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.
La posada embrujada, Заколдованная гостиница, Το μαγεμένο πανδοχείο, Zaczarowana gospoda, 闹鬼的旅馆房间, A Pousada Enfeitiçada
France
France
IMDb: 6.5
Release Date: 1897
Distributor: Star-Film
SYNOPSIS: At a solitary cheap inn, a distant traveler overcome with fatigue has a close encounter with the supernatural.
Yet another fun and endearing early short from the late George Melies which showcases his visual mastery of cinematic trickery. It’s always enthralling when I come across a short that I haven’t seen by Melies because of how long ago he was able to pull of such feats in early film history.
I also admire how he is able to infuse these shorts with his trademark sense of humor despite the fact that there is no sound. I still get a good chuckle out of them, even more than 120 years later. This can…
While greatly enjoying The Dancing Pig (1907), the camerawork - with its confident close-ups - left me wondering if the film was in fact a hoax. A masterpiece regardless, but a lack of material on it prior to 2005 certainly raised a red flag. I have since found enough material to put me at ease, not that I'm delving too deeply, as I'd rather live in a world where that short was created 112 years ago.
On the subject of silent films that had found their way into creepy pasta, I stumbled across a youtube video in which some tool waxed on about Georges Méliès' Man with the Rubber Head like the conspiracy theorist had no basic understanding of optical…
Another very early horror film (apparently the third ever released) and this is the first one that made me chuckle. Still a lot of basic quick edit illusions but I think this is the first time an actor added to the quality of a scare film. George Melies did it. Watch here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fPvs7nfaFBc
Overall, still important to keep perspective. 80% of the rating is for the historical value and influence. I'm following this awesome list by Rose: boxd.it/hM3C
The third horror film ever released.
Where to watch: youtu.be/fPvs7nfaFBc?si=zraBIZBAFevFUtWK
What's interesting about the early short horror films in the 1890s is how they essentially use the same premise and trick in order to scare the audience. A random, hapless individual goes into a room, where he proceeds to perform an action. However, he is constantly foiled in completing the action due to items randomly disappearing or moving before running off in frustration and fear. These tricks are performed through cuts or through practical effects of the time. It doesn't make for the most horrifying viewing (for today's audiences), but its certainly fascinating seeing the ways in which filmmakers back then worked within the limitations presented to them.
Absolutely lost my shit when the shoes were walking away and he went after them at first but then just gave up like cool this Might as Well Happen
Watched on YouTube
This short film actually has the look of a better school theatre performance. But George Méliès can once again make the 2 minutes entertaining with elated music, nice effects and charming slapstick. Not really a story, just a scene.
Watch it here:
youtu.be/fPvs7nfaFBc
Very detailed for such an old and primitive film, with creepy soldier (jester?) paintings above the bed and 'Avis' travel advice on the room door.
Méliès, of course, is known for his trick photography and comic elements, and this is a typical example (you get items which move on their own, smoke flares, items which disappear, etc.)
The film has a little bit of nitrate decomposition, but nothing which really affects the viewing of this quaint curio.
As you would expect at my age, my brain has accumulated masses of trivia over time, although I do believe that the fact that we have access to the internet by a range of devices, at least one of which I would have within arms reach 24/7, has made my brain lazy. Why would it need to remember the name of the (uncredited) actress who played Gilda’s landlady in Ernst Lubitsch’s delightful Design for Living (1933) when a couple of taps on my phone screen and the answer pops up - Mrs. Treboal (although not a lot more about her, including her given name, is as readily available).
What sent me down this path was Adam T’s Hotels as Liminal Spaces list. As…
Wieder eine von Méliès mit Unmengen von Slapstick, naiv-unterhaltsamen Stopptricks oder an Fäden gezogenen Requisiten vollgepackte Horrorkomödie der ersten Stunde.
