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Nelson Eddy, Susanna Foster, Claude Rains, Jane Farrar, Edgar Barrier ... see more see more... , Hume Cronyn , Leo Carrillo , Barbara Everest , J. Edward Bromberg , Fritz Leiber , Steven Geray , Frank Puglia , Hans Herbert , Fritz Feld , Gladys Blake , Nicolle Andre , Renee Carson , Wheaton Chambers , Lane Chandler , Edward Clark , Elvira Curci , Cyril Delevanti , William Desmond , Kate Lawson , Miles Mander , Hank Mann , Paul Marion , Anthony Marlowe , Alphonse Martell , Belle Mitchell , Beatrice Roberts , Walter O. Stahl , Tudor Williams , Marek Windheim , Richard Bartell , Muni Seroff , Ernest Golm , James Mitchell , Johnny Walsh , Rosina Galli

This Technicolor retelling of the Gaston Leroux "grand guignol" classic The Phantom of the Opera has a little more opera than phantom, but that's because the stars are soprano Susannah Foster and teno... read more read more...r Nelson Eddy. Claude Rains carries the acting honors on his shoulders, playing a pathetic orchestra violinist who worships aspiring opera-singer Foster from afar. The girl is unaware that Rains has secretly been financing her music lessons with instructor Leo Carrillo. When he runs out of money, Rains attempts to sell the concerto that he's been working on all his life. Mistakenly believing that his precious concerto has been stolen from him, Rains attacks and kills the music publisher he holds responsible. Terrified, the publisher's mistress throws a pan full of acid into Rains' face. Rains runs screaming into the night, and is not heard from for the next reel or so. Soon afterward, the Paris Opera house is plagued by a series of mysterious accidents. The managers are informed via letter that the "accidents" will continue if Foster is not immediately promoted to leading roles. Only after reigning diva Jane Farrar is drugged into incapacitation is Foster given her big break. Farrar accuses Foster's boyfriend, police inspector Nelson Eddy, of doping her in order to advance Foster's career. Farrar is later strangled, and Eddy is accused of the crime. The culprit is, of course, Rains, who now poses as the masked-and-caped "phantom". Maniacally determined that no one will impede Foster's success, Rains causes a huge chandelier to crash down on the opera audience when Foster fails to appear onstage (she'd been kept from performing by police-chief Edgar Barrier, who hoped in this manner to flush The Phantom out of hiding). A chase through the catacombs below the opera house ensues, with Rains holding Foster prisoner. When Rains briefly lets down his guard, the tremulous Foster removes his mask. It's "yecccch," all right, but nowhere near as frightening as the unmasking scene in the silent Lon Chaney version of Phantom of the Opera. The same can be said for the rest of this 1943 remake, though in fairness it appears as though the film wasn't really designed to scare anyone, but instead to serve as a suspense yarn with musical interludes. Hume Cronyn makes his second film appearance in Phantom in a microscopic role. The huge sets designed for this picture were hastily reused for the 1944 Universal melodrama The Climax, starring Boris Karloff and (again) Susannah Foster. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Flixster Users

74% liked it

34,112 ratings

Critics

72% liked it

18 critics

Unrated, 1 hr. 32 min.

Directed by: Arthur Lubin

Release Date: August 27, 1943

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DVD Release Date: April 12, 2005

Stats: 1,054 reviews

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Flixster Reviews (1,054)

  • sanjurosamurai
    November 15, 2010
    sanjurosamurai
    although i love claude rains as an actor, his casting is the only thing in this film i slightly question, and even still, he did a great job with the role within his limitations with this character. aside from that, the film was really quite good. the music spaced out well and ... read morethe script solid, the end really left me gripped. a great film.
  • ajv2688
    October 13, 2010
    ajv2688
    I liked Claude Rains, but I didn't care too much for the movie. I'm sure there's a better film of the Phantom of the Opera.
  • kiriyamakazou
    January 23, 2010
    kiriyamakazou
    Universal's color production of Phantom of the Opera is a wonderful spectacle to behold. Rains makes for a brilliant pre-Phantom, but only his shadow is present for the remainder. His slip into madness is also quite sudden. It would have been nice for the main plot to take place ... read more10 years after the scarring. It's typical Hollywood cinema of the 40's, catering to the widest market. It helps that each of Christine's suiters is given enough time to develop, and none of them are unlikable. We even get a hilariously misjudged comedic scene where two men keep saying the exact same thing AND get stuck in a doorway. The musical productions are also very detailed, with the sets being impressive in both scale and design.
  • ythelastman89
    December 9, 2009
    ythelastman89
    For its time it is quite impressive, but it suffers from a weak plot that doesn't exactly translate from its play form. The suspense is dull until about the last 30 minutes, which is by far the best part of the film. Claude Rains played a really great kooky Phantom, he made the m... read moreovie worthwhile. The visuals are good, but it's not spectacular.
  • drblood
    June 24, 2007
    drblood
    This lavish colour production builds to terrifying climax as the phantom is chased through the catacombs of Paris.
  • superclerk25
    February 27, 2007
    superclerk25
    It's pretty good and the end had me laughing.
  • theSwitchbladeSister
    October 19, 2011
    theSwitchbladeSister
    A different take on a familiar story and characters. Visually the film is stunning, but it lacks quite a bit with the lack of empathy for any of the main characters. As much as I love Claude Rains, his portrayal of Erik needed perhaps a bit more screen time to develop.
  • TheBeginningAndTheEnd
    October 2, 2010
    TheBeginningAndTheEnd
    This is a fairly loose adaptation of Gaston Leroux's famous novel which i wouldn't find so much a problem if only it was a little better.
  • hartsgroveal
    August 1, 2008
    hartsgroveal
    One of the best musicals I've seen. Have only seen the most recent one however, but loved it to death!














    I haven't seen this one, but I have seen the most recent one and that was breathtaking! I loved the music and the plot, a very good, if not long, m... read moreovie.
  • soccerstar589
    July 4, 2008
    soccerstar589
    it was an ok movie, quite a bit different than the newest one. i liked how the two suitors always got stuck in the door cuz they were both trying to get in at the same time.

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Critic Reviews

Steve Crum
August 25, 2006
Steve Crum, Dispatch-Tribune Newspapers

Fine version of classic horror/love story/tragedy...minus music, of course.

Eric Lurio
December 27, 2004
Eric Lurio, Greenwich Village Gazette

If you liked the stage version, you'll LOVE this version.

Pablo Villaca
January 22, 2004
Pablo Villaca, Cinema em Cena

Esta luxuosa produção é bem-sucedida ao resgatar a grandiosidade da Ópera, mas falha justamente por permitir que seus valores técnicos transformem o Fantasma em coadjuvante.

Ken Hanke
September 11, 2003
Ken Hanke, Mountain Xpress (Asheville, NC)

Not very frightening, but the most impressively mounted version of the story.

March 26, 2009
Variety

Click to read the article Full Review

Bosley Crowther
March 25, 2006
Bosley Crowther, New York Times

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October 29, 2005
Boston Globe

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March 7, 2005
Atlanta Journal-Constitution

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Colin Covert
December 27, 2004
Colin Covert, Minneapolis Star Tribune

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December 27, 2004
Detroit Free Press

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Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

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Phantom of the Opera Trivia

  • What movie is about a deformed genious who hides under the Opera Populaire?  Answer »
  • In which musical did these lyrics come from: "Masquerade, paper faces on parade. Masquerade, hide your face so the world will never find you!"?  Answer »
  • Which film features Gerard Butler as a crazed frenchman living in the catacombs of an Opera house?  Answer »
  • "Listen To the Music of the Night" Name The Movie...  Answer »
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