The Phantom of the Opera (1962)

Terror strikes the London Opera House as a new opera is disrupted by the actions of a deformed specter of the show's past who has an obsession with one of the production's chorus girl.

Director:

Terence Fisher

Writers:

Anthony Hinds (screenplay) (as John Elder), Gaston Leroux (composition)

Stars:

Herbert Lom, Heather Sears, Edward de Souza

1 nomination.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Herbert Lom	...	The Phantom (Prof. L. Petrie)
Heather Sears	...	Christine Charles
Edward de Souza	...	Harry Hunter
Thorley Walters	...	Lattimer
Michael Gough	...	Lord Ambrose d'Arcy
Harold Goodwin	...	Bill
Martin Miller	...	Rossi
Liane Aukin	...	Maria
Sonya Cordeau	...	Yvonne
Marne Maitland	...	Xavier
Miriam Karlin	...	Charwoman (as Miriam Carlin)
Patrick Troughton	...	The Rat Catcher
Renee Houston	...	Mrs. Tucker
Keith Pyott	...	Weaver
John Harvey	...	Sgt. Vickers

Storyline

The corrupt Lord Ambrose D'Arcy (Michael Gough) steals the life's work of the poor composer Professor L. Petrie. (Herbert Lom). In an attempt to stop the printing of music with D'Arcy's name on it, Petrie breaks into the printing office and accidentally starts a fire, leaving him severely disfigured. Years later, Petrie returns to terrorize a London opera house that is about to perform one of his stolen operas.

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Plot Keywords:

casting couch | psychotronic film | composer | murder | london england | 

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Taglines:

BENEATH HIS MASK...the Grotesque Face of Horror Unimaginable! INSIDE HIS HEART...the Desperate Desire for Beauty and Love!

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Genres:

Drama | Horror | Music | Mystery | Thriller

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Certificate:

Unrated

Details

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Release Date:

15 August 1962 (USA)

Also Known As:

Das Phantom der Oper

Filming Locations:

Bray Studios, Down Place, Oakley Green, Berkshire, England, UK

Box Office

Budget:

GBP180,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Hammer Films

Technical Specs

Runtime:

97 min (Extended Version)

Sound Mix:

Mono (RCA Sound Recording)

Color:

Color (Eastmancolor)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A subplot involving a pair of Scotland Yard police inspectors on the trail of the Phantom was shot especially for the American TV version (by the TV companies, not by Hammer). This was a regular occurrence in this era, most notably with Hammer's films The Kiss of the Vampire (1963) and The Evil of Frankenstein (1964).

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Goofs

Although there is great attention to the music of the opera - it almost sounds like a real Bernard Herrmann 20th century opera - when the conductor turns the page and it is torn, it is only page two of the score. Act I has been going on for a few minutes, probably roughly 20 pages of a standard score, but the conductor is still on page one which is about six bars, or 10 seconds of music.

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Quotes

[first lines]
Lattimer: The house is sold out, my lord.
Lord Ambrose d'Arcy: No further incidents, I trust?
Lattimer: No, nothing. Everything seems quite normal.

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Alternate Versions

A subplot involving a pair of Scotland Yard police inspectors on the trail of the Phantom was shot especially for the American TV version (by the TV companies, not by Hammer). This was a regular occurrence in this era, most notably with Hammer's films The Kiss of the Vampire and The Evil of Frankenstein.

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Connections

Featured in Aweful Movies with Deadly Earnest: The Phantom of the Opera (1973)

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Soundtracks

Aver Maria (Ellens dritter Gesang D.839)
(uncredited)
Music by Franz Schubert
Sung in latin

User Reviews

Hammer horror does the Phantom

This is the Phantom that scared the heck out of me when I was a kid, and comes in second after the classic Lon Chaney version. It is the only color version that really works, here given that garish, over-the-top gothic treatment that worked so well for Hammer Studios. It doesn't have the ponderous, plodding feel of the book or other versions, and follows through with a scary shot-in-the-arm or two. More complete video stores should have this on the shelf.