Phantom of the Paradise (1974)

A disfigured composer sells his soul for the woman he loves so that she will perform his music. However, an evil record tycoon betrays him and steals his music to open his rock palace, The Paradise.

Director:

Brian De Palma

Writer:

Brian De Palma

Stars:

Paul Williams, William Finley, Jessica Harper

Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 3 wins & 4 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
William Finley	...	Winslow / The Phantom
Paul Williams	...	Swan
Jessica Harper	...	Phoenix
Gerrit Graham	...	Beef
George Memmoli	...	Philbin
Archie Hahn	...	The Juicy Fruits / The Beach Bums / The Undeads
Jeffrey Comanor	...	The Juicy Fruits / The Beach Bums / The Undeads
Peter Elbling	...	The Juicy Fruits / The Beach Bums / The Undeads (as Harold Oblong)
Colin Cameron	...	Band
David Garland	...	Band
Gary Mallaber	...	Band
Art Munson	...	Band
Mary Margaret Amato	...	Swan's Entourage
Rand Bridges	...	Swan's Entourage
Jim Bohan	...	Swan's Entourage

Storyline

Evil record tycoon Swan has sold his soul to the devil for eternal youth and success - 20 years ago. Swan's current scheme is to steal the music from composer Winslow Leach to celebrate the opening of his rock palace, The Paradise. While trying to stop Swan, Leach was framed and convicted for drug dealing, and becomes the victim of a freak accident that leaves him horribly disfigured. He takes refuge in the cavernous Paradise, hiding his mangled face beneath an eerie mask and planning gruesome vengeance upon Swan - and everyone else who has hurt him. However, Leach signs a contract with Swan to complete his rock opera based on the legend of Faust for an aspiring singer - Phoenix.

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Plot Keywords:

black comedy | rock opera | rock 'n' roll | masked man | rock star | 

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Taglines:

He sold his soul for rock 'n' roll!

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Genres:

Comedy | Drama | Fantasy | Horror | Music | Musical | Romance | Thriller

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Certificate:

PG

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

1 November 1974 (USA)

Also Known As:

Phantom

Filming Locations:

Greystone Park & Mansion - 905 Loma Vista Drive, Beverly Hills, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,300,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Harbor Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

91 min

Sound Mix:

4-Track Stereo (Westrex Recording System)

Color:

Color (Movielab)

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

A novelization by Bjarne Rostaing was released in 1975. Based on an early draft of the screenplay, the book reads like fan-fiction, telling a drastically different story than the film.

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Goofs

When Swan is talking to the devil in the mirror, Swan takes the contract from him. However, when the devil says the words "in blood", he is still holding the contract.

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Quotes

Swan: [Crowd chants Beef's name as his corpse is carried away in a body bag] Look at them, they've really been entertained. They never want this show to stop. The Paradise is more magnificent than I ever dreamed.
Arnold Philbin: Sure, how often is a rock star fried on stage?
Swan: Quite an attraction.

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Crazy Credits

The closing credits feature a series of montages of the cast members, identifying each by name, starting with the musical trio (Oblong, Hahn, Comanor) and concluding with William Finley as Winslow/The Phantom. These montages are made up of shots ostensibly from the movie, and most of them are, but there are also numerous outtakes.

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Alternate Versions

In the pre-release (or press) prints of the movie, the scene where Winslow was disfigured by the record press was longer; His disfigured face was briefly seen steaming with smoke from the press, and Winslow then killed the cop that surprised him (and shot him in the leg, which explained why Winslow walked with a limp for most of the film; however, he was able to run with the greatest of ease towards the end). The scene was removed from subsequent versions, as it was best decided that Winslow's disfigured visage be revealed at the end of the film.

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Connections

Version of Erik: Portrait of a Living Corpse (2010)

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Soundtracks

Faust
Written by Paul Williams
Performed by Paul Williams

User Reviews

Incredible

For the time this movie was made it compares to anything made these days. I only wish it was available to purchase, I have to look more. I can't believe the number of people that I ask about it who have never heard of the movie. I own the soundtrack on vinyl and I still pull it out from time to time and listen to it. Jessica Harper has an incredible voice as Pheonix, and when she sings Old Souls, I still get goosebumps. Should there be anyone out there read this and know where I may be able to obtain a copy of the movie, could you please post and I will check back. Musicals are not usually one of my favorite types of movies, but I would highly recommend Phantom of the Paradise to anyone. Paul Williams is an awesome actor and his role of Swan, well, I don't think it would have been the same had another actor taken it. Again if anyone knows where I could obtain a copy of this movie, please write. Thank you