Films Chronophotographiques (1889-1904, Étienne-Jules Marey)
I, who am easily amused, spent a Saturday night watching 1890s motion tests while listening to the new Maya Shenfeld album. After dropping cats from a height to see how they land, it focused on naked musclemen walking and jumping and doing olympic sports, which was less of interest. I felt like rewatching Nope, Katy brought up All Light, Everywhere. The editor saved the best for last (birds).
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The Little Match Seller (1902, James Williamson)
Like how adding film grain helps digital compositing look more natural, falling snow makes the dreamy matchlight photo effects hold together. The actor’s gesture – hands reaching out to the phantom roast turkey to hands over face crying – is really good. Even shorter than other versions I’ve seen.
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The Big Swallow (1901, James Williamson)
Early meta-film, guy with appallingly large collar gets agitated and swallows the camera and crew, beautifully done.
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Something Good: Negro Kiss (1898, William Nicholas Selig)
Something good: the woman has crazy shoulders on her dress, resists his advances for a few seconds then gets into it.
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The Merry Frolics of Satan (1906, Georges Méliès)
Alternating between sepia-toned and hand-tinted, a proto-Monty Python comedy – this is a movie that opens with an ass-kicking machine. Trick props and sets, a phantom carriage, everything transforming then demons coming out of nowhere. I put on Stereolab’s “Soop Groove #1” into “Metronomic Underground”, opened my eyes wide, and lost my mind completely. No idea what Satan is up to here, then it ends abruptly.
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The Mysterious Retort (1906, Georges Méliès)
Quite short, and I was still recovering from the satanic spell cast by the previous movie, I have no recollection of this. A lab experiment gone wrong?
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The Witch (1906, Georges Méliès)
I don’t like to say “that artist crazy, he on drugs,” I like to respect the creative process, but Georges Melies crazy, he on drugs. Lovely coloring, I dunno what to say about story – I looked up from typing that last sentence and everyone had turned into frogs or snakes.
