Drew Deetsch issued
phantom I was able to do a lot of things. It was a great production, had a strong marketing push, and was positioned as the perfect summer superhero movie. Unfortunately, none of that helped them sink to 6th place on the opening weekend.
Why did this happen? phantom Don’t you want to convey it to your audience? And now, almost 25 years later, is it time to re-evaluate this swashbuckling adventure?
Let’s look back and strike at evil phantomI can’t help but believe that it’s a much more interesting movie than its reputation suggests.
Why Phantom is better
Before getting into the main topic phantomthis unique part of comic book history needs to be contextualized. Originally appearing in a 1936 newspaper article by Lee Falk, the Phantom was a pulp superhero from the golden age of pulp superheroes. The Phantom, who has existed for three years before Batman, has trusted servants at his side, uses secret caves as his hideout, and disguises himself as a real ghost to instill the cowardly and superstitious feelings of criminals. I used it. Yes, the Phantom was an obvious inspiration for Batman.
Therefore, the huge success of Tim Burton’s work seems obvious. batman Interest in this prequel will continue to grow in 1989. It finally came to fruition in 1996, phantom He was one of the many pulp action heroes to have feature films made under the influence of. batman.
what makes it so phantom Such a pleasant experience shows how serious adaptation is. Set in 1938, director Simon Wincer and screenwriter Jeffrey Baum treat the material as if it were made in 1938. raiders of the lost arkthere is not a trace of irony or self-satire in the bones of this film. From Phantom’s accurate costume design to period-appropriate performances, we want to recreate the character and his world as faithfully as possible.
That means the cast plays things in a warm but decidedly old-fashioned way. It’s easy to come across as cheesy, but it’s important for a movie to work. Every cast member is on the film’s classic comic wavelength. This makes the tone bright, fun, and refreshing. Yes, this is not a movie with heavy thematic resonance or very complex characters. that’s ok. Its goal is simple and it achieves it at every turn.
Do not take this to mean that there is no good performance. phantom. The cast includes well-known stars and outstanding individual actors. Billy Zane plays Kit Walker, aka the Phantom, just like Clark Gable and Errol Flynn. Catherine Zeta-Jones and James Remar are perfect in supporting roles as the two supporting characters. Kristy Swanson plays the earnest romantic protagonist Diana Palmer with old-fashioned steadfastness. The always wonderful Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa appears as an evil pirate in the second half of the film, which is a treat. It’s also great to see veteran actor Patrick McGoohan appear as Kit’s father, the spirit of the previous Phantom.
If there’s one cast member who threatens to steal the show, it’s Treat Williams, who plays the antagonist, Xander Drax. Williams relishes every moment he gets to be the scenery-chewing villain. You can actually see his teeth marks on the set. He’s a free-spirited, fun villain that you don’t see very often in these kinds of movies anymore.
Related:
A ’90s buddy-cop action series stolen by failure and tragedy.
Perhaps the most admirable feature is phantom It’s the product design and feel. As I said earlier, this movie feels like a 1938 movie made in 1996. The sets, stunts, costumes, and filmmaking approach all emphasize that this is a movie that knows it’s a movie. Realism is not what this is aiming for. Recognizing that allows the film to look staged without using too many modern effects. Instead, you can make it as pulpy and cartoonish as you want in every way.
That may be one of the reasons why it failed.
Why this pulp adventure failed
One of the most important takeaways from this ongoing column is that a film’s failure is rarely due to its perceived quality. There are always a number of factors involved in a film’s initial failure.
and phantomit could have something to do with the change in what audiences were enjoying when it came to action movies. michael bay’s the rock It opened the same weekend and took the number one spot. mission: impossible and twister took 2nd and 3rd place, in their third and fifth week of release, respectively. Audiences were seeing action movies become even bigger spectacles thanks to advances in special effects. phantom It looked so dated compared to everything else in the theater.
There’s also the problem that these pulp adventures simply don’t appeal to modern audiences. Rocketeer, Shadow, and dick tracy (Although they all have their merits) Performance was poor. Moviegoers didn’t seem to be attracted to these characters or the period (or period-inspired) rendition.
An aspect of the same issue is awareness. The Phantom didn’t have the same level of cultural saturation or widespread nostalgia as characters like Batman. To be honest, the first time I learned about this character was in a feature film. Presumably, many of these superhero characters needed a certain level of familiarity with audiences in order to appear.
That’s a shame phantom The box office revenue was not great. Renowned film critic Roger Ebert gave the film three and a half stars. his review and called it “one of the best-looking movies in a long time.” Looking for a movie that captures the basic spirit of comic book adventure? phantom It’s for you. Masterfully crafted in its simplicity, this is a film that doesn’t deserve to be ignored or underrated.
