I wanted to but couldn't!

Boring

Best movie ever!

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

This is an interesting version of this story. It is a Hammer film which is a British Studio that did a lot of horror films. The screenplay is written from the original story by a Hammer studio regular. While the script takes place in an opera house with the underground cavern, there are some differences in the story.It is much shorter than most versions of the Phantom. Most of the music is done by the Phantom on his organ. The mask is a full face mask instead of the half mask used in other versions. The cast here is mostly folks who co-star with others in films, but there are no big stars involved here.The story is quite different, partly for the short length. Partly because it was done on a $180,000 pound budget, which is pretty economical in 1962. That might explain the limited cast and the short length of the film. It was made to take advantage of Hammer films Horror reputation.By no means does this cast compare with other versions including the silent in 1925 by Lon Chaney (Sr.). It is a different take which might interest the many fans of this work, slightly. A true fan of Phantom of The Opera would be well advised to watch the other versions and then watch this one if they want something different.

Terence Fisher directed this Hammer studios version of the often-filmed story. Herbert Lom plays the Phantom, who was really Professor Petrie, a struggling composer who had his music stolen by the evil Ambrose D'Arcy(played by Michael Gough) who is now having an opera produced with his stolen music. The star of the opera Christine(played by Heather Sears) becomes an obsession of the Phantom, who became disfigured after a fire involving Ambrose. When he kidnaps Christine, her producer(played by Edward De Souza) pursues the trail to the Phantom's secret lair to stop this menace from further troubling them... Well directed and acted, especially by Lom, but film is otherwise disappointing, with an unsatisfying and dull story. Ambrose deserved a harsher on screen fate! Look for future "Doctor Who" actor Patrick Troughton as the opera rat-catcher.

Something is very amiss at a London opera house. Tragedy occurs at the grand opening night of a major production. The leading lady quits the program. But mean, lecherous, overbearing owner Lord Ambrose d'Arcy (superbly played to the haughty'n'hateful hilt by Michael Gough) insists that the show go on. He hires charming ingénue Christine (the enchanting Heather Sears) as the new lead. But the Phantom of the Opera (a splendid performance by Herbert Lom) has other plans. Directed with fluid assurance by Terence Fisher and written with praiseworthy intelligence by Anthony Hinds, this lavishly mounted picture has class and style to spare: Arthur Grant's handsome, vibrant cinematography, the remarkable set design (the Phantom's subterranean sewer lair is particularly impressive), Edwin Astley's robust, spooky score, the strikingly vivid and meticulous attention to period detail, and the beautiful opera music are all uniformly outstanding. Lom brings a winning blend of touching pathos and tremendous dignity to the role of the Phantom. Gough excels as a truly vile and revolting villain. Moreover, there are excellent supporting turns by Edward de Souza as engaging gentleman play producer Harry Hunter, Thorley Walters as browbeaten manager Lattimer, Ian Wilson as the Phantom's mute loyal dwarf friend, and Patrick Troughton as the grotesque the Rat Catcher. A bloody fine yarn.

The Phantom of the Opera (1963): Herbert Lom, Heather Sears, Michael Gough, Edward De Souza, Ian Wilson, Liane Aukin, Thorley Walters, Marne Maitland, John Harvey, Miriam Karlin, Martin Miller, Harold Goodwin, Sonya Cordeau, Leila Forde, Miles Malleson, Renee Houston, Patrick Troughton, Laurie Main, John Maddison, Geoffrey L'Oise, Liam Redmond...Director Terence Fisher...Screenplay Anthony Hinds.This is a Hammer horror film production directed by Terence Fisher and released in 1962. French author Gaston Leroux's 1911 novel "Phantom of the Opera" has been made for film and television for years, each version being completely different from the other, none of them faithful to Leroux's original novel. The most famous and closest to the novel is legendary Lon Cheney's silent film from 1926. In this version, Herbert Lom portrays the Phantom and Heather Sears portrays Christine. Following the plot to the 1943 Phantom with Claude Rains and Susanna Foster, the Phantom was once a normal-looking man, a resident of London. He is an obscure and aspiring composer, a music professor named Petrie who makes a deal with the licentious and wicked Lord Ambrose D'Arcy (Michael Gough)to whom he sells his compositions for publication. But Lord Ambrose takes the credit for writing the works, including an opera, Saint Joan of Arc, which triggers the fury of Professor Petrie. He breaks into the publishing building and sets it on fire, only to scar himself in the process. His face becomes deformed and he seeks shelter from the world by living beneath the Opera house. The opera "Joan Of Arc" premieres but it's a disastrous night after a stagehand is killed by a mysterious force. Although the opera company speaks of a resident ghost, the heroic and curious Harry Hunter (Edward De Souza) investigates who this Phantom really is. Things are further complicated when the Phantom abducts the bright new star, Christine Charles, whom he holds in thrall. His desire: to make her into the world's greatest soprano. Phantom fans will be pleased with the little familiar elements that are part of the Phantom legend: the death of a stagehand by hanging, an arrogant diva whose brief limelight is soon replaced by Christine, the Phantom's abduction of Christine and his role as her vocal coach, the masked Phantom playing the organ in the dark depths of the opera house by a lake, and a chandelier that falls. But quite frankly, these things, which although true to the novel, are not put together in faithfulness. Spoilers: The death of the stagehand happens far too soon and the Phantom has a hunchback, dwarf assistant who is a totally made-up character for the film (played by Ian Wilson of My Fair Lady). The story is not set in Paris but in London. The chandelier which famously falls around the middle of the story, falls toward the end and even crushes the Phantom who unmasks himself (Christine never unmasks him) who leaps to save Christine. Everything is therefore actually inaccurate to the novel and the Lon Cheney version, which subsequent versions have always aspired to resemble. The best parts of the film lie in the color and cinematography. The Hammer film series were done in gorgeous and innovative color and cinematic style. The look of this film is as lovely as the 1943 Claude Rains version. Beautiful and period-correct costumes, fine theatrical interior scenes and the original music by Edwin Astley is grand, especially the fictional opera "Joan of Arc". Still another good thing is the quality of acting from the principal actors. Michael Gough steals the show as the egotistical, arrogant, womanizing and villainous Lord D'Arcy who is responsible for the Phantom's tragic situation. But again he is a character that never appeared in the original source. Herbert Lom is fine but clearly inspired by both Claude Rains in his "Professor" role and Lon Cheney in his "Phantom" mode. The Lon Cheney influence is evident in his body language and the gesticulations of his hands. He raises them and points at Christine the way Lon Cheney did with Mary Philbin. Heather Sears is not impressive as Christine, but then again her character in every version has always been flat and simply the Phantom's romantic interest. It's interesting to note that in this version she is NOT the Phantom's object of love. He is merely her teacher, and he is more brutal with her (even slaps her) because she is a means to achieve his masterpiece, the opera that he was never given credit for. We do not get a genuinely romantic feeling from this film in regards to the Phantom and Christine except for Christine's relationship with Harry. So when the Phantom risks his own life to save her it's very much a surprise and an ending that is too abrupt and spontaneous. Because this film is not faithful to the Phantom we all know and love from Cheney to Andrew Lloyd Webber, I rate this film with a 6 out of 10.