Phantom of the Paradise
Twentieth Century Fox | Release Date: November 1, 1974 CRITIC SCORE DISTRIBUTION
67
METASCORE
Generally favorable reviews based on 9 Critic Reviews
Positive:
7
Mixed:
2
Negative:
0
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Critic Reviews

Critic scorePublicationBy date
90
VarietyStaff (Not Credited)
A very good horror comedy-drama about a disfigured musician haunting a rock palace. Brian De Palma's direction and script makes for one of the very rare backstage rock story pix, catching the garishness of the glitter scene in its own time. Read full review
90
The New YorkerPauline Kael
The film is a one-of-a-kind entertainment, with a kinetic, breakneck wit.
88
Slant MagazineBudd Wilkins
This is De Palma pouring the new wine of his formal inventiveness and anti-authoritarian irreverence into the old bottles of archetypal myths, and it remains a supremely entertaining anomaly within his filmography, yet entirely emblematic of his filmmaking sensibilities. Read full review
83
The A.V. ClubIgnatiy Vishnevetsky
A smorgasbord of camp, Grand Guignol, and bird imagery that thumbed its metal beak at commercial considerations. Read full review
75
TV Guide MagazineStaff (Not Credited)
A better rock'n'roll parody than The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and one of director Brian De Palma's more original efforts, Phantom of the Paradise combines elements of The Phantom of the Opera and the Faust legend into a fairly entertaining, but only sporadically successful, horror-musical comedy. Read full review
70
Time OutStaff (Not Credited)
A highly inventive updating of the Phantom of the Opera story to the rockbiz world - complete with borrowings from Faust and The Picture of Dorian Gray. Read full review
70
The GuardianPhilip French
A garish cult thriller. Read full review
60
Chicago ReaderDave Kehr
This was one of De Palma's early efforts, and its excesses can be chalked up to youthful enthusiasm—the ideas seem appealingly audacious even when they misfire, which is more often than not. Read full review
40
The New York TimesVincent Canby
Phantom of the Paradise is an elaborate disaster, full of the kind of facetious humor you might find on bumper stickers and cocktail coasters. Read full review
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