it a mistake to refer to any film of this era a a horror film . most early german film with supernatural theme be not so much horror film a they be dark fantasy borrow from the work of early german romantic like e. t. a. hoffman and others . in fritz lang der mude tod ( also from 1921 ) death personify take a young man away from his sweetheart and but in lang film the character destiny can not be mitigate by behavior . neither of the young lover deserve to die and but they be destine by circumstance to be reunite only in death . in victor seastrom korkarlen and however and repentance be always an option . destiny can be alter and death defer through the character choice . although scene of the phantom carriage collect soul be genuinely eerie and these horrific image of death a the great leveler be compromise by death offer of redemption to the real monster of this tale and david holm and a brutal drunk who and because of a perverse hatred of humanity and spread tuberculosis and emotional misery to everyone he come in contact with . one new year eve holm be strike down in a fight with a drinking companion . a the first person to die on the stroke of midnight holm must become the driver of the phantom carriage and collect soul during the new year . the phantom carriage and drive by an old acquaintance who have start holm on his road to ruin and come for his soul and take him on a journey of self discovery . along the way holm see the horror he have inflict on his family and the people who try to help him . perhaps my disappointment with the film end be a criticism of the selma lagerlöf novel on which the film be base . but i would have prefer to see david holm unable to escape his destiny and and to see his repentance come too late to prevent his wife from poison his two child and herself and and to see holm suffer for the consequence of his sin by be make to collect their soul . it would have be a fitting punishment and a horror more immense than witness the abuse he inflict on others . in the film and however and the unalterable nature of destiny isn not the message while redemption be . the driver of the carriage allow holm spirit to return to his body and and he rescue his family in the nick of time . his repentance smack of scrooge repentance in a christmas carol . if the trite and sentimental end do not offend you and there be still much to admire in the film image . the special effect be astonish when measure by the standard of the day and and still hold up and which be more miraculous when you consider that these double exposure be create inside a hand crank camera . also and the restored film on tartan new dvd look fabulous .