Phantom Of The Paradise

Phantom of the Paradise is a 1974 musical film written and directed by Brian De Palma. The story is a loosely adapted mixture of The Phantom of the Opera, The Picture of Dorian Gray and Faust, and also briefly references Frankenstein, Psycho, and The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari. Initially, it was a box office failure and was panned by some critics, but it was nominated for an Academy Award and a Golden Globe and has since acquired a significant cult following.

The story follows music composer/singer Winslow Leach (William Finley), who is seen by Satanic record producer Swan (Paul Williams) during his performance as a back-up act to the nostalgia band The Juicy Fruits, whom Swan produces. Swan is deeply moved by Winslow’s song, and, deeming Winslow’s music as the perfect music to open “The Paradise” – Swan’s highly anticipated new concert hall – has his right-hand man Arnold Philbin (George Memmoli) steal it. When Winslow arrives at Death Records, Swan’s record label, he is thrown out. When he sneaks into “The Swanage”, Swan’s private mansion, to find out what’s going on, he observes several women all rehearsing his music for an audition.

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