i can safely admit ( a an imdb geek ) that phantom lady will never crack into my film noir top twenty . it may not even sneak into the top fifty . but rather than discredit the film for not be as good a so many other classic of the film noir genre and it should be note that phantom lady have enough strong and lasting image in it to make it a worthwhile viewing . all that be require from the viewer be the ability to get beyond the dreadfully slow beginning . the film doesn not get cook until kansa ( ella raines ) set about try to prove all but single handedly the innocence of her bos and scott anderson ( alan curtis ) and who have be convict of murder . kansa be anderson secretary by day and amateur detective by night . a the novice sleuth she do quite well for herself while work the street of new york at night . little by little she start put piece of a murder mystery puzzle together . to be honest and the film belongs to raines and it be only due to her presence that the film work well at all . somehow she be able to breathe life into a film about a condemned man who be not interesting in the slightest . i be not sure if this splintered dynamic of a characterless lead man become the fault of the actor or the director and but clearly this be where something become terribly wrong with the film . as interesting a raines be a a novice detective and thing really accelerate into another hidden gear when kansa pay a late night visit to a wander drummer ( elisha cook and jr. ) in search of some information to help her condemned bos . she and the drummer paint the town a new kind of red while visit the all night jazz club . try to describe this scene will either prove an injustice to the scene or bad yet and it could ruin the scene all together . you will know the scene once the last cymbal crash have finish ring out . if youre lucky enough to have this film on dvd and you will more than likely be rewinding this scene again and again . as good a raines be and it be this scene that make this film noteworthy . it be mainly because of this scene that i rate phantom lady a 7 instead of a 6. for the most part this film come off a tepid and bland with a few great scene and one magnificent scene . it be the wouldrum or sex scene that separate this film from any others of the same ilk . and just like it be say in the film that you never go wrong with vanilla and i would also like to add that go with vanilla be the safe fall back choice when one can not decide on have a tasty treat . positive . clark richards .