On the Roof

On the Roof 1897

5.07

Two crooks throw a lady off a roof, and a hapless policeman tries to capture them.

1897

The X-Ray Fiend

The X-Ray Fiend 1897

5.40

A romantic couple are transformed into skeletons via X-Rays. The film combines two very recent innovations: Wilhelm Roentgen's discovery of X-rays in 1895, and Georges Méliès' accidental realisation of the special-effects potential of the jump-cut in 1896.

1897

The Bewitched Inn

The Bewitched Inn 1897

6.23

A weary traveler stops at an inn along the way to get a good night's sleep, but his rest is interrupted by odd happenings when he gets to his room--beds vanishing and re-appearing, candles exploding, pants flying through the air and his shoes walking away by themselves.

1897

After the Ball

After the Ball 1897

5.10

A woman arrives home after the ball. Her servant helps her undress and bathe.

1897

Snowball Fight

Snowball Fight 1897

6.50

Wintertime in Lyon. About a dozen people, men and women, are having a snowball fight in the middle of a tree-lined street. The cyclist coming along the road becomes the target of opportunity. He falls off his bicycle. He's not hurt, but he rides back the way he came, as the fight continues.

1897

Bains en mer

Bains en mer 1897

5.30

Swimmers jump into the water from the docks, as a small boat passes by.

1897

Return of Lifeboat

Return of Lifeboat 1897

4.10

Along the seashore near San Francisco, a boat belonging to the Pacific Coast Life Saving Service can just be seen as it returns to shore. Several men are at the oars. As the boat approaches land, it must make its way through rough waves and surging water.

1897

The Haunted Castle

The Haunted Castle 1897

5.70

A man has an encounter with several spooky apparitions in a castle that is evidently owned by the Devil.

1897

Serpentine Dance

Serpentine Dance 1897

6.50

Angelic and demonic serpentine dance from dawn of cinema. Hand-colored frame by frame. Lumière no. 765 or 765.1 (colorized, different dancer?).

1897

Mr. Edison at Work in His Chemical Laboratory

Mr. Edison at Work in His Chemical Laboratory 1897

5.10

“This film is remarkable in several respects. In the first place, it is full life-size. Secondly, it is the only accurate recent portrait of the great inventor. The scene is an actual one, showing Mr. Edison in working dress engaged in an interesting chemical experiment in his great Laboratory. There is sufficient movement to lead the spectator through the several processes of mixing, pouring, testing, etc. as if he were side by side with the principal. The lights and shadows are vivid, and the apparatus and other accessories complete a startling picture that will appeal to every beholder.” (Edison Catalog)

1897

Bocal aux poissons rouges

Bocal aux poissons rouges 1897

5.10

[…] by shooting the fish in a globular bowl, the Lumières effectively use a fisheye lens, which offers distortions. The history of cinema has witnessed a struggle between the objective and subjective camera and the optically distorting lenses like the fisheye lens has been a powerful tool for the subjective camera. Here it is at the start.

1897

Leaving Jerusalem by Railway

Leaving Jerusalem by Railway 1897

6.00

Lasting for roughly 50 seconds, it shows the goodbyes of many passersby - first Europeans, then Palestinian Arabs, then Palestinian Jews - as a train leaves Jerusalem.

1897

Driving with Greenland Dogs

Driving with Greenland Dogs 1897

5.46

Johan Carl Joensen, a Danish colonial manager in Greenland, drives his dog sled in Copenhagen’s Fælledparken. (stumfilm.dk)

1897

The Hallucinated Alchemist

The Hallucinated Alchemist 1897

5.96

The Flicker Alley DVD "Georges Méliès: Encore New Discoveries (1896-1911)" misidentified a partial hand-colored print of the 1906 film "Alchimiste Parafaragaramus ou La cornue infernale" (The Mysterious Retort) as this film, "L'hallucination de l'alchimiste" (An Hallucinated Alchemist) from 1897, which continues to be considered a lost film.

1897