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Reviews
The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
The Phantom of the Opera: A Silent Phenomenon
Phantom of the Opera was filmed in 1925 and is based on the Gaston Leroux novel of the same title. The film has been around for close to 90 years and is still widely known and watched today. It has been deemed "culturally significant" by the Library of Congress and selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry. It compiled wonderful actors and directors together to form an original masterpiece.
The director uses a feeling of suspense and anxiety throughout the entire movie when he disguises certain actions and faces to keep the audience interested. For example, a man at Box Five is only portrayed as a shadowy figure. Another light factor occurs when the Phantom is about to strike and the lights flicker on and off at the Opera House. This gives the viewer a foreshadowing of what's about to happen and also, it gives a bit of a taste of the Phantom's character and how he likes to make an entrance.
Consequently, the main characters played by Lon Chaney and Mary Philbin were well portrayed by the use of Gothic costumes and elaborate facial expressions. For instance, the Phantom hypnotizes Christine by using his enormous eyes when she gets closer to his home. This scene stresses the fact that the Phantom is not an ordinary individual and possesses dangerous talents, which Lon Chaney has no problem in emphasizing. Mary Philbin's shining moment occurs when Christine against all odds, chooses to meet with Raoul, her lover. This actually ends up endangering both of their lives. The actress freely goes back and forth between a frightened and a content facial expression throughout the film, which proves to add to Christine's personality.
Furthermore, Phantom of the Opera contains various Gothic elements, making it into a romantic horror. Even a small incidence of a black cat walking across the stage, portrays a sense of superstition and a supernatural presence. The red cape that the Phantom is wearing when he spies on Christine and Raoul is a reference to death, which can be thought of as a type of unreality as well.
Overall, I recommend this movie to anyone who is looking for an escape from their ordinary life into a Gothic romance. The film itself can be lengthy at times when no real action is occurring, but in a way, it adds to the suspense that the director is trying to develop. Even its score can be thought of as an artistic addition because it adds to the mood of the entire plot. I can honestly admit that what I expected from the film by just looking at the year that it was done, was nothing what it turned out to be. I enjoyed Phantom of the Opera as much as I would have enjoyed a movie with actual sound in it.
Freaks (1932)
Stereotypes in "Freaks"
FREAKS, a 1932 controversial film directed by Tod Browning, contains some of the most incredibly talented handicapped actors, who truly make it worth-while.The movie is extremely popular mainly because of these actors and the fact that they were real people and on a daily basis,had to deal with their deformities. Tod Browning made the decision of hiring them, which probably was one of the best decisions that he made throughout the film. They not only are original, but contain more socially acceptable qualities than the average actors do in FREAKS.
The stereotypes in this film, enhance it because without them, it would have been too bland and it most likely wouldn't have had as much popularity. It portrays the handicapped characters participating in day to day activities such as shaving, washing laundry, and eating meals. Therefore, FREAKS can be considered a documentary in a way. The audience can see how these actors live their lives, while they're watching a sweet tale about Frieda and her beloved, Hans.
The message in this film that the director was going for was probably that whoever thinks that deformed people are a joke, will become a joke themselves. It's a pretty simple message of karma when one thinks about it. However, there is another message within the movie, which included Frieda's love for Hans. She wants him to be truly content with his life, but deep inside she knows that he will eventually come back to her. Frieda knows that no one outside of the handicapped circle can truly appreciate and love a being who comes directly from it.
I feel that showing the scene with Hans was necessary if Tod Browning was going more for the message of the handicapped's love for one another. However, if he wanted the movie to strictly focus on circus freaks and how they get mistreated by the more fortunate people, he would have ended it with the showcase of the new and improved Cleopatra after her legs were chopped off.
If someone attempted to remake FREAKS today, it would most likely not raise any eyebrows. This is because directors wouldn't dare to use deformed actors, but would rather use new technological advances for that. For that reason, the audience would focus on the actual plot, which was not so good to begin with. There is no need to remake this movie because the original version has made a huge impact on the film-making industry with only a few reasons, the "freaks."