Still haunted by the phantom after all these years

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This article was published 16/02/2011 (5564 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

If you see a deranged adult wandering the streets with a plunger in their hand and tinfoil over their teeth on Feb. 26, there’s a simple explanation.  

Thirty-six years later, that individual might still be possessed by a phantom. Or, to be precise, Brian De Palma’s 1974 cult movie musical Phantom of the Paradise.

The film — which is a loosely adapted mix of The Phantom of the Opera, The Picture of Dorian Gray and Faust — was a massive hit for Winnipeg audiences.     

On Feb. 26, the Phantom at the Pemby event will be held at the Pembina Hotel. The movie will be screened around the venue on numerous high-definition TVs and there will also be a costume contest.

Gloria Dignazio — who also spearheaded two successful Phantompalooza events in the city in 2005 and 2006 — said Trevor Druxman, owner of The Pemby, approached her about co-organizing the event a few months ago.

“Why do we still love this film so much?” said Dignazio, who is legal assistant. “Because Winnipeggers rock and we love our music.”

Dignazio said Phantom of the Paradise — which was released in October 1974 by 20th Century Fox and starred William Finley and Paul Williams — was the first film she went to see.

“As soon as I sat down, I was mesmerized. I loved it. I’ve probably seen it between 200 and 300 times since and I’ve just introduced it to my nine-year-old daughter.”

She noted the upcoming event will not be a fundraiser, but the chance for fans to get together and have fun. “What else are you going to do on a Saturday night?” Dignazio said.

Pemby owner Trevor Druxman said he came up with the idea for the event after persuading CBC to hold the “world premiere” of the Winnipeg-filmed movie Keep Your Head Up Kid: The Don Cherry Story at the hotel. “It looked so good on the big screens,” Druxman said.

He recalls when, as a 12-year-old student at Tuxedo Park School, he would go the to the old Garrick Cinema to watch Phantom of the Paradise.

“We’d sing all the songs at recess and we’d take the Academy bus to the Garrick,” he said, noting that De Palma had intended the movie for an older audience.

“This was a time in our lives that stuck with us. However, we’re hoping that more young people will now be exposed to the movie based on the recommendations of their parents.”

St. Vital resident Mike Navis was also exposed to the movie as a young man.   

“It was the first movie I saw that established a hero and a villain. It also had great music and a hint of sex,” said the Canada Post employee, noting the film also has a cult following in Paris, France and Japan.
Navis hopes guests will turn up at the screening in costume.

“I see a lot of people donning phantom masks and putting tinfoil in their mouths. The phantom character had his teeth removed in prison to avoid infection and had them replaced with metal, “ Navis said.

“This usually ends up cutting your gums, but it’s worth it.”

Tickets are $10 per person and available at The Pemby, which is located at 1011 Pembina Hwy. For more information, call 453-3724.

simon.fuller@canstarnews.com