It’s weird writing a review for a movie many have not even heard of, let alone seen. If you think I am exaggerating, on IMDb, “only” around 14 000 people have rated this movie, and on Letterboxd, that number is slightly higher, around 36 000. Even I have only heard about it recently because one of my Internet friends (Rowan Wood, you can find him on Letterboxd or his new website www.knockonwoodfilm.com) has talked about it a few times on Franchise Paradiso, a podcast he co-hosts (also a strong recommend). And since I trust him, I had to look it up, and yes, he was correct to praise it. And now, I am doing my part, hoping I inspire at least one more person to watch this movie.
This movie must be one of the earliest examples of “vibe” films. There is a surprising “amount” of a story (more about that later), but most importantly, The Phantom Carriage understands the atmosphere and how to get you into that head space and vibe this movie has. Because if I am being honest, the film won’t surprise you much, if at all, since it’s more than 100 (!!!) years old. However, that was the surprise to me, how much it surprised me. I know this is as clear as mud right now, so let me explain.
Since I have been watching more “old-school” horror movies (like the Universal Monster movies from the 30s and 40s), I have gotten used to the story being pretty simplistic because that was the norm at the time. They didn’t know any better. There were always complex themes and great ideas in those films, don’t get me wrong, and I liked or loved most of them, but as far as the narrative portion of those films, they were all pretty simple. Naturally, I expected something similar from a Swedish movie from 1921. And for us now, what this movie does isn’t that uncommon. But I always like to put myself into the audience’s shoes at the time. Because I don’t think there were that many movies that played with characters reminiscing about the past, and in those memories, we go back again. Hopefully, it makes more sense now, as nowadays we are used to seeing flashbacks and spending half a movie there, but back then, that was hardly the norm.
I also loved the idea that the last person to die in a year must replace Death and drive Death’s carriage for the following year. I am not a spiritual or religious person, but if you give me something as intriguing as this, I am into it. This idea definitely was something unique and new, as I had never heard of it. And that supernatural element weirdly grounds this movie and clearly defines the stakes. We understand what is happening and why, so we can focus on this redemption journey of this poor soul who lost his way.
This might also be the first movie that deals with this Dickens-like tale of seeing your life as you are about to die so you can reflect on what you have done. Those stories have always fascinated me because we see ourselves (naturally) as heroes of our stories, but often, we can be the villains in somebody else’s story. There is a saying I like that goes: “We judge everyone based on their actions, but we judge ourselves based on our intentions.” Since I read that quote somewhere, I try to remember it before judging others harshly. The Phantom Carriage is one of those movies that might make you think about what if something like this were to happen to you tomorrow, what you would see and whether you would like everything you see.
I also need to mention the special effects that I thought were amazing. Of course, with a caveat that I judge them based on 1921 standards and not today’s ones. But I thought they worked all the transparent ghosts worked for me, but I am a sucker for older horror movies where I can forgive many tiny blemishes due to the age of those movies. There is something charming about the imperfection of early cinema. Also, and this can’t be understated, this movie influenced many filmmakers who became legends and influenced others. Just reading through IMDb’s trivia:
Ingmar Bergman watched this film at least once every summer, either alone or in the company of younger people. He also stated that this film, to him, was once “the film of all films”, and that it was a main influence on his own work.
Source: IMDb.com
Charles Chaplin stated this was the best film ever made.
Source: IMDb.com
And I am not about to sit here and argue about how two of these cinematic titans were wrong. As I stated at the beginning of my review, I strongly hope I may influence at least one person who will search for this movie and watch it because of this review. It might or might not (wink wink) be available on YouTube… but hey, I didn’t say anything. 😉
Overall, The Phantom Carriage is an almost-forgotten masterpiece that influenced generations of filmmakers and continues to have an impact on movies even today. But unlike other films like Citizen Kane (1941), this movie is virtually unknown unless you are a hardcore cinephile, and even then (like me), you might not heard about it. So, I am writing this review hoping that someone reads it, watches this film and then passes it on. I would love for everyone to know about this movie full of ground-breaking stuff, both visually and narratively. Even after 100 years, The Phantom Carriage deserves to be seen.
That’s all for this one! Did you see it? What did you think about it? Let me know!
Until next time,
Luke