PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE rises again

Scream Factory, the sub-label of Shout Factory will be releasing a new edition of Brian DePalma’s 1974 cult classic Phantom of The Paradise next summer. Speaking as a longtime fan who has owned several copies from different regions, I’m excited as hell that the movie will be on R1 Blu Ray so more people will be able to experience it.

Upon its release the film was not a big hit but over the years audiences have rediscovered it and given it a whole new life. Phantom of The Paradise now ranks alongside The Rocky Horror Picture Show as one of the all time greatest midnight/cult movies. This was also one of Brian DePalma’s earlier efforts and remains one of his most colorfully offbeat productions.

The story focuses on Winslow Leach (William Finley) a singer-songwriter who has developed a whole musical based on the old story of Faust but with a modern twist. When he brings the idea to Swan (Paul Williams) a Phil Spector-esque music impresario with an ego the size of Jupiter, Winslow is under the impression it will be his big break. While at Swan’s auditions for Faust, he meets a pretty girl named Phoenix (Jessica Harper) that is up for a part. Things soon go bad when the diabolical Swan steals Winslow’s music and has him arrested and thrown in prison. After escaping from Sing Sing and breaking into Swan’s record factory, Winslow is accidentally disfigured in a record press and nearly dies. He somehow evades capture and recuperates from his injuries. The vengeful, crazed Winslow then steals a costume from Swan’s new rock palace and begins wreaking havoc on all the acts hired to perform his grand opera about Faust. The film brilliantly combines ideas from Phantom of The Opera and The Picture of Dorian Gray with 70s Glam/Horror Rock, Giallo Cinema and Black Comedy in a phantastic DePalma way only he could design. One of the main highlights is the supercool 70s soundtrack written by co-star Paul Williams.

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DISC ONE (BLU-RAY):

– High-Definition transfer of the film
– NEW Audio Commentary with Jessica Harper, Gerrit – Graham and the Juicy Fruits (Archie Hahn, Jeffrey Comanor and Harold Oblong aka Peter Eibling)
– NEW Audio Commentary with Production Designer Jack Fisk
– NEW Interview with director Brian DePalma (36 minutes)
– NEW Interview with Paul Williams talking about the music of PHANTOM (30 minutes)
– NEW Interview with Make-up Effects wizard Tom Burman discussing the Phantom Helmet

DISC TWO (DVD):

– Paradise Regained – documentary on the making of the film featuring director Brian DePalma, Producer Edward R. Pressman, William Finley, Paul Williams, Jessica Harper, Gerrit Graham and more… (50 minutes)
– Interview with Paul Williams moderated by Guillermo Del Toro (72 minutes)
– Interview with costume designer Rosanna Norton (10 minutes)
– NEW Interview with producer Edward R. Pressman (15 minutes)
– NEW Interview with drummer Gary Mallaber (15 minutes)
– NEW Alvin’s Art and Technique – a look at the neon poster (15 minutes)
– NEW Phantom of the Paradise Biography by Gerrit Graham – 1974 Publicity Sheet written by and read by Graham (8 minutes)
– Alternate Takes (40 minutes) Swan Song Outtake Footage (10 minutes)
– Radio Spots
– TV Spots
– Theatrical Trailer
– Still Gallery

For more in-depth info on the film we highly recommend visiting: THE SWAN ARCHIVES

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