The Phantom of the Opera (1916)
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| Original title | The Phantom of the Opera |
| Country of production | Germany |
| original language | German |
| Publishing year | 1916 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Ernst Mátray |
| script | Greta Schröder based on the novel Le Fantôme de l'Opéra by Gaston Leroux |
| production | Jules Greenbaum |
| camera | Mutz Greenbaum |
| occupation | |
| |
The Phantom of the Opera is a German silent film drama from 1916 by Ernst Mátray with Nils Chrisander and Aud Egede Nissen in the leading roles.
action
The builder of the opera house, Erik, has equipped his venue with all kinds of technical and mechanical refinements from the start. And he provided a secret passage during construction that he can use to get into his vaulted cellar unnoticed. Erik has built a second, secret existence for himself with an old regular at the opera who calls himself Das Phantom. One day the female opera star falls ill and cannot perform. The Phantom then recommends a young, unknown artist to the opera director for the role of Margaret: Christine.
The director takes Christine, but has no idea that the young girl is becoming an obsession with the phantom disfigured in the face, who has fallen madly in love with the young singer. Christine celebrates great success, which soon feeds Erik's jealousy and claims to ownership. One day The Phantom kidnaps her and keeps the singer trapped in the vaulted cellar known only to him as his very personal property, in the hope that she will return his love. Only Christine's friend can free the young woman with the help of a Persian. The phantom finds death.
Production notes
The Phantom of the Opera is the first film adaptation of this popular horror novel by Gaston Leroux . The shooting took place in the autumn of 1915 in the Greenbaum studios in Berlin-Weißensee . In March 1916 the film passed the censorship and was premiered (probably a little later) in the Marble House . In the same year Das Phantom der Oper opened in Vienna with a length of four acts. At the new German censorship on April 22, 1921, the film, which was now running as Das Gespenst in the Opera House , was five acts at 1,381 meters long and was banned from young people.
The screenwriter Greta Schröder was married to the phantom director Ernst Mátray at the time of filming and called herself Greta Schröder-Matray. For the 19-year-old budding cameraman Mutz Greenbaum and son of producer Jules Greenbaum , this production was one of his first jobs as a chief photographer.
The film is now considered lost.
Reviews
“This effective film has a special peculiarity due to the fantastic, mysterious storyline, which ultimately finds its solution in a very natural way. Particularly noteworthy are the really, particularly splendid pictures, which, in keeping with the mysterious plot, are very impressive, taken in gloomy lighting. "
In Paimann's film lists you can read: "Good stuff, photos, game and scenery are very good."
Web links
- Phantom of the Opera at the Internet Movie Database (English)
- The Phantom of the Opera at filmportal.de
- The Phantom of the Opera at The German Early Cinema Database
Individual evidence
- ↑ Cinematographische Rundschau of May 14, 1916. P. 13
- ↑ The Phantom of the Opera ( Memento of the original from March 16, 2016 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. in Paimann's film lists
