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Reviews
The Year Without a Santa Claus (1974)
Great!
I love Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer, but no matter what, The Year Without A Santa Claus will always remain as my favorite Rankin/Bass Christmas special. The Miser Brothers are great, its extremely charming, and I'd argue the best animation out of the Rankin/Bass specials. If you love Christmas and the Rankin/Bass specials, like me, then I'd request to give this a watch.
The Phantom of the Opera (1925)
Fantastic, Unsettling, and Sure to Make Shivers go up Your Spine.
I hated silent films until I saw this fantastic film. If you haven't seen this masterful motion picture, STOP, and please go watch it. Lon Chaney is at his best in this film, he was just fit to play the Phantom, his parents were both deaf so he was able to communicate with them with body language, this is why he is so good at silent acting. If the Oscars existed back in 1925, this film would probably win Best Picture. Now, I will do a plot summary WITH spoilers, so if you haven't seen the film, please stop reading and watch the film.
The story follows Christine and her lover Raoul. The Paris Opera House is rumored to be haunted by a phantom. While an opera singer sings on stage, the phantom causes the Chandelier to fall, and kill a few audience members, this was just the beginning, the phantom kidnaps Christine, and brings her to his lair under the Paris Opera House, the phantom is in love with her. Christine learns that the phantom is just a poor soul named, Erik. Christine reveals the phantom's (Erik's) face under his mask, he is a hideous, deformed man, he is furious at Christine, and banishes her to never have affairs with Raoul.
At a masquerade party, Christine disobeys Erik, and meets with Raoul to explain her absence. Little does she now, Erik is listening to everything on top of a statue. Raoul meets a member of the Secret Police names Ledoux, who helps him find the phantom. The phantom try's to escape getting chased by an angry mob, but they kill him. And Christine and Raoul are back again.
This film is absolutely FANTASTIC! And in my opinion, the greatest silent film EVER! Lon Chaney as The Phantom (Erik) steals the show, Christine, Raoul, and Ledoux are also great characters. Carlotta, and her mother, minor characters, but still good. Beautifully made horror movie from the Golden Age. I hope you too liked it, and I'll definitely be watching it a billion more times...