A glimpse into insanity, the classic silent film Phantom of the Opera (1925) is a powerful story of the consequences of a society too obsessed with beauty and grace, where one man suffers a terrible accident, leaving him hideous, and is outcast from Paris. Now in hiding in the Paris Opera House, his mysterious presence a symbol of titillating terror, the abyss separating him from human society erodes his basic respect for humanity, leaving only one bitter peak of his former life:
His love of beauty.
For he is a voice teacher, coaching a lovely up and comer, Christine, from the shadows in which he moves, never revealing his shattered visage to her. She is now the understudy, and he demands, through written correspondence, that the owners of the Opera House make her the prima donna over the current prima. But, the mother of the current demurs, and the next time the current prima donna performs, a chandelier suddenly falls into the audience, precipitating panic.
Investigations intensify, from a spurned lover as well as the police; the Phantom finds an Opera House employee has discovered one of his secrets and ends his life. And Christine soon vanishes, drawn into the shadows of the Phantom, where the sensitive nerves of the Phantom are once again plunged into a salt bath. Her rejection of his ruined face plunges him into infernal madness.
Frantic searches ensue, the Opera House employees snatch up torches, and after one more fruitless ploy, the Phantom is plunged into the river.
There are irritating facets to this movie: “The Strangler” appears to be a deus ex machina, although later it appears it’s simply the Phantom. Christine is, in my Arts Editor’s words, “a wench”. But the innovative use of symbolism, lighting, and the inventive story keeps this movie moving right along, its message perhaps more applicable now than ever.
Recommended.
