The Phantom

Republic was certainly best known for serials, but other studios often got into the act. One of these was Columbia Pictures. In truth, Columbia's serials weren't anything to write home about--but there was one exception: the 1943 THE PHANTOM, which cracks along at a memorable pace with an entertaining storyline, some excellent fight choreography, visually interesting set pieces, and a truly fine performance from Tom Tyler in the title role.

Tom Tyler (1903-1954) was a handsome, well-built man who played in well over 150 films between 1924 and 1953--but whose final years was marred by rheumatoid arthritis that reduced him to small supporting roles. But he was very much at his peak in 1941 when he appeared in the legendary Republic serial THE ADVENTURES OF CAPTAIN MARVEL--and no less so for the 1943 THE PHANTOM. Seen today, many serial "super heroes" of the 1930s and 1940s look more than a little chubby in their skin-tight costumes, but not Tyler: he had the body to carry it off, and if his acting chops weren't up to the standards of Hollywood's A-List actors they were perfect for this sort of comic book fun.

The story finds the peace of jungle tribes threatened by the evil Dr. Bremmer (Kenneth MacDonald), who seeks to create an airbase for use by an unfriendly country at the long-lost jungle city of Zoloz. But in order to locate the hidden city, Bremmer must obtain "the keys"--pieces of a puzzle-like map--from newly arrived Professor Davidson (Frank Shannon) and his party. Can the Phantom, with the aid of his clever dog Devil, foil Bremmer, protect Davidson, and bring peace to the jungle once more? You better believe it, but before he does there are crocodiles, lions, tigers, a "fire princess," and booby-traps galore to overcome, most of them cleverly imagined and all of them expertly performed. Director B. Reeves Eason keeps everything moving at a sharp pace, and if the dialogue and cinematography are seldom inspired they are never less than entertaining, and there's not a dull moment in all fifteen chapters.

Like many serials, THE PHANTOM does adopt certain racial sensibilities that will cause modern viewers to roll their eyes from time to time. It is actually a bit difficult to tell where this film is supposed to be set: at times the script seems to imply Africa, at other times it seems to imply South America, and the "natives" are pretty much clumsy white men in dark make-up who look silly in diaper-like costumes. Even so, the thing goes like a house afire, and if you're interested in the serial genre this is one you can't afford to miss.

The VCI DVD edition features a nice commentary by Max Allan Collins on "Chapter One," a handful of biographies, and samples of comic book art and lobby cards; the real plus, however, is the quality of the film itself, which is quite fine--and this in spite of an instance where the soundtrack was lost and had to be re-created by modern actors. The picture quality is very good and the sound is more than adequate. Recommended to serial fans everywhere! GFT, Amazon Reviewer

Columbia Pictures was infamous for making infamously bad serials. However, in the early to mid-1940's, they also made some good serials. One of these was called 'The Phantom.' Here are some of the things that make this serial so good:

1. Tom Tyler in the title role. He projected a strong and quietly heroic screen presence, and was athletic enough to look good in the Phantom suit. He is believable in the fight scenes. Superhero suits look good in comic strips, but usually on the screen they look completely stupid. Tom Tyler, a former champion weight lifter, could pull it off. He was also a decent actor. Totally serious, but never camp or inadvertently goofy. I rate him as being almost as good as Buster Crabbe, as far as serial heroes go. Definitely head and shoulders above Kirk Alyn or either of the poor guys that played Batman in the serials. 2. Good fight scenes. 3. Ace the Wonder Dog, playing 'Devil,' the Phantom's dog (in the comic strip, Devil was a wolf, but trained wolves were more expensive). All the great heroes each have certain gimmicks, trademarks, special weapons, etc. Such is Devil for the Phantom, and the idea of the hero being aided in a fight by a big dog is a cool idea. Devil definitely makes the fight scenes more interesting and believable here. 4. Good cliff hangers. 5. Staying reasonably faithful to the original source material. Although taking some serious liberties regarding the comic strip from whence it was inspired, this serial still retains the spirit and appeal of the Lee Falk's creations. Rightly so, the Phantom is a cool character, and should be treated with a little respect.

And now, a short commentary regarding racial stereotypes: in my mind, it has always been problematic that in the comics, the Phantom is an unelected pale-skinned person holding a high degree of authority for a large group of darker-skinned persons. To be fair, the Phantom was created in the 1930's, when there was a lot of overt racism in the U.S., when Lee Falk and most of his readers wouldn't have had anyone to point out this inequity. And to be fair, Lee Falk's representation of African tribes, though entirely fanciful, was much less derogatory than that of Edgar ('Tarzan') Rice Burroughs or of any mainstream Hollywood movie.

Which brings us back to this serial. While all the action takes place in the jungle, there are no positive indications as to whether this jungle is in Africa, South America, Asia, the Canary Islands, or southern Albania. Nor is there any coherent racial representation regarding the natives of this imaginary region. Many were played by Caucasian actors, some by Native Americans (an unbilled Jay Silverheels played a small role), as well as actors of other ethnicities. Overall, their skin color is not much, if any, darker than the Phantom's. Also, the characterization of the natives in this serial, while often fitting an unflattering stereotype, is much less offensive than you see in Tarzan and Jungle Jim films of the same era.

The plot involves a lost city called Zoloz, which is an allusion to the Lost City of Z, which is a fabelled ancient lost city in South America, for which several real-life explorers lost their lives in quest of. It was never found, so someday maybe you may go looking for it. Perhaps you will find the Phantom as well.

All in all, I would recommend this for serial fans, film buffs, and admirers of the Phantom.

This serial has a lot of action and good excitement, and Tom Tyler is very likeable as the Phantom. He is the best thing about the serial. The supporting as is good, including a small army of the villain's henchmen! Another plus about this serial is the super-intelligent German Shepherd dog, Devil, the Phantom's loyal--and invaluable--associate and friend. Among the supporting cast, the professor's niece was attractive and did a good job. I thought the professor himself gave a somewhat weak performance: he seemed so old, he was almost decrepit, in my view, and not very sharp mentally somehow. If you like serials with a jungle setting, you will enjoy this one.

...from Columbia Pictures and director B. Reeves Eason. Tom Tyler stars as Godfrey Prescott, who discovers at the film's start that he has inherited the mantle of the Phantom, "The Ghost Who Walks", a reputedly immortal jungle protector dwelling in a forbidden, skull-shaped cave in Africa. The natives ascribe all sorts of mystical powers to the Phantom, but he's in fact just a mortal man, well trained in the fighting arts, who cultivates an air of mystery so as to terrify potential adversaries. His immortal reputation comes from the Phantom costume and title being passed from lookalike father to son for hundreds of years, leading the natives to believe that it has been the same being for centuries.

Soon after becoming the Phantom, Godfrey has to battle a sinister group of criminals led by Dr. Bremmer (Kenneth MacDonald) who are after the location of a legendary hidden city that is said to hold unimaginable treasure. Also featuring Jeanne Bates, Frank Shannon, Ernie Adams, Robert Barron, Anthony Caruso, George Chesebro, I. Stanford Jolley, Kermit Maynard, Anthony Warde, Jay Silverheels, Iron Eyes Cody, Ray Corrigan as Brutus the Gorilla, and Ace the Wonder Dog as Devil.

The Phantom is an important figure in the history of the superhero. He was the first one to wear the stereotypical tights costume one associates with the genre. He's basically a combination of the Shadow and Tarzan, but he's proven very popular around the world, with the comic strip still being run in newspapers over 80 years after its debut. So it's no surprise that he'd be the inspiration for a serial during this period. Tom Tyler, who had starred in The Adventures of Captain Marvel in 1941, gets to star again as the hero, and while his dialogue delivery is clunky, he throws great punches, made more amusing since his skull-shaped signet ring leaves skull impressions in his enemies' faces.

Most of this plays like the standard jungle adventure movie, with stock jungle footage, and lots of animal battles. The Phantom fights a lion, a tiger, an alligator, and a guy in a gorilla costume. There are also a lot of superstitious natives, although they are a point of confusion. I wasn't sure for awhile where this was supposed to be set. I know it's a fictional land, but it's supposed to be in Africa. However, all of the natives look white or Native American, and they dress in a silly mix of Polynesian and African tribal looks. It just adds to the B movie charm, and this is one of the more enjoyable serials.

Chapter 11of the VCI DVD had degraded so much that the sound was completely lost. The DVD producers opted to dub the dialogue, adding some unintended humor.

When I was a kid, `The Phantom' was my hero number one. I liked also the magazines of `Mandrake', `Superman', `Batman', `Tarzan' and `Zorro' (in this sequence), but I would not dare to compare any of them with `The Phantom'. For my surprise, the Brazilian distributor `Classicline' released an unknown (at least for me) 1943 version of a serial of `The Phantom', in a double DVD without any extra. The story is composed by fifteen episodes as follows:

1) The Sign of the Skull (`O Sinal da Caveira');

2) The Man Who Never Dies (`O Homem Que Nunca Morrre');

3) A Traitor's Code (`Um Código de Traidor');

4) The Seat of Judgement (`O Banco de Julgamento');

5) The Ghost Who Walks (`O Fantasma Que Anda');

6) Jungle Whispers (`Sussuros da Selva');

7) The Mystery Well (`O Poço do Mistério);

8) In the Quest of the Keys (`Em Busca das Chaves');

9) The Fire Princess (`A Princesa do Fogo');

10) The Chamber of Death (`A Câmara de Morte');

11) The Emerald Key (`A Chave de Esmeralda');

12) The Fangs of the Beast (`As Presas da Fera');

13) The Road to Zoloz (`O Caminho Para Zoloz');

14) The Lost City (`A Cidade Perdida'); and,

15) Peace in the Jungle (`Paz na Selva').

The plot begins with the death of the `old' Phantom and his son (Tom Tyler) assuming his spot with his dog Devil (Capeto, in Portuguese). Meanwhile, there are two expeditions trying to reach the lost city of Zoloz: the good one leaded by Professor Davidson (Frank Shannon), with his daughter Diana Palmer (Jeanne Bates) in the team, having the intention of archeological research for an university in Melville. The evil one leaded by the diabolic Dr. Max Bremmer (Kenneth MacDonald), who is serving a foreign country, and having the intention of building a hidden airport. The foreign nation is not specified in the story, but in 1943, there were the World War II in Europe, therefore it is not difficult to guess which power Dr. Max Bremmer was serving. For reaching his intent and find the city of Zoloz, Prof. Davidson has a partial map composed of six ivory pieces, needing the last one to complete the track. The story follows the pattern of action movies of those romantic times: the hero never bleeds; the villains use the most complicated ways and tricks to get rid off the hero; in the end of each chapter, there is a missing scene, where the hero escapes from a dangerous situation (explosions, gas, avalanche of stones, fire, water, shot etc.); the heroin always screams when in danger; when a porter dies, nobody cares. Further, it is politically incorrect in the present days, having an animal hunter as Phantom's best friend. This naive type of story may be silly in the present days for the younger generations (and indeed it is), but it brings parts of my childhood back to my mind, and consequently I love it. The athletic actor Tom Tyler is in an excellent shape. I have no idea whether stunts were much used in 1943. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): `O Fantasma' (`The Phantom')