Dark, violent version lacks imagination.Įlaborate TV movie version of the Phantom story. Decent make-up, at least, but Englund’s performance as the Phantom underwhelms. Inferior movie tries to take advantage of Robert Englund’s NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET popularity, but Englund’s presence simply is not enough to lift this one up.
Like everything else about the 70s, it’s far out, man. Chaney’s interpretation keeps getting better and better.ġ970s rock opera version of THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA. The first half of this film is among Hammer’s best, but uneven use of flashback and the emergence of a sympathetic Phantom weigh down the second half. Not bad, and Herbert Lom makes for a sinister Phantom, at least during the first half of the movie, before he follows in Claude Rains’ footsteps and turns on the sympathy. Hammer’s foray into the Phantom universe. Memorable Phantom mask, but make-up by Jack Pierce is surprisingly ordinary. Claude Rains makes for a decent Phantom, but his sympathetic interpretation of the character is less effective and far less chilling than Chaney’s. Thoroughly entertaining movie, although I think Universal got confused when they made this remake and thought they were making a straight musical. Screenplay by Eric Taylor and Samuel Hoffenstein If you’ve never seen this silent classic, you’re missing one of the finest horror movies ever made. Chaney is the definitive Phantom, even after nearly 100 years. Certainly the most faithful, and the one which most fully captures the spirit of Gaston Leroux’s novel. Seriously, none of the remakes come close to matching it.īy far, the preeminent version of the Phantom tale. It’s the most compelling and exciting of all the Phantom films. I love this movie, from its incredible sets to its amazing Phantom make-up created by Chaney himself, to the way it tells its story. It still amazes me that the best version of this terror tale remains the original silent version starring Lon Chaney Sr. Today we look at the PHANTOM OF THE OPERA movies. Welcome back to THE HORROR JAR, that column where we compile lists of odds and ends about horror movies. THE HORROR JAR: PHANTOM OF THE OPERA movies remains the definitive Phantom of the Opera, even after nearly 100 years.