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For the second part of my four-part miniseries about underrated or unknown musicals, I will dive into one of my all-time favorites, Paul Williams’ Phantom of the Paradise (1974) (( Palma De, Brian. Phantom of the Paradise. 31 October 1974. 20th Century Fox. Film. )). This movie is very much a product of its time with its depictions of the ’70s record scene of sex, drugs, and rock & roll. The tagline of Phantom of the Paradise is literally, “He sold his soul for rock and roll” (( Palma De, Brian. Phantom of the Paradise. 31 October 1974. 20th Century Fox. Film. )). Obviously, music is central to this movie, not only because it’s a musical, but because it’s about the production of music.
Throughout the movie, the music transcends its physical form as sheet music and becomes a source of identity. Every character in the movie is characterized by their relationship with music — the Phantom as the composer, Phoenix as the singer, and Swan as the producer. In Phantom of the Paradise, music becomes both the Phantom’s identity and a reflection of the singers’ understanding of the music.
Music And Identity For The Phantom
For Winslow Leach, the movie’s Phantom, music is everything. When talking about his cantata Faust at the beginning of the movie, Winslow lovingly says, “It’s not just songs. It’s much more…” (( Palma De, Brian. Phantom of the Paradise. 31 October 1974. 20th Century Fox. Film. )). Throughout the first half of the movie, Winslow refers to himself as “the composer” (( Palma De, Brian. Phantom of the Paradise. 31 October 1974. 20th Century Fox. Film. )). His choice of introduction highlights his preference for his identity to be tied to his music.
Winslow feels an aggressive possessiveness towards his music. Initially in the movie, Winslow proclaims that he is “the only one who can sing Faust” because he doesn’t think that anyone else would understand it like he does (( Palma De, Brian. Phantom of the Paradise. 31 October 1974. 20th Century Fox. Film. )). Winslow’s music is deep and profound, so it would require an emotionally intelligent singer to perform it properly. At this point in the movie, Winslow has yet to find anyone worthy.
Winslow’s possessiveness only escalates as Phantom of the Paradise continues, mostly due to Winslow’s graphic and jarring transformation into the Phantom. First, his music is stolen by Swan, then Winslow gets framed and sent to prison, then he escapes prison, and then he accidentally burns off half of his face and ruins his voice. By ruining his voice, Winslow loses his connection to music, which also means he severs his ties to his former identity as “Winslow, The Composer.” Therefore, after sneaking into Swan’s rock & roll haven called The Paradise, it is very easy for Winslow to take on his new identity as The Paradise’s Phantom, whose only goal is to get his revenge against Swan.
But Winslow quickly sheds the revenge-focused Phantom identity in favor of another music-focused identity. After wreaking havoc at The Paradise, Swan strikes a deal with Winslow. Swan tells Winslow that if he stops attacking The Paradise, then he can have his voice back to write songs for The Paradise. Winslow agrees, so Winslow’s voice is reconstructed using Swan’s recording equipment. However, Winslow’s voice doesn’t sound the same anymore, and he can no longer perform outside of the recording booth because he needs the tech that’s inside. As a result, Winslow chooses Phoenix, a girl he met earlier in the movie, to act as his voice so that he can reclaim his identity.
Who Can Sing The Music?
When Winslow first meets Phoenix, she is singing “Faust,” one of Winslow’s songs. Phoenix sings in a room full of hundreds of other singing women, but Winslow is able to easily pick out her voice. After hearing her sing, Winslow goes up to her and coaches her through a couple of the lines to help perfect what she’s doing. For Winslow, Phoenix is the only one who sings his songs correctly. By “correctly,” I mean that she conveys the emotions of the songs correctly. Her soft, delicate, sad way of singing shows that she truly understood the music.
In fact, at the beginning of the Phantom of the Paradise, Winslow also sings “Faust,” so while Phoenix and Winslow sing the song in slightly different styles, viewers hear that they both sing it with the same kind of emotion. Winslow mandates that only Phoenix can sing his music. But Swan, being the conniving monster that he is, actually hires another lead singer without Winslow’s knowledge. When Winslow finds out about Swan’s new hire, he understandably goes berserk.
Songs And The Singer’s Personality
The Phantom of the Paradise really highlights the differences between singers. However, the movie argues that the differences between different singers’ performances of a song are not just due to techniques. Instead, the differences are primarily due to how the singers interpret the lyrics of the song.
For example, Beef, the singer Swan hires to open The Paradise, sings the song “Old Souls” way differently than Phoenix does later in the movie when she finally gets to perform. “Old Souls” is about someone telling their lover that their love is immortal and that it will continue to live on both in them and in other couples who experience the same kind of love. It’s a really complex and deep song, and Beef completely misses the point.
Beef sings the song aggressively like it’s a rock song, even though the lyrics make it clear that it’s a love song. Swan tells Beef to “make [the song] completely yours,” and in doing so, Beef butchers the song because he doesn’t understand it (( Palma De, Brian. Phantom of the Paradise. 31 October 1974. 20th Century Fox. Film. )). On the other hand, Phoenix sings “Old Souls” gently, like a love song. It is clear that she feels the deep passion and devotion that the song is trying to express. When Beef sings the song earlier in The Phantom of the Paradise, all nuances are lost and the lyrics lose all meaning. It’s no wonder that Winslow kills Beef for daring to sing his music. Winslow needs Phoenix to act as an extension of himself and be the music so that it can be performed as he needs it to be.
Why You Should Check Out Phantom Of The Paradise
The first of many reasons to watch Phantom of the Paradise is the awesome music. Jessica Harper, who plays Phoenix, and Paul Williams, who plays Swan and sings the Phantom’s songs, both have strong, clean voices that are packed with emotion. Throughout the movie, the songs’ lyrics are also poetic, and they reveal a lot about the Phantom’s inner turmoil. The songs also do a good job of echoing the themes of the Phantom of the Paradise.
The song that opens the movie, “Goodbye, Eddie, Goodbye,” even foreshadows the movie’s biggest theme: giving everything up for music and love. As far as a Phantom of the Opera adaptation goes, Phantom of the Paradise is a unique interpretation. First of all, this movie is way more Phantom-focused than other adaptations, which William Finley, the Phantom, handles beautifully.
Viewers get to watch Winslow physically and emotionally become the Phantom, and they get to see him write his masterpiece. There’s even a scene in the Phantom of the Paradise that’s shot from Winslow’s perspective as he first enters The Paradise and dons the mantle of the Phantom. And the “Christine” of the movie is an alto, which never happens. Overall, Phantom of the Paradise has a compelling story, quirky characters, and some really good ’70s songs. So, check it out— just for the hell of it.