| The Phantom | |
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 original movie poster |
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| Directed by | Simon Wincer |
| Produced by | Alan Ladd, Jr Robert Evans |
| Written by | Jeffrey Boam |
| Starring | Billy Zane Kristy Swanson Catherine Zeta-Jones Treat Williams James Remar |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
| Release date(s) | June 7, 1996 |
| Running time | 100 min. |
| Country | Australia, United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $42,000,000 (estimated) |
| All Movie Guide profile | |
| IMDb profile | |
The Phantom is a 1996 action/adventure movie starring Billy Zane, and directed by Simon Wincer. It was based on Lee Falk's comic strip The Phantom, about a seemingly immortal crimefighter and his fight against all forms of evil. The film is loosely based on the first two Phantom stories, "The Singh Brotherhood" and "The Sky Band", and features Treat Williams, Kristy Swanson, and Catherine Zeta-Jones.
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Plot summary
The legend of the Phantom starts when a young boy, the last survivor of a pirate attack, is washed ashore on a mysterious island called Bengalla. He swears to devote his life to the destruction of piracy, greed, cruelty, and injustice, in all their forms. When he grows to be a man, he adopts the identity of The Phantom, a masked avenger. The role of the Phantom is passed on from father to son through centuries, causing people to believe it is the same, seemingly immortal man, giving him nicknames such as "The Ghost Who Walks" and "The Man Who Never Dies". The film tells us the story of Kit Walker, the 21st Phantom (Zane), and his attempts to prevent the rich madman Xander Drax (Treat Williams) from obtaining a weapon of doom, the Skulls of Touganda, possession of which will give him the secret to ultimate power and world domination. In the process of tracking down the crystal skulls, the Phantom also meets his former girlfriend Diana Palmer (Kristy Swanson), who proves to be an invaluable help for him. The search for the skulls becomes even more complicated for the Phantom when he discovers that one of Drax's henchmen, Quill (James Remar), is the killer of his father. The Phantom kills Quill near the climax of the film. Appearing prominently is Sala, a feminist air-pirate who is apparently an ally of Drax but later converts to the Phantom's side. Sala attempts, during their first meeting, to seduce the Phantom, who remains faithful to Diana. Xander Drax eventually obtains three of the four Skulls, whose united power he demonstrates by destroying objects around him. The Phantom then reveals the skull of his ring to be the fourth and unleashes it against Drax, destroying him and the other three Skulls. Diana later returns, in Sala's airplane, to America, though it is suggested that he will follow and marry her.
Production
The film is loosely based on Lee Falk's first two Phantom stories, The Singh Brotherhood and The Sky Band. Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa plays Kabai Sengh, leader of the Sengh Brotherhood (the name of the brotherhood was changed from Singh to Sengh in the movie), and Catherine Zeta-Jones plays Sala, leader of the Sky Band, a group of female criminal air-pirates. Joe Dante was originally attached to direct, and he developed a draft of the script together with Jeffrey Boam. However, when Paramount pushed the film back a year, Dante left for other commitments, with Simon Wincer replacing him as a director. Dante ended up as one of the executive producers. Joel Schumacher was also considered to direct the film. Director Simon Wincer then cast Billy Zane, who had recently won praise for his work as a psychopath in Dead Calm. Zane won the part after competition from cult-icon Bruce Campbell and actor Kevin Smith. Billy Zane feverishly pumped iron for over a year to play the Phantom. A Batman-like costume with fake muscles was made for him, but by the time filming started, Zane was so beefed up that he did not need it. Many scenes developing the romance between the Phantom/Kit Walker and Diana Palmer were cut in order to make the film more fast paced. Many of the scenes took place in the Deep Woods of Bengalla. An action scene featuring the Phantom wrestling a lion and one with him fighting a snake were also cut.
Reaction
The movie suffered the same fate as two other period-piece comic book/pulp adaptations at the time, The Shadow and The Rocketeer, and did not fare very well at the box office in the US. Despite of the film's failure, a new movie about the Phantom is in the works, called The Ghost Who Walks. However, it aims to distance itself from the 1996 film, and provide an updated take on the character.
Novelization
A novelization of the film was written by Rob MacGregor, author of many novels featuring Indiana Jones. It included a more detailed look at the backstory of the characters, and also a few scenes which were omitted from the final cut of the movie.
Tribute
The Palmers' butler is named Falkmoore. This name is derived from Lee Falk, the creator of The Phantom, and Ray Moore, The Phantom's first artist.
Advertising
- To coincide with the premiere of the film, the Phantom was used as a part of the Got Milk? campaign.
Shooting locations
The movie was shot on location in Los Angeles, USA, and Australia and Thailand. Hugh Hefner, creator of Playboy magazine, a fan of the Phantom comic strip, allowed the filmmakers to use his Playboy Mansion as the home of the wealthy Palmer family.
Taglines
- "The Ghost Who Walks"
- "Slam Evil!"
External links
- The Phantom at the Internet Movie Database
- The Phantom at All Movie Guide
- Roger Ebert review
- Time Out review
- Billy Zane talks about The Phantom
- The Phantom at the National Film and Sound Archive
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