Phantom of the Opera (1943)

The basis of this 1943 color film is French author Gaston Leroux's "The Phantom of the Opera." The film title omits "The" from the title. 

The film is set in Paris and the opening scenes show us two men who are in love with promising opera singer Christine DuBois, played by American actress/singer Susanna Foster. The first man is also one of the stars of the opera, Anatole Garron, played by American actor/singer Nelson Eddy, while the second is a policeman, Raoul Daubert, played by American actor Edgar Barrier. Throughout the picture Anatole and Raoul add some lighthearted moments as they continually compete for Christine's attention. Then we find there is still another man, a mild mannered violinist, Erique Claudin, played by London-born actor Claude Rains, who is also in love with Christine. Claudin is losing the use of his hand, which ends his long career at the opera. Claudin has been secretly financing Christine's voice lessons, which will have to end, as he has no income. Claudin then decides to have a concerto published to raise some money. When he goes back to the publisher he becomes convinced that the publisher is stealing his music and Claudin strangles him, but an assistant to the publisher throws acid (used for etching) in Claudin's face, terribly disfiguring him. Claudin seeks shelter by entering the Paris sewer system, which leads into the large basement area beneath the opera house. Before long, a costume, two masks and some food are reported stolen. The police inspector finds evidence that Claudin has also been in love with Christine. We occasionally see the shadow of a figure in a cape and a sort of slouch hat, and at one point, Christine hears a voice in her room at the opera house tell her that she is going to become a great and famous singer, and that, "I'll help you." The shadow of the caped figure then vanishes.

During one of the performances, the lead female singer, Madame Biancarolli, played by American actress Jane Farrar, collapses off stage after drinking some drugged wine in a scene with Anatole. Christine, her understudy, is immediately substituted for the incapacitated singer and she gives a stunning performance, for which the audience gives her a standing ovation. Not so, the drugged singer, who accuses Anatole of having drugged her to get Christine into the lead role. The head of the opera company tells Biancarolli to forget the matter, as there is no proof, but the self-centered singer will grant such a request only if Christine is replaced as her understudy and sent back to the chorus, with no mention to be made in the newspapers of her having performed in the opera in the lead role. When Anatole protests, she threatens to charge both Anatole and Christine with attempted murder.

Afterwards, the Phantom appears in Biancarolli's room and kills her and her maid, then barely escapes the pursuing Anatole through the upper portion of the opera house. Later the Phantom leaves a note telling the authorities that Christine must take the place of Biancarolli, but Raoul wants Christine to be replaced by another singer to lure the Phantom into the open for capture. Not to be outdone as he continues his quest for Christine, Anatole gets none other than Franz Liszt to agree to play Claudin's concerto to help trap Claudin/The Phantom at the end of the opera. Before the performance, another note is found warning that Christine must sing that night, or that there will be consequences. The plan to use another singer continues, although Christine also comes to the opera. Raoul has policemen in costume as extras for the opera to provide protection, but Claudin strangles one of the men and takes his place. Raoul finds the murdered policeman and he now knows Claudin is present, but is in disguise.

With the opera performance fully underway, Claudin climbs to the top of the opera house, where a huge chandelier is suspended by chain over the main seating area. He uses a saw to cut the chain, bringing the chandelier crashing down on a part of the audience. In the chaos, Claudin finds Christine and has her come with him, as she believes him to be a policeman. He takes her down into the underground passages of the opera house, and she realizes that he is not a policeman, but it is too late. Claudin tells her she will now be able to sing for him. Things have settled down above and Liszt begins to play Claudin's concerto, and the sound carries down into the room where Claudin has a piano and he begins to play along with the music from upstairs. Anatole and Raoul begin searching the underground passages, and while Liszt's playing is heard, they can tell that there is also playing coming from the downstairs. As they move along toward the music, Claudin has Christine begin to sing. The two men see the water worn walls that are crumbling in spots and they have to avoid falling sections of these walls.

Meanwhile, Christine gets into a position to pull the mask from Claudin, exposing a terribly disfigured face. Anatole and Raoul enter the room and Claudin grabs a sword, but Raoul draws a pistol. Anatole blocks his arm as he fires, causing the bullet to strike the ceiling, but the shot brings the ceiling crashing down onto Claudin, who is killed. The men and Christine get to safety and Anatole explains Claudin's music and the basic melody being from a song long known in the same region of France from which both Christine and Claudin hailed.   

The scene shifts to Christine's room at the opera house after a performance. A knock comes at her door and it is Anatole, who praises her singing and asks for her to accompany him to supper. She tells him that Raoul has already asked her to supper, and indeed, Raoul comes to the door just then. As the two men bicker over who will go out with Christine, she suggests the three of them go together, something not looked upon kindly by either of the men, but Christine hears her adoring fans outside her door and she chooses to go out to meet them, thus symbolizing her choice to follow her music career, so helped along by Claudin. The two men decide to go to supper together. 

      
Photo is from the 2014 Universal Home Entertainment DVD

WORD HISTORY:
Venue-This word goes back to Indo European "gwem/gwam," which had the notion of "to come, to go." This gave Latin (from the Italic branch of Indo European) "venire," which meant "to come." This produced a participle form "venir," inherited by Old French, a Latin-based language, as "venue," with the meaning "coming, coming together, assembling for battle." The word was then borrowed by English in the first half of the 1300s, with the "assembling for battle" meaning carried to "legal battle," and a place where legal matters were contested, a meaning still in use today, but an additional more general meaning later developed for "a location of an event," which then became commonly used for concerts.