Fantasmagorie

Fantasmagorie 1908

6.50

An animated film by French auteur Émile Cohl, one of the earliest examples of hand-drawn film animation. Drawing inspiration from J. Stuart Blackton and the Incoherents of club Hydropathes, the film, with all its wild transformations, sees our protagonist materialize a movie theatre, meet an elephant and escape from jail; A morphing, stream-of-consciousness delight.

1908

The Electric Hotel

The Electric Hotel 1908

6.10

An enthusiastic young couple is astounded with modern technology's giant leaps in the fascinating field of electricity.

1908

The Adventures of Dollie

The Adventures of Dollie 1908

5.20

On a warm and sunny summer's day, a mother and father take their young daughter Dollie on a riverside outing.

1908

Rescued from an Eagle's Nest

Rescued from an Eagle's Nest 1908

5.50

A woodsman leaves a hut followed by a woman with their baby. Nearby some men chop down a tree. The baby is left outside the hut, but an eagle flies away with it.

1908

Excursion to the Moon

Excursion to the Moon 1908

5.39

Segundo de Chomón's remake of Georges Méliès' A Trip to the Moon.

1908

The Last Days of Pompeii

The Last Days of Pompeii 1908

5.10

Pompeii 79AD, mere days before the Vesuvian eruption. Glaucus and Jone are in love with each other. Arbaces, the Egyptian High Priest, is determined to conquer Jone. Glaucus purchases Nydia, the blind and long-suffering slave. Nydia falls in love with Glaucus and asks Arbaces for his help. He gives her a potion to make Glaucus fall in love with her-- In fact, a poison which will cause violent insanity.

1908

A Visit to the Seaside

A Visit to the Seaside 1908

6.30

The first successful motion picture in natural color, filmed with Kinemacolor. It is an 8 minute short film directed by George Albert Smith of Brighton, showing people doing everyday activities. It is ranked of high historical importance. Kinemacolor later influenced and replaced by Technicolor, which was used from 1916 to 1952.

1908

The Thieving Hand

The Thieving Hand 1908

6.44

A one-armed street peddler notices that a well-to-do man has dropped his ring. He returns it to him. The wealthy man is very grateful and, to show his appreciation, takes the peddler to a 'Limb Store', where he buys him a new arm. The recipient soon discovers that this new arm has a will of its own - causing him considerable embarrassment.

1908

The Good Luck of a 'Souse'

The Good Luck of a 'Souse' 1908

4.30

This film from George Melies is sadly one that's only available in fragments. The film starts off with a title card stating that a drunk man has just thrown his family out a window. We see a couple of them landing on the ground and then we go back to the room where the drunk is now trying to kill himself.

1908

The Call of the Wild

The Call of the Wild 1908

3.50

George Redfeather, the hero of this subject, returns from Carlisle, where he not only graduated with high honors, but was also the star of the college football team. At a reception given in his honor by Lieut. Penrose, an Indian agent, the civilized brave meets Gladys, the lieutenant's daughter, and falls desperately in love with her.

1908

The Zulu's Heart

The Zulu's Heart 1908

4.33

A Boer woman and her daughter are captured by Zulu warriors.

1908

The Dream of an Opium Fiend

The Dream of an Opium Fiend 1908

5.40

The opium fiend is seen in a den, puffing on this terrible narcotic. He then falls fast asleep and dreams that he is at home with his wife. He asks for something to drink and he is given wine, which he does not care for, and he is finally given some bottled beer and a glass, but he complains that the glass is too small and he gets a very large sized glass receptacle, into which his wife and maid servant pour the contents of the bottle. As he is about to drink the glass passes from his hand mysteriously, sailing through the room and out of the window to the moon…

1908

The Red Girl

The Red Girl 1908

3.50

Mack Sennett appears as a man in the bar in this film produced by the Biograph Company.

1908

Whaling Afloat and Ashore

Whaling Afloat and Ashore 1908

6.00

A short documentary about industrial whaling. The surviving footage runs for approximately 12 minutes.

1908

Pharmaceutical Hallucinations

Pharmaceutical Hallucinations 1908

5.20

There's a chemistry lab, in which one or two people ingest the wrong drug -- apparently -- and have a seriously bad trip. Then there's this wizard in his cave, and a fairy appears -- then there's this massive feast with about a dozen people. Then it ends.

1908

Japanese Butterflies

Japanese Butterflies 1908

5.40

This early silent era film was released in France circa 1908 by Segundo de Chomón. It is partially hand coloured and shows several Japanese characters and eventually a worm change into a butterfly which while flapping it's wings changes colours as it flies.

1908