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The Bargain Nexus - Phantom Lady
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List Price: $14.98
Our Price:
Your Save: $ 14.98 ( 100% )
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Manufacturer: Universal Pictures
Starring: Franchot Tone, Ella Raines, Alan Curtis, Aurora Miranda, Thomas Gomez
Directed By: Robert Siodmak
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Audience Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Binding: VHS Tape
EAN: 9780783224589
Format: Black & White
ISBN: 0783224583
Label: Universal Pictures
Manufacturer: Universal Pictures
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Universal Pictures
Release Date: 1998-04-28
Running Time: 87
Studio: Universal Pictures
Theatrical Release Date: 1944-01-28
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Phantom Lady Cast
Comment: The Jive Club Pianist was not Freddie Slack but Paul James Parks, who shortly thereafter was drafted into WWII and was in an entertainment unit which performed throughout the African Theatre.
Customer Rating: 
Summary: Predictable
Comment: Phantom Lady involves a man (Alan Curtis) who goes out one night to a bar, spends an evening at a theater with a woman whose name he does not know, and comes home to find his wife has been murdered. This woman and the other people that saw him are his only hope of being saved from the electric chair, but someone has paid the bartender, the jazz musician, and the dancer to claim they saw no woman. The man's secretary (Ella Raines) begins to search for the truth along with a friend of her boss (Franchot Tone)
This film carries all of the staples of film noir but it does not offer anything original or exciting. The characters are very standard, the dark lighting somewhat forced, and the story reveals itself at a particular pace.
The actors are certainly talented, particularly Raines who is not only beautiful but shows a knack for realism. Tone is somewhat of a ham in his role, though he tries to turn rediculous lines into chilling dialogue and only sometimes succeeds. Curtis is a likable central character who rounds out the cast.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Noir crime thriller
Comment: German born director Robert Siodmak displays his talent in creating an underrated film noir mystery "Phantom Lady". The wet and shadowy streets of New York provide an effective backdrop to the somber mood created by the film. The acting performances enhance the sense of foreboding manifested by this well conceived plot.
Unhappily married engineer Scott Henderson played by Alan Curtis opens the film by sitting disturbedly at a bar having been stood up by his wife. He offers to share his theatre tickets with a woman wearing a very distinctive hat played by Fay Helm, he met at the bar. She, also obviously upset, agrees provided that they remain nameless to each other. They depart after enjoying the show.
When Curtis arrives home he's met by a group of detectives owing to the fact that Curtis' wife Marcella has been found strangled. Chief inspector Burgess played by talented supporting actor Thomas Gomez cannot corroborate Curtis' alibi as all witnesses remember Curtis but have no recollection of the woman accompanying him.
Curtis soon stands trial and the preponderence of circumstantial evidence against him leads to a speedy murder conviction. Curtis' assistant Carol Richman played by Ella Raines, who is deeply in love with him, cannot stand idly by and commences her own investigation. She is soon joined by the sympathetic Gomez who is convinced that Curtis is innocent.
Curtis' best friend sculptor Jack Marlowe played by Francot Tone shows up after returning from South America. Displaying erratic psychotic tendencies we learn that he's been bribing witnesses to be silent. One by one however he's been murdering them to protect himself.
Raines is persistent and finally tracks down the girl with the unusual hat but Tone is wise to her intentions and intends to silence her as well.
Customer Rating:
Summary: A Well Done Noir
Comment: A fellow is jailed for killing his estranged wife, but he actually had been at a bar, picked up a woman and took her to a show. Except that the cops don't believe him because everyone says they never saw him with the woman. His secretary, Ella Raines, is determined to find the phantom lady, with the help of his best friend and a detective.
Nice jobs by Franchot Tone as the best friend and Thomas Gomez as the detective, and a great job by Elisha Cook Jr as a strange drummer who takes Raines to an after-hours jazz club. I've always liked Tone and think he was a very good actor. And as the years went by he became even better.
This is a solid noir with a couple of unusual, surreal scenes. One of these days I hope someone brings it out on DVD
Customer Rating:
Summary: Talk About a Loyal Secretary!!
Comment: Phantom Lady is a solid detective/true crime movie. This reviewer hesitates to label it noir due to some rather strange structural attributes. The film opens as a lonely and unhappy Alan Curtis meets a lonely and unhappy woman (Ann Terry), in a bar and impulsively asks her to a play. Soon afterward, she dumps him and goes to her apartment. Curtis arrives at his own home to find the cops waiting! His wife has been strangled and he is the suspect. (Husbands always are). When Curtis cannot establish an alibi, he is quickly convicted and sent to prison. The elusive Terry becomes the Phantom Lady. Curtis has 2 factors working for him: One is the lead detective, Thomas Gomez, who believes Curtis' story. The other is his devoted secretary Ella Raines. Here is the most loyal employee ever seen on screen! She is determined to track down witnesses, especially Terry, who can spring her boss. Viewers are perfectly aware that Raines loyalty is well placed! They know the alibis are valid! As noted above, there are 2 main defects: One is that that the actual murderer tips his/her hand to the observant. The other is that PL was OBVIOUSLY filmed in a studio and not on a big city location. This greatly lessens the noir effect of night shots, dark streets, high heels on lonely sidewalks, shadows, gloomy bars and all the standard tricks of the trade. Furthermore that scene on the elevated subway platform is almost comical! Who was the director kidding? That was an insult to all the subways of the world, especially New York's. This is why this reviewer urges viewers to forget the noir aspects of PL and concentrate on the searches for the real killer and Terry. Despite the aforementioned tipped hand, this is still a great mystery. Whodunit? Does Raines find the phantom? This reviewer does not give away endings. The curious will have to watch for themselves. Suffice to say, Raines carries PL virtually single-handed. This is her flick! PL is highly recommended to police/detective aficionados. As a treat, and a test, try to spot the cameo by the veteran actor Milburn Stone. He later played Doc in the long running Gunsmoke TV series. If you catch him, give yourself a gold star. And pay attention to what the ladies are wearing! Fashion matters!
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