Phantom of the Opera
Universal Pictures | Release Date: August 27, 1943 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
63
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 7 Critic Reviews
Positive:
2
Mixed:
5
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
80
Los Angeles TimesKevin Thomas
Arthur Lubin's elegant 1942 color version of the Gaston Leroux chiller remains one of the best, with a chilling yet poignant Claude Rains prowling a Paris Opera house, wreaking hideous revenge. [20 Oct 1996, p.4]
75
Boston GlobeTy Burr
The Phantom of the Opera was never a brilliant movie, but it remains great, ghoulish fun, with Chaney tiptoeing the line between sympathy and shudders. Read full review
60
The New York TimesBosley Crowther
To be sure, the production is elegant. Settings and costumes are superfine and, photographed in technicolor, they all mawe a lavish display. But that richness of décor and music is precisely what gets in the way of the tale. Read full review
60
TV Guide MagazineStaff (Not Credited)
Universal Studios' elaborate and expensive remake of their classic 1925 silent horror film The Phantom of the Opera boasts fabulous sets, gorgeous costumes, and stunning Technicolor photography--but fails in the horror department, because of an excess of music and low comedy. Read full review
60
VarietyStaff (Not Credited)
Phantom of the Opera is far more of a musical than a chiller, though this element is not to be altogether discounted, and holds novelty appeal. Read full review
50
The New YorkerPauline Kael
Someone at Universal had the brainstorm of redoing the 1925 silent Lon Chaney horror picture and taking advantage of the fact that it was set in an opera house to make it not only a sound picture but a high-toned musical. The result is this flaccid, sedate version.
50
Time OutStaff (Not Credited)
The accent is more on musical extravaganza than horror, with endless operatic snippets for Eddy and Foster to warble, making it all a somewhat tiresome waste of Rains' performance. Read full review
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