Director: F.W Marnau
Year: 1922
Country: Germany
Language: German
F.W Marnau is one of the greatest German silent film Directors there ever has been, alongside such legends as Fritz Lang (Dr.Mabuse) and Robert Weins (Cabinet of Dr.Caligari). His well known vampire film Nosferatu has kept me in awe since I first watched it at the age of ten. Usually in lists of the "best" silent films his Sunrise is listed in the top ten, followed by Nosferatu and The Last Laugh. Curiously Phantom is dismissed, which is a shame because I feel that it is better that his more highly acclaimed works.
Phantom is about Lorenz Lubota (Lorenz Lubota), a city clerk with no direction in life. One day on his way to work he is run over by a woman driving a chariot and he is immediately infatuated with her. His life begins to spiral out of control as he searches for this girl and tries to win her heart.
German expressionism in film is a creative movement that began in Germany after the first world war, infact it is said to be a response to the horrors of the World War Europe had just endured. The plots and stories usually revolved around madness,insanity, betrayal, obsession and other psychological topics. The sets were oddly designed and geometrically absurd to capture the mood of the film and the characters within it. Phantom is the perfect film for this time, even better than Nosferatu. It is about a man obsessed and driven to madness by his obsession. He is a stalker that will not quit. The fact that he is human and has clear ambition and motive to his actions make him even more frightening. It's a terrifying film because the situation is all too familiar and realistic. Everybody knows somebody who has had a phantom in their lives.
Incredibly this "insane obsession" characteristic would be visited by Alfred Hitchcock in his now incredibly acclaimed Vertigo with James Stewart and Kim Novak. Both films use the negative trait very well, though I would claim Vertigo is the more entertaining picture. Phantom was long believed to be lost but thankfully it was rediscovered, restored and given a decent dvd edition by the great distributing company Masters of Cinema. Marnau's direction is quite beautiful in this, the sets are astonishing and his many camera tricks are wonderfully done.
In conclusion, the only critiques of this film that I have is the ending which is far too optimistic in comparison to the subject matter and the exaggerated acting (though that's normal for a silent film) I personally prefer low key acting when it comes to films about obsession. Still I find this one of the best dramatic films of the silent era and I am quite intrigued to see Marnau's other overlooked films. Praise it! 4,5/5
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