 he returned to Horror with,
The Phantom of the Opera. In his most famous make up "The Man of A Thousand
Faces" dazzles with on screen amazement. The history surrounding this film
has become somewhat legend since the days of the horror magazines of the
1950's. Here we try to unravel the facts, and unmask a true horror classic.

Released originally in September of 1925, Phantom opened to rave reviews
across the country. At this time Lon Chaney was already a box office draw,
and Phantom solidified his place among the great actors of the silent era.
The production of Phantom was began in 1924 with the director (Rupert
Julian) at the helm. Julian had worked as an actor opposite Chaney is
several productions including (The Kaiser, Beast of Berlin, and Small Town
Girl) all of which have become lost films. It has been well documented that
Julian and Chaney were often times at odds with one and other and would not
speak, rather they used a go between to relay thoughts and ideas. Chaney
has also been rumored to direct certain sequences in the film, while Julian
(known to be somewhat of a bully, and alcoholic) was away from the set in a
rampage.

The sets of the opera house and catacombs are a marvel to behold. One of
the most beautiful of the old Hollywood back lot buildings. The exact
replica of the original Paris Opera House has been reused in several
pictures including Thoroughly Modern Millie, the 1943 remake of Phantom
starring (Claude Rains), and The Climax, (Starring Boris Karloff). It stands
today still in use, though the chandelier is appropriately gone. You are
taken into the deep underground lairs of a madman, and transcended into the
great opera house as it appeared in the 1800's. It is here that the story
takes shape, as we make our way through to the unknown lairs of the Phantom.

Ghost stories fill the air of the Paris opera house shortly after it is
acquired by Monsieurs Richard and Moncharmin. They are warned that box five
is haunted by the Opera Ghost and should be avoided at all cost. They laugh
at this notion, but soon will come to realize the terror of the Phantom is
nothing to scoff at. A man draped in black disappears out of box five as
several ballerinas see a man in the shadows that night. Joseph Buquet a
stagehand at the opera has witnessed the Phantom with his own eyes, and is
frightened by the faceless man without a nose. The Phantom begins his
merciless terrorization of the Opera house by sending threatening letters to
the Opera Houses leading Prima Donna, Carlotta (Virginia Pearson). She is
told to relinquish the stage to the young ingenue, Christine Daae (Mary
Philbin) or she will suffer a terrible end. The mysterious Persian (Arthur
Edmond Carewe) that has been looming around the opera house is suspected of
being the Phantom. He seems to pop up at the most inopportune times.
Christine hears a voice inside the walls telling her that she is a star.
The voice eludes to the fact that he has been teaching Christine for some
time, and she is now prepared to take her place as the Opera's greatest
talent. Erik (the phantom's true identity) though unseen is admired by the
young girl, and she reserves to call him master.

After performing in Faust one night while Carlotta has taken ill Christine
becomes a sensation. However Carlotta resumes her role the next night,
intent on not being scared out of the role by Christine's mysterious friend.

The Phantom shows his anger by bringing down the chandelier of the now
cursed opera house during one of her solos. The patrons are in a panic and
the crowd tries to flee among the chaos. Christine makes her way back to
her dressing room and again hears the strange voice emanating from behind
the walls calling out to her. She is drawn to the mirror as it opens from
behind the wall to reveal a man draped in black and adorning a faceless
mask. He leads her through the Paris underground and it is only then that
she realizes that her vigilante admirer is the Phantom of the Opera.
Christine in shock, faints and is whisked away and placed upon a bed built
for royalty. It is there she will sleep until music from another room draws
her out of the frightened slumber.

She enters the room with caution. Fear gives way to intrigue as she
approaches the Phantom from behind. We come upon the greatest unmasking in
the history of cinema. As Christine pulls the mask, we are startled by the
disfigurement of Chaney's death head makeup. We see him before Christine,
but almost instantly he reveals himself to her and she also becomes
startled. The camera seems equally disturbed as it slightly goes out of
focus for a split second. A monstrosity so horrific that both man and
machine cringe at it&Mac226;s horror. It is well staged, and a truly creepy reveal
for the audience. Christine begs for mercy. The Phantom pledges his love
to her and will allow her to the surface once more before she is taken to
the catacombs with him for the rest of time.

The Bal Masque sequence is a stunning look at early two strip technicolor.
The process works well with Chaney's crimson red cloak against multiple
greens and sepia hues. Here The Phantom arrives from the stairwell in his
skull mask, to condemn the crowd. In the meantime Christine is secretly
meeting with her lover Vicomte Raoul de Chagny (Norman Kerry) who also
appeared with Chaney in (The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and The Unknown).
Raoul quickly begins to devise a plan of escape after her performance that
night. Little do they know the Phantom has made his way to the rooftops of
Paris, and has overheard their plans of betrayal. Infuriated by her
distrust, the Phantom blacks out the auditorium, and abducts her after the
curtain rises for her show. He vanishes after killing several stage hands
who get in his way. The mysterious Persian reveals himself as Ledoux, a
secret policeman who has been on Erik&Mac226;s trail for years. He offers his
help, and Raoul and Ledoux venture towards the underground maze. The race
begins through the dark wet underground labyrinth of the Paris Opera House.
Quickly behind the team of men is an angry mob out for blood, led by the
brother of a murdered stage hand. The lair of the Phantom is heavily
guarded and booby trapped from top to bottom. After Raoul's brother sets
off a alarm while entering the catacombs he unknowingly traps his brother
and Ledoux. As the room fills with heat, we are lead to believe they will
escape only to find themselves trapped again inside a room full of
explosives. Erik gives Christine the chance to save them, by promising to
run away with him never to return. The men are flooded with water and next
to drowning the Phantom reveals a hatch for them to escape the deadly
explosives. The mob is in close pursuit as Erik once again strips Christine
out of the arms of Raoul and away to a waiting coach.

They storm through the streets violently into the dark night. In the
madness the horse drawn coach crashes and overturns allowing Christine to
escape and Erik to flee for his life amongst the mob. On the banks of the
Seine the angry crowd catches up to him. In his final moments, The Phantom
strikes fear into the hearts of the mob one last time. He clutches his
hand, as if to hold a grenade. He then reveals that it is empty and laughs
with no remorse to the cruelty which has ensued. He is then violently
beaten to death. This last act shows once again the terror of The Phantom,
and that not knowing is always scarier than what will be revealed.

Phantom is not a true gem of storytelling or even stylization. It&Mac226;s merit
rest solely on the shoulders of Chaney. He approaches the character with
such bravado, and menace that little is needed in tying up loose ends. His
ability to repel an audience while at the same time being empathetic to his
love for a young girl. You are driven by the want to see him unmasked, and
see what clever avenues he will take to captivate the attention of the Opera
patrons.

Much attention has been brought to Lon Chaney's makeup in Phantom. It is
by far his most famous concoction, adorning the covers of Famous Monsters of
Filmland, as well as the official logo for the magazines fan club. The
secrets of this makeup scheme were taken to the grave by Lon Chaney. In a
time before the great Jack Pierce, Chaney was in charge of his own makeup,
and like a magician rarely gave away his tricks. What is known is that he
wore a skull cap made of putty and false hair to help build the forehead.
He raised it off his head to give the appearance of a living skull. Cotton
and collodion were also used for the scars on the cheeks and nose. Grease
makeup and shadowing surrounded the eyes and cheekbones. He taped his ears
flat against his head. He rolled his top lip up and under, and wore a set of
jagged false teeth to round out his well stenciled mouth. The turning up of
his nose, has been greatly debated for years. Several accounts tell of long
fish hooks being inserted into the nostrils and covered by grease paint.
Charles Van Enger who was a cinematographer for the film, told a story of
wires holding the nose up and said "sometimes it would bleed like hell."
Whatever the truth of the matter is, it made for a death mask that still
frightens eighty years after the fact.

The Phantom of the Opera, and Lon Chaney have recieved several awards and
achievments over the years. To Highlight a few, these include the number 83
spot on the American Film Institutes, most heart pounding thrillers. Two
United States postal stamps have appeared, both showcasing Chaney's Phantom
makeup. The first in 1991 with a 29 cent stamp showcasing "Stars of the
Silent Screen" created by New York artist, Al Hirschfeld. The second in
1997 with a 32 cent stamp showcasing "Classic Movie Monsters" created by
Thomas Blackshear. He remains an inspiration still today.

The story of phantom goes back to Gaston Leroux's 1910 trash novel. The
1925 Chaney version is the best adaptation of the author's original work.
The story has been retold on film six times. Inspired by the Chaney film it
was remade in 1943, 62, 83, 89, 90, and most recently in 2004. The remakes
have never met the accolades of Chaney&Mac226;s 1925 vehicle. In 1987 Andrew Lloyd
Webber launched a musical version in London and on Broadway. It has become
one of the most successful shows to ever hit the stage, and tours to sold
out crowds across the world to this day.

The Phantom of the Opera was release to theaters twice. The 1925 silent
version is the longer original cut. The original version cost $632,357 to
make, and brought in $2,014,091 in revenues for Universal. The profit of
$539,682 is one of the greatest of any silent film. The film has not
survived well, after eighty years of reprinting, splicing, and editing on
all formats the picture quality has been greatly diminished. The original
print was destroyed long ago, when it was thought that silent pictures were
of little use. Many silent films were burnt for the silver that the film
negatives contained. This was somewhat understandable in the depression
era. The talkies had taken over and no one wanted to see a silent film
anymore. Home video and DVD were decades away, in the end it has cost
Universal countless dollars in revenues. It survived through art house
showings on 16 mm film and reprints sold out of the back of monster
magazines and shown in film schools like U.C.L.A. and U.S.C. . Prints vary
from time to time, and this film fell into the public domain in 1953.
Universal Studios has never released an official copy on home video, though
they have entertained Lon Chaney days at the California theme park.

In 1929 a breath of fresh air would be invigorated into Phantom with the
addition of sound. The print in circulation is believed to be a second take
negative for foreign distribution. The angles are slightly off of the
original leading experts to believe it is the 1930 foreign market print. It
looks and sounds wonderful. As clean as most films shot before 1940. The
technicolor scenes have not bled, and the scratches seen in the 1925 version
are all but gone. The title cards still remain intact, while lines are read
over them vary from what is in print on screen. Though the Phantom talks in
shadow, it is not Chaney's voice you hear. He was under no obligation to
record his voice, and in his career Lon Chaney only made one picture that
his actual voice can be heard on. The movie is The Unholy Three (1930)
released only shortly before Chaney&Mac226;s death from lung cancer on August 25,
1930. The 1929 version was well recieved, earning $419,096 garnering
Universal a profit of $123,428.

To date, the best way to view these films are through Image Entertainments
2 disc DVD release. The Milestone release is full of information, and
contains the best surviving prints of both films. Scott MacQueen&Mac226;s
commentary on the 1929 version is the most insightful look on any silent
film I can recall. It is full of great details concerning actors,
production, technical aspects, and the great makeup of Chaney. It has been
reconstructed using the best elements, and includes certain Sound effects
that have been recreated. The 1925 version is found on disc two and is one
of the best copies I have ever seen. It is well worn, but watchable.
Trailers from both versions show deleted or lost sequences. Several still
pictures and audio bits can be found including interviews and cut scenes
from the sound version of the film. It is wonderfully packaged with
original poster art on the cover. This is the must own version for the
Chaney Aficionado.

The silent era has long gone away, and is mostly been forgotten outside of
names like Charlie Chaplin, and Buster Keaton. Unlike the Little Tramp, or
Old Stone Face, Chaney recreated himself for every film, and over time has
worked his way into horror movie lore and legend. No film is more
responsible for that than, The Phantom Of The Opera. So Enjoy the Opera,
but don&Mac226;t sit under the Chandelier.