1974: Phantom of the Paradise

If you think Tommy was an over-the-top 1970s pop opera, I'd like to refer you to Brian de Palma's glamrock take on The Phantom of the Opera (with a bit of Faust thrown in for good measure), in which a young songwriter has his material robbed by an evil producer, is thrown into not just any prison, but - wait for it! - Sing Sing, tries revenge, in the process of which his face get mutilated by a vinyl press, so that he takes to wearing a silver mask, which goes nicely with his metal teeth (don't ask), before things start to get whacky. The film, which may have been influenced by the consumption of cocaine, would have been even better if, as I had anticipated, at one point giant, winged penises would have flown onto the screen. Maybe in a director's cut. (7.5)