Phantom of the Opera (1943) - 8 stars out of 10

Phantom of the Opera (1943) - 8 stars out of 10

After so many years of exposure to the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical, the experience of the 1943 version of "Phantom of the Opera" was a fresh look at the famous story. This film sets all mysticism aside to make it much more believable than the musical. Although it has been criticized for having too much music and too little horror, I adored the opera sequences with Susanna Foster's angelic voice and Ward's musical adaptations of Chopin and Tchaikovsky. I loved Claude Rains as the Phantom and appreciated that the first 1/2-hour was his character development (showing events that lead up to Webber's version). My only distaste for this version is the occasional confusion between comedy and drama. It seemed like every time that the intensity started to build, there would be an awkward and comedic scene between Christine, Raul, and Garron. I would've preferred more horror and less comedy but if you enjoy the musical, you will surely enjoy this classic take on the story.