Phantom of the Paradise – 1974

• 2015/03/13

Musicals ain’t what they used to be, but to be fair they never used to be like this. This is a one-off of epic-proportions: Brian De Palma riffs on the Phantom of the Opera, but also channels Hitchcock and plants seeds that will inspire the likes of Rocky Horror Picture Show and Star Wars. No summary can do it justice so let’s just mention that it’s a wide-angle bonanza, confirms the genius of Paul Williams, stars the original Darth Vader prototype and has the nuttiest prison escape montage ever put to film.