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

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 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

The Bewitched Inn

The Bewitched Inn 1897

6.24

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

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

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

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

Leaving Jerusalem by Railway

Leaving Jerusalem by Railway 1897

6.04

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

L'arroseur arrosé

L'arroseur arrosé 1897

5.50

Remake of the 1895 by the Lumière Brothers. A similar scene is filmed from a different angle, and a young man has replaced the prankster child.

1897

Naval Combat in Greece

Naval Combat in Greece 1897

5.30

An officer calls his sailors to the deck. They assemble around the canon while the officer scans the horizon. They all turn in the direction of the camera to look in the distance. At the same time the ship is hit! This scene is a filmed reconstruction of the 1897 Greek-Turkish war.

1897

The Miller and the Sweep

The Miller and the Sweep 1897

5.30

In front of a flour mill, two men fight. One is the miller, and he's swinging a bag of flour in the scuffle. The other is a chimney sweep, and he's swinging what may be a bag of flour, but when it breaks open, it's clearly something else. Well into the havoc, spectators gather and give chase to the flour-covered sweep and the "well-sooted" miller.

1897

Seminary Girls

Seminary Girls 1897

5.00

From Maguire & Baucus catalogue: A most amusing and life-like scene, in which a number of young ladies clad in their night robes, are seen engaged in a midnight frolic.

1897

Barrage du Nil

Barrage du Nil 1897

4.80

Travellers, nomads and salesmen make their way along a dam next to the Nile.

1897

Transport of a Turret by a Team of 60 Horses

Transport of a Turret by a Team of 60 Horses 1897

5.30

A very heavy turret is transported on a truck drawn by a long line of horses. The inscription “Charlemagne 53790K” readable on the turret suggests that this view was shot in the vicinity of Saint-Chamond, a town where there are factories specializing in the construction of heavy steel. It is certainly a turret intended for the battleship “Charlemagne”. In addition, a view projected by the Aléthorama on January 20, 1898 in Saint-Étienne, and entitled “Transportation of the armored turret of Saint-Chamond by a team of 80 horses”, could represent the same event.

1897

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