This deliriously daft rock musical filters "Faust" through "The Phantom of the Opera" throwing in "The Picture of Dorian Gray" while plagiarizing God-knows how many movies on the way. It's an early De Palma and it contains many of his signature marks. When it came out I thought it fresh enough to choose it as my best film of the year. Now it looks like a period piece but it's a fun movie nevertheless. Paul Williams, Jessica Harper and Gerrit Graham are still very good but the soon never to be heard of William Finley simply can't carry the role of the Phantom. Today it's a cult movie, beloved by those who prefer De Palma's more off-the-wall efforts. Certainly it's no longer 'best film' material but it's still worth seeing.
Review of Phantom of the Paradise
