Phantom of the Opera (Ultimate Edition) [DVD]

The PHANTOM OF THE OPERA with Lon Chaney that most everyone knows is not the original version of the film. It is a 1929 reissue with several changes made to accomodate the addition of sound. Ironic that one of the most famous silent films of all time should be known from a sound version that lost its voice. New footage was shot, characters were changed and most important of all whole scenes were rearranged or eliminated altogether. This makes the storyline much harder to follow and interrupts the flow of the film when compared with the original which sticks much closer to Gaston Leroux's novella except for the rousing chase scene added at the end by the studio. Now thanks to this handsome 2 DVD set you can have both versions and make the comparison for yourself. As the 1929 film is the one most people have seen and are familiar with, I shall focus on the original 1925 version.

The problem is that, like Lon Chaney's other classic Universal horror film THE HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME, the orignal PHANTOM exists only in 16mm reductions made for the home market back in the 1920's. While the quality will never be that of the 1929 version which exists in 35mm, it is possible, as in the case of the Ultimate Edition of HUNCHBACK, to significantly improve the picture quality. There have been reports that a restoration is underway but so far, nothing. I continue to look forward to that possibility as I much prefer the 1925 version for a clearer storyline and better motivated characters. Raoul and Christine have more depth (the Angel of Music scene is there) and Inspector Ledoux of the Secret Police actually makes sense. While longer than the 1929 reissue, it seems shorter due to the way the story unfolds. It is a true silent film rather than one reedited for sound.

Of course Lon Chaney's 'Phantom of the opera' is one of the best surviving silent movies. And with this edition it's great to be able to make a comparison between the 1925 and 1929 versions. Before I bought this DVD, I didn't even know that the version I owned uptil then was a 1929 re-release. After having watched the different versions, I must say that in my opinion the 1929 version is the better one, but for film fans it's essential to have watched the 1925 version at least once. I would recommend to watch it with the commentary track, which is very interesting.

It's really wonderful that they took the effort to release a special edition of 'Phantom of the opera'. Let's hope other silents will receive the same treatment.