Horst in Translation ([email protected]) "Das Phantom von Soho or "The Phantom of Soho" is a West German 90-minute film from 1964, so this one is already over 50 years old. The director is Franz Josef Gottlieb and the writer is Ladislas Fodor and these two were pretty prolific and successful back then. Their work on this film and also the cast are probably the main reason why this is a German-language film in the original (according to IMDb), but these days it may be easier to find the English-language dub than the original. I also watched the dub. The cast includes a handful of actors that were pretty successful back in the day, even if they are almost forgotten now. These would be Dieter Borsche, Barbara Rütting, Werner Peters, Hans Söhnker and others. You probably also find some of the cast members in other Edgar Wallace film as it was pretty rare they they just appeared in one of these. So now I already said that this 1.5-hour film from over half a century ago is based on an Edgar Wallace novel (Soho is mentioned not only in this title here) and these films were really popular back then and if you look for movies defining German cinema back in the 1960s, you will quickly meet Mr. Wallace for sure because of the quantity of films that exist, sadly not really because of the quality. This black-and-white movie here is another example of this. It has relatively little scare factor and humor compared to the other films, but it's a pretty grim little tale about a serial killer being out there and the cops try to figure out for what reason (s)he chooses his/her victims. All in all, a fairly forgettable watch. I did not find the story really that interesting and I give this one a thumbs-down. Not recommended.

Darkling_Zeist 'Das Phantom Von Soho' is a supremely pacy, atmospheric, and surprisingly grisly Krimi from the lurid pen of Bryan Edgar Wallace. The burlesque jazz sounds of Martin Bottcher are utterly sublime and not only are the performances uniformly excellent, the brutal stabbings have a decidedly proto-gialli feel. 'Das Phantom Von Soho' is an absolute must for rampant Krimi-headz, and while the overt camp-ness is considerably muted, the grisly, sordid atmosphere, thankfully isn't. This grungy little Edgar Wallace thriller was a real corker, and one of the rare Krimi's that I would happily watch again! And I most heartily approve of the lead actresses's spicy moniker: Barbara Rutting! "Oh, I say!" (Most appropriate for one so lithe!)

wes-connors "Residents and visitors of the Soho district in London are terrified due to a series of brutal murders near a prominent nightclub. A killer wearing a horrifying skull mask and golden gloves has been murdering patrons of the Sansibar. Scotland Yard is desperate to discover the secret behind the murders and find the killer before another victim falls at his hands," according to the DVD sleeve's synopsis.Scotland Yard inspector Dieter Borsche (as Hugh Patton) is unexpectedly accompanied, in sleuthing, by murder mystery novelist Barbara Rutting (as Clarinda Smith). Ms. Rütting believes she can unmask the "Phantom of Soho" before the police. Mr. Borsche is assisted by humorless Peter Sellers look-alike Peter Vogel (as Hallam). Director Gottlieb fails to make it very interesting, with some "arty" camera placements.*** Das Phantom von Soho (1964) Franz Josef Gottlieb ~ Dieter Borsche, Barbara Rütting, Peter Vogel

evilskip In the 1960's two German studios were grinding out thrillers based on the works of Edgar Wallace and his son Bryan.This particular studio finally gave the field over to Rialto in 1964 after Monster Of London City.This is a better than average film in the series as many at this point had become unwatchable.A hooded killer is disposing of clients of a seedy strip club.Government officials are heavily involved.A white slavery ring and revenge tie into the plot as well.The usual red herrings abound and the killer seemingly comes out of left field.Still worth a look.