THE PHANTOM OF THE OPERA (1925) – Lon Chaney Senior’s makeup and performance as the title character were envelope-pushing for 1925 audiences. To me this is the ULTIMATE silent horror film. It may sound odd, but in my opinion this movie is the very best cinematic adaptation of the Gaston Leroux novel.
Nearly every frame of this masterpiece is like a painting and it’s a rare viewer who can take their eyes off the screen at all as the movie plays. Lon Chaney’s iconic portrayal of Erik, the hideously deformed Phantom of the Paris Opera House, is magnificent in every way.
The Phantom’s way of stalking his victims by clinging to the shadows and maneuvering around every twist and turn of the secret passageways and catacombs of the Opera House makes this seem like the master mold of so many inferior slasher flicks to come.
Chaney’s grotesque makeup, the Black Lake of the Catacombs and the Gothic horror visuals of the sprawling Opera House that is the Phantom’s domain all combine to make this an undeniable classic. No other film adaptation features such a haunting unmasking scene as the tormented musical genius Erik plays Don Juan Triumphant.
FOR MY REVIEWS OF TWENTY-THREE MORE GREAT SILENT HORROR FILMS CLICK HERE.
FOR A SIMILAR LOOK AT DOUGLAS FAIRBANKS’ SILENT SWASHBUCKLER MOVIES CLICK HERE.
FOR STARLET THEDA BARA’S SILENT FILMS CLICK HERE.
FOR HARRY HOUDINI’S FOUR SILENT FILMS AND ONE SILENT SERIAL CLICK HERE.
FOR ALFRED HITCHCOCK’S SILENT MOVIES CLICK HERE.
Balladeer's Blog 
My kind of guy. And so handsome!
LMAO! Yeah, and he’s a real renaissance man, too! A brilliant architect, engineer, opera composer, strangler, poisoner, stabber, and master of the old swimming underwater while breathing through a reed trick!
It doesn’t get much more iconic than Lon Chaney.
I agree!
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Thanks!
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A classic. Lon Chaney at his best.
I certainly agree!
Brilliant film! I agree that it is the best adaptation. If only for the fact that it actually stays true to the original story. The Phantom was hideously deformed at birth, resembling a skull like the iconic Lon Chaney makeup. The 1943 version is the one that introduced the disfiguration by acid. Something that just doesn’t have the same impact as a man that never knew life as an ordinary person.
You are certainly right about that!
This film was a groundbreaker in the use of color. All film buffs should watch it.
Absolutely!
Certainly one of the most respectable and artful efforts as an influencer in this genre.
It certainly was!
Great reviews of silent movies. I haven’t seen this one before, but it does sound promising to me. I have never been a huge fan of “Phantom of the Opera”, but I do love Broadway musicals that are made into movies. For instance, I loved the adaptation of the musical “West Side Story”. Steven Spielberg did an incredible job of introducing the classical musical to a modern generation. One of my favorite films of 2021.
Here’s why I recommend it strongly:
“West Side Story” (2021) – Marvelous Musical Remake – The Film Buff (huilahimovie.reviews)
I appreciate it! I’m on my way to your review.