Fantasmagorie

Fantasmagorie 1908

6.56

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

6.07

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

1908

Rescued from an Eagle's Nest

Rescued from an Eagle's Nest 1908

5.51

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

Modern Sculptors

Modern Sculptors 1908

6.40

The first scene presents before the astonished eyes of the spectators a solid piece of marble, which the minute it is placed on a table seems to take life, and one can follow a snake-like line branding on the polished face of the stone the name of the house of Pathé Frères. As soon as this stone has been engraved, as by magic, a handsome young lady appears with a huge lump of clay covered with a cloth. As soon as the cloth is removed from the soft mass it starts whirling and turning as if stricken mad, and one is asking one's self what all the contentions are going to lead to, when the vague shape of an animal not yet discernible seems to appear, and before one has time to make one's mind as to the category of brutes to which it belongs one sees the form of a remarkably well made orang-utan modelled out of the clay, who calmly smokes his pipe. Then the statue is removed by the same winning young lady and another covered block of the same substance is carried forward.

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

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 Taming of the Shrew

The Taming of the Shrew 1908

4.92

Based on Shakespeare's play. Petruchio courts the bad-tempered Katharina, and tries to change her aggressive behavior.

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

The Fatal Hour

The Fatal Hour 1908

2.50

This one-reeler has been regarded as a classic example of a Griffith thriller. It engages with the Chinese White slave traffic from the perspective of a female detective, played by Marion Leonard, whose assignment is to expose and break the traffic ring. A fragment is widely available.

1908

Sleeping Beauty

Sleeping Beauty 1908

4.40

Based on the story of "Sleeping Beauty" by Charles Perrault. Titles read: The Christening of the Princess; The Good Fairies Fatal Prediction; The Royal Edict; The Princess is Sixteen Years Old; Searching for the Princess; The Prediction Comes True; Thou Shalt Sleep for a Hundred Years; A Hundred Years later the Prince Charming Goes Hunting; Prince Charming Dismisses His Escort; The Castle of Sleep; The Guard's Hall; You Have Been a Long Time Coming, prince; The Wedding of the Sleeping Beauty to Prince Charming.

1908

A Funny Story at the Window

A Funny Story at the Window 1908

3.70

Three woman playing a game of catch leads to one of them exposing herself as she gets stuck whilst peering out the window.

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

Drama at the Puppets' House

Drama at the Puppets' House 1908

6.20

For a short comedy of rare merit this subject is unexcelled. A chalk line series of grotesque caricatures enacted in the land of puppets. A fickle maiden gets herself into numerous embarrassing complications with her host of admirers, but the artist with lightning rapidity overcomes all obstacles and brings the maiden out victorious.

1908

The Mischance of a Photographer

The Mischance of a Photographer 1908

4.50

A family goes to a photographer. The photographer pushes the boy around, and no one seems to care. The boy gets his revenge.

1908

The Reckoning

The Reckoning 1908

4.00

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

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

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

Romance of a Jewess

Romance of a Jewess 1908

4.10

This early D.W. Griffith short shows the director's interest in Jewish ghetto life, portrayed here with sympathy and sentimentality. The melodramatic plot involves the conflict between generations in an immigrant Jewish family.

1908