A lighthouse keeper has been murdered in mysterious circumstances and, during the ensuing investigation a Phantom Light keeps appearing at the scene of his death.A lighthouse keeper has been murdered in mysterious circumstances and, during the ensuing investigation a Phantom Light keeps appearing at the scene of his death.A lighthouse keeper has been murdered in mysterious circumstances and, during the ensuing investigation a Phantom Light keeps appearing at the scene of his death.
Anthony Holles
- Mr. Mason
- (uncredited)
Ernest Jay
- Railway Worker
- (uncredited)
Vi Kaley
- Woman in Pub
- (uncredited)
John Singer
- Cabin Boy
- (uncredited)
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaWhen Alice Bright (Binnie Hale) remarks that she had just been performing in a play, Sam Higgins (Gordon Harker) retorts, "East Lynne?" This is a reference to the oft produced play and movie of Mrs. Henry Wood's novel of the same name. "East Lynne" was enjoyed for its mad plot and frequently incomprehensible dialogue.
- GoofsSam Higgins arrives at Tan y Bwlch to take a boat to the North Stack lighthouse offshore. Both places exist but are about 60 miles apart. Tan y Bwlch is on the shore of a reservoir, not the sea, and North Stack lighthouse, on the isle of Anglesey, is onshore, not off.
- Quotes
Alice Bright: Mr Higgins. I'm going to tell you the truth. I'm an actress, hiding from the police.
Sam Higgins: What, you act as bad as all that?
- ConnectionsReferenced in Dad's Army: Put That Light Out! (1970)
Featured review
good banter but too much banter not enough spooky lighthouse
First off there is a very nice DVD of this mixed with some other British Thrillers. Looks and sounds good. That's great because the movie isn't too gripping and would dissolve with any distractions. The movie is an odd mix of "silent" movie acting and a long set up that takes up way too much time. The welsh village is fun and interesting--there are other later British films that have this same kind of small village opener with a stranger appearing and a mystery being resolved. It's a formula that works more often than not. But the movie fails to really evoke much spookiness of the lighthouse itself. It's never interested in generating any suspense for very long. Usually there is some very brief suspense moment, and it's just to set up more comedy. The comedy is fairly funny but no real sense of danger is generated. No sense of the story moving forward. There are also touches from (then trend setting) Russian montage editing that seem kind of comical in an unintended way. As you'd expect from director Powell there are a few nice camera moves and some good location photography. A music score would have helped this film there is none at all, perhaps a cost saving element? Or just a wrong choice? There are things to enjoy here but you have to get over the 30's cliché elements of "flapper girl" and "spunky-male-reporter" and these are pretty creaky indeed. A movie that, perhaps in a very director Michael Powell way, flirts around with various quirky and occasionally unexpected ideas but doesn't commit to any of them enough to become a whole anything. Other reviews of it being an OK time killer are valid.
helpful•36
- HEFILM
- Jun 4, 2010
Details
- Runtime1 hour 16 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 1.37 : 1
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![Binnie Hale and Gordon Harker in The Phantom Light (1935)](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/M/MV5BNzNlNTJhYzktOGViNi00YzI4LWI4ZTctN2I2ODMzOGU3N2EwXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyOTU3ODk4MQ@@._V1_QL75_UY133_CR2,0,90,133_.jpg)