Comments on: Extraordinary Illusions http://filmjournal.net/melies/2008/06/28/extraordinary-illusions/ An in-depth look at the cinema's first creative genius Thu, 08 Jan 2009 18:42:48 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=wordpress-mu-1.0 by: Michael Brooke http://filmjournal.net/melies/2008/06/28/extraordinary-illusions/#comment-245 Tue, 01 Jul 2008 06:19:06 +0000 http://filmjournal.net/melies/2008/06/28/extraordinary-illusions/#comment-245 I think one crucial thing you have to bear in mind with Méliès' work is that it's not so much "silent cinema" (even really basic aspects of film grammar such as close-ups or cutting to different angles within the same scene had yet to be developed) as an unusually vivid link between the cinema and 19th century variety theatre. So it makes most sense to watch his films as though they're individual stage sketches, albeit using devices that would have been impossible to realise in a theatre - but that in no way suggests their horizons are limited: on the contrary, Méliès was pushing the medium much further than anyone else was attempting at the time. As for the enjoyment factor, I've been pleasantly surprised by how uncomplicatedly entertaining most of these films have been so far - of the fifty-plus titles I've reviewed to date, only a handful need footnotes for full appreciation (the <a href="http://filmjournal.net/melies/2008/05/29/dreyfus-court-martial-arrest-of-dreyfus/" rel="nofollow">Dreyfus Affair</a> cycle is probably the least accessible without background info), and most are still great fun today. Try <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rOTzV_PL9vM" rel="nofollow">The Four Troublesome Heads</a> on YouTube. I think one crucial thing you have to bear in mind with Méliès’ work is that it’s not so much “silent cinema” (even really basic aspects of film grammar such as close-ups or cutting to different angles within the same scene had yet to be developed) as an unusually vivid link between the cinema and 19th century variety theatre.

So it makes most sense to watch his films as though they’re individual stage sketches, albeit using devices that would have been impossible to realise in a theatre - but that in no way suggests their horizons are limited: on the contrary, Méliès was pushing the medium much further than anyone else was attempting at the time.

As for the enjoyment factor, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by how uncomplicatedly entertaining most of these films have been so far - of the fifty-plus titles I’ve reviewed to date, only a handful need footnotes for full appreciation (the Dreyfus Affair cycle is probably the least accessible without background info), and most are still great fun today. Try The Four Troublesome Heads on YouTube.

]]> by: paulwjm http://filmjournal.net/melies/2008/06/28/extraordinary-illusions/#comment-117 Sat, 28 Jun 2008 12:59:37 +0000 http://filmjournal.net/melies/2008/06/28/extraordinary-illusions/#comment-117 From the perspective of historical relevance the importance of these films is huge, but do you find yourself enjoying them in a conventional sense? I wouldn't mind watching them myself but am unsure of how I'd respond given the general fact that I have a difficult time with silent material (though I have 4 or 5 films in my collection). From the perspective of historical relevance the importance of these films is huge, but do you find yourself enjoying them in a conventional sense? I wouldn’t mind watching them myself but am unsure of how I’d respond given the general fact that I have a difficult time with silent material (though I have 4 or 5 films in my collection).

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