1. Phantom of the Opera - 1925
Based on the novel of the same name, "The Phantom of the Opera" was released by Universal Pictures in 1925. It tells the story of a deformed, twisted Phantom who causes mayhem and misery at the Paris Opera House while trying to gain the favor of a young singer. Today it is most famous for the horrific face that Lon Chaney devised for himself, kept secret until the movie opened and said to cause audience members to pass out in horror. Build notes at the bottom....
Aurora #428-1000 & Escape Hatch Hobbies
- Fans of Aurora's monster models will instantly recognize that the head shown here...is not the head that comes with the model. It is a replacement head from the Escape Hatch Hobbies website, a great site that features all sorts of cool horror models and add-ons for the old Aurora kits. The head is beautifully sculpted and captures the look of Lon Chaney's terrifying Phantom perfectly.
- I modified the kit's mask to look more like the Phantom's mask in the movie by adding the top cap that covers his head. To do this I cut off the end of the finger of a latex glove, which formed a reasonably good cap.
- For the dungeon water effect I used two-part epoxy resin mixed with a couple drops of brown Vallejo paint. Because it's not enough that the victim is in a dungeon, he needs to be drowning in gross brown water too.