Nonureva Really Surprised!

Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

Fleur Actress is magnificent and exudes a hypnotic screen presence in this affecting drama.

Tyson Hunsaker The Phantom Carriage might be one of the most underrated landmark films no one has probably ever seen. Despite its 1921 release date, The Phantom Carriage is well ahead of its time in its clear non-linear story telling method, and groundbreaking visual effects. Even for a 2017 audience, some of the imagery presented is sure to have a creepy and profound effect on its viewers.The story centers around a man named David Holm who is greeted by a "grim reaper" type character and is forced to confront his life and the decisions he's made. Ultimately the story has a strong message with strong parallels to "A Christmas Carol" by Charles Dickens. Ultimately, the film is a story of change and reflection. Which makes this "horror" more of a touching drama than anything else. If there would be anything to criticize, it would be a few scenes that feel somewhat inconsequential to the story as a whole and might feel like it drags the entire piece a bit more than it should. That would be the only criticism but it really does feel insignificant when compared to the rest of this gorgeously done film. Hopefully this film reaches more audiences and touches more hearts.

Mr_Ectoplasma "The Phantom Carriage" (known as "Körkarlen," or "The Wagoner" in Sweden) opens with a young woman dying in a convent on New Year's Eve in remote Sweden. Meanwhile, David Holm, the man she repeatedly asks to be sent to her bedside, is getting drunk in a cemetery; he dies that evening, and is plunged into an odyssey in which he is taken by a phantom carriage. The carriage is driven by his former friend, who was, in accordance with folkore, forced to drive the grim reaper's carriage for the entire year due to having been the last person on earth to die before the dawn of the new year.Though lauded by most all who have seen it, "The Phantom Carriage" is surprisingly less-known than one may think it would be, especially considering it was the film that influenced Ingmar Bergman to become a filmmaker. In Sweden, it is deservedly heralded as a national classic. It is a seasonal film in that it takes place on the New Year's Eve holiday, a pivotal theme for the film. In many ways, it operates as something of a macabre relative to Charles Dickens' "A Christmas Carol," possessing similar levels of rumination on death, despair, and the human condition. It is a considerably darker story, however, and has more in common with the horror and fantasy genres than "A Christmas Carol."A great deal of the praise for the film has centered on its cinematography, which is absolutely deserved. It's beautifully photographed, from the sepia-toned interior scenes to the icy blue outdoor sequences; the chilly Swedish countryside is captured hauntingly, and the shifting colors indicating the multiple time frames is effective. The special effects, though simplistic, have also been a major point of interest, as it is one of the earliest films to feature such sophisticated use of double-exposure that is still impressive and visually compelling to this day. Visual elements aside, the film is also just narratively sophisticated, and weaves an intricate and thematically rich plot in spite of its silent format.Overall, "The Phantom Carriage" is one of silent cinema's greats. It's visually stunning and loaded with compelling and haunting images, but it's also sophisticated merely in terms of storytelling. A great, somewhat more sinister pairing with "A Christmas Carol," fitting for a cold night in late December. 10/10.

Hitchcoc I read a great deal of work on cinema and yet had never heard of this film. It is a remarkable example of the best the silent era had to offer. The acting is subdued and believable. More is done with the faces and postures of the characters than is done with most modern films. Sjostrom a the lead character has the marvelous ability to show a kind of kind exterior while suffering inside. There are times when we see him on the edge of salvation, but he thinks a moment and pulls back inside. He is so set on the revenge on his wife that it trumps everything, even the lives of his little children.It is the story of a Salvation Army worker, a young woman, who is dying of consumption. On her death bed, she calls for David Holm to be brought to her. The response from those around her is that of fear and disgust. Yet she persists and her cohorts start a search for him. It is unsuccessful since he has determined to have nothing to do with her. Even the wife is brought to the young woman. She is in incredible pain. We now get the story in a series of flashbacks, precipitated by the story of the Phantom Carriage which is driven by the last sinner to die on New Year's Eve. He must put in one year before he is released to his reward. David, instead to going to see Edit (the young woman), gets in a fight with his drinking buddies and is killed, just a few seconds before midnight.This is a story of reclamation, which is one of my favorite themes. It is rather Dickensian in some ways. The beauty of this is that we are treated to the incredible resistance to transformation that Sjostrom's character puts up. This is one of the better movies I've ever seen.

dougdoepke This is certainly no product of Hollywood. The visuals have to be among the bleakest on record, where there's no attempt to prettify anything. So, what we've got as a result is the look and feel of what amounts to an alternate universe, grim and foreboding. It's this mood that carries the movie even when the acting and motivations falter. (I agree that Edit's undying love for David makes little sense within their skimpy context).To me the story comes across as a Christian fable of sin and redemption. David is able to escape his fate by a heartfelt act of bended-knee repentance, while the saintly Edit's prayers are finally answered. After all, David's salvation (and his family's) must be the result of supernatural intervention since the grim reaper admits he's powerless to alter anyone's fate. What the movie does so effectively is combine the subtle religious message with a supernatural mood that surprisingly suggests the absence of a divinity, an absence symbolized by the horror of the reaper and his ghostly carriage. No wonder religious existentialists like Ingmar Bergmann have been inspired by this early effort. (In fact, the hooded figure of "Death" in Bergmann's Seventh Seal {1956} bears a distinct resemblance to the reaper}.)The narrative is pretty uncompromising, conveying little distinction between reality, dream, or flashback. But I expect that adds to the overall surreal mood. The spectral images are well done for such an early stage in film technology and chillingly convey another dimension. Despite the occasional crudities the movie remains a highly compelling antique. But I wouldn't recommend it as relaxing entertainment.