400 years ago, a young boy saw his father murdered by pirates. Washed ashore on a remote shore, the boy dedicated himself to fighting injustice in the world, and passed that mission onto his son, grandson, and beyond.
Twenty generations later, "the Phantom", or "the Ghost Who Walks" is a near-mythical figure in local folklore; an immortal protector of the innocent and avenger of crimes. I guess that original boy and his descendants all looked very much alike. Even in a full body suit and mask, you'd think someone would twig to "this is not the same guy" at some point.
Anyway, it is now 1936, and an evil American business tycoon is seeking three mystical skulls that, when joined together, create a force beyond any explosive known to humanity. The Phantom, as you might have already guessed, is the one man who can stop him.
It may seem hard to imagine in 2020, when Marvel has dominated the box office for over a decade, but in the mid-90s the only successful superhero films had been the first few Superman and Batman movies. Rolling 45 million dollars on a lesser known property like The Phantom was a pretty bold choice - which maybe why, rather than a true superhero film, this feels more like "Indiana Jones, if Indiana Jones wore a purple bodysuit". The gamble did not one that paid off at the time, though the movie has developed something of a cult following in the quarter-century since it came out.
Financially successful or not, is it any good? Well, the effects have certainly dated and the action sequences are vastly less ambitious than something like The Winter Soldier, but I find that The Phantom has a goofy kind of charm, even though I find the whole "white saviour" backstory of the character (which, to be fair, is from the original comics) to be pretty on-the-nose.
The film also has a great selection of actors in the villainous roles, all of whom gleefully ham it up. They're fully aware that this is meant to be popcorn movie fun, I reckon.
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