This time it was 1903's The Kingdom of the Fairies, courtesy of the Criterion Channel:
Thank you, Criterion Channel, for uploading some of Georges Melies’ films. Some I had seen before-like A Trip to the Moon-but I went with something popular that before last night was new to me.
This is actually an adventure story where a witch kidnaps a prince’s lady so he and some compatriots go on a trek to save her, but there’s an unexpected sojourn to the bottom of the sea… it is an exciting tale brought to life via the director’s trademark optical effects, which are still impressive 120 years later. There’s creatures, demons, a comeuppance for the witch… it was a fun 18 minutes where this color movie featured plenty of great sets that were literally colorful, an actual split-screen scene and accompanied by a piano score.
This was perfect for when I wanted to watch something short and did not have the motivation to write a lot. The Melies shorts on the channel are from Flicker Alley; their restoration effects were magnificent.
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