George Melies; FIRST WIZARD OF CINEMA (1896-1913) Info, 1896-1913 - George Melies; FIRST WIZARD OF CINEMA
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George Melies; FIRST WIZARD OF CINEMA (1896-1913)George Melies is credited to have made the first horror film called The House of the Devil (Le Manoir du diable) 1897. It did originally last 2 minutes but on thiscollection it lasts 44 seconds and is called under the title The Haunted Castle.The film is on disc 1.Georges M�li�s: First Wizard of CinemaFlicker AlleyWow! That was my first impression when I opened up the box containing Georges M�li�s: First Wizard of Cinema,a thick boxed set with five DVDs filled with the inovative French director's films! Flicker Alley in association with David Shepard and Blackhawk Films has scoured theglobe to put together an amazing collection of 173 films that M�li�s made between 1896 and 1913. All told, films from seventeen archives and collections were used making thisas near a complete collection of existing M�li�s works as were ever going to see. It seems almost impossible to have this many of his films together at one time.A truly unprecedented endeavor, Flicker Alley has spared no expense in making this a truly collectible item.George M�li�s started life as a magician. He owned the Robert-Houdin theater in Paris, started by the famous prestidigitator whose name it bears(and whose name a young Erik Weisz would adapt for his stage name: Houdini), and preformed there regularly. In April of 1896 M�li�s started incorporating movies into histheater's program of evening entertainment after buying a projector from England.(Attempts to purchase cameras and projectors from the Lumiere Brothers, the first to screen movies in France failed.) Later that year he started making movies himself,filming outdoors. When the fickle elements became too much trouble, the young magician constructed the world's first movie studio, which was completed in 1897.About this time a serendipitous accident occurred that would influence the rest of M�li�s film career. While he was filming candid life scenes outside ofPlace de l'Opera in Paris, his camera jammed for a moment. When the problem was fixed he continued shooting. After developing the film and screening it M�li�s discoveredsomething that must have been amazing to him: a trolley in the background instantly turned into a bus. He had accidentally stumbled upon trick photography and many of hisfilms afterwards would use such manipulation to make some amazing films.The set starts off with his first film, a short actuality, Playing Cards (1896), and ends with his final effort, 1913's The Voyage of the Bourrichon Family.In between are over 170 amazing films of all types. Even when seen today these films are both imaginative and pioneering. It's impossible to determine whatthe audiences of the 1890's and early 1900's thought of his magical fantasies, but they couldn't have been any less impressed than viewers of today.One of the things thatthese films all show is M�li�s vast imagination. At the time that he bought his first camera, movies were only used to document life. A train pulling into a station, alady dancing on a stage, and the recording of firemen rushing to a fire were typical films of the time. M�li�s first film, Card Party, was in that vein, a group of friendsplaying cards and talking about stories in a newspaper, but he had soon expanded the medium far beyond that. In the third film in this set he's making a woman disappear,turn into a skeleton, and then reappear by simply stopping the camera. In the fourth film, A Nightmare, he's firmly embraced the fantastic, having a man be tormented by agiant moon that tries to eat him. This short was made in the same year as Card Party. It is simply astonishing to see how far M�li�s progressed in just a few short months.Viewing these films it soon becomes apparent that M�li�s never stopped trying to top himself. Though he (and other filmmakers who copies him) gets a lot of use out ofstopping the camera and rearranging the sets, he wasn't satisfied with just that gimmick. He came also used multiple exposures, moving backgrounds, masking, and otherin-camera techniques for creating magical images. A lot of these shorts are surreal; with devils and demons instantly appearing and disappearing, people spontaneouslywalking up walls or ripping off their own heads, and size is only temporary.Though he's best known for his dream and magical fantasies, M�li�s also made historical dramas,comedies, adaptations of popular fiction, and reenactments of famous events. These are all presented in this collection and it's easy to tell that they are M�li�s' work.All of his films have a certain flavor, with intricate backgrounds, large sets, and breakneck action. It was certainly the hectic pace, with one amazing thing happening afteranother, and large elaborate sets which enticed viewers around the turn of the century.It's also what led to his ruination. The later films presented in this collection form the early teens are still inventive and clever, but they don't differ significantlyfrom his work a decade before. Conquest of the Pole (1912), M�li�s last great film, illustrates this point. It's an entertaining and creative film that is a lot of fun.A group of scientists debate the best way to get to the North Pole and several expeditions are launched including ones by car, balloon, and plane. The latter is the onlyone to make it to the Arctic where the explorers have some adventures including being attacked by an ice giant and getting stuck to the "Magnetic Needle Axis of the Pole."Like his other movies, and this one bears a close resemblance in structure to A Trip to the Moon (1902), the special effects trump the story. In this case the bizarre carsthat try to drive to the pole and the constellations that the plane flies by are all interesting to look at, but they don't advance the story and are on screen for too long.The film didn't do well at the box office and one has to imagine at least part of the reason is that people had seen it all before.Borrowing money to upgrade his studiosM�li�s became heavily in debt. Though his last films were longer, the times had passed him by. Audiences wanted longer narratives and fewer gimmicks. When his films stoppedmaking money and his notes were called George M�li�s was forced to leave the industry that he helped to create.It has been said that M�li�s made over 500 films during thecourse of his career, but it's astounding that this many still survive. Over the years several large caches of his films have been destroyed or disposed of,making most of his work lost to time. It's sad to hear but in 1917, at the height of WWI a collection of his films were discovered in the Passage de l'Opera which was beingoccupied by the military. They melted the celluloid in order to extract the silver content and fashioned the rest to boot soles for the fighting soldiers.Six years later his theater was demolished and the films stored their sold be weight. Finally in 1924 M�li�s himself burned his collection of his works to make more roomfor his family in their small apartment.But time has not claimed all of his films and these 173 movies are a good look at what the French magician was capable of.Entertaining, fun, and whimsical, these films are well worth watching. Having said that they go down best when viewed a few at a time. Screening an hour's worth of thesefilms can get a bit monotonous, though a few shorts every evening keeps them fresh and enjoyable.
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