Pretty women of Paris are brutally murdered and the police are stumped. At least until they suspect a dashing college professor who is clearly innocent. Who is the real murderer? Read the TCM description to find out.
Occasionally I see a film I hadn’t since I was a boy and images flash back as the events unfold. This is one such film. I don’t know if I was eight or eighteen when I saw it last, but I had distinct memories of key scenes. I enjoyed that.
A mannered period piece, Phantom has a similar feel to 1953’s House of Wax. Both featured lush sets and filmed in vibrant color and in 3-D. Maybe it didn’t live up to the earlier adaptation of the Poe story or audiences were done with the 3-D gimmick, but the film tanked. It’s poor showing convinced Merv Griffin (yup, THAT Merv Griffin) to abandon his dream to be a Hollywood leading man and focus on television. Blink and you’ll miss him.
Karl Malden is here being very, well, Karl Malden. In my youth I remember him most from American Express commercials, but he shows up from time to time. I'll discuss him more in my next post. Dashing suspects lovely fiancee is played by the lovely Patricia Medina, six years his senior. There was something nuanced about her performance that I remember from the previous viewing. I haven't seen her in anything else.
The inspector brings our poor suspected hero along to see crime scenes and listen to witnesses (of course) allowing him to piece together the story with only sparse information. Also, the Rue Morgue is mentioned once, and never visited. I should read the Poe story and definitely see the earlier version.
There’s no real mystery here (Thanks TCM!) and parts are silly, but I found Phantom of the Rue Morgue fun. Would I have had the nostalgia factor been absent? Maybe not, but I don’t care. AMRU 3.5.
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