This film was a fun one to see. Georges Melies has come a long way, since he did his masterpiece, A Trip to the Moon (1902). This one is fun too. It does repeat his normal staples, like dancing people, creatures who know acrobatics and lots of puffs of smoke, but his attention to detail and credibility of the fantasy he is trying to convey, seems more sharp in this film. He has had nine years to hone his craft. He tells a story, utilizing the classic, fictional, literary, German character, Baron Munchausen. This is the first film adaptation (at least the earliest I could find), about Baron Munchausen. The Hallucinations of Baron Munchausen (1911), would further the French director's accomplishments and cement him even more in the annals of film history.
My only real familiarity with the character stems from seeing the 1988, Terry Gilliam classic, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988), so this was a cool foray into the character, seeing it in an earlier incarnation. This film does capture that familiarity right off the bat too. After a party he throws one night, the drunk Baron makes it to bed with the aid of some friends and falls asleep in front of a huge mirror. This is where the hallucinations start, which the audience gets to view in the mirror, while the Baron dreams. Lying on the couch, he is annoyed and assailed by an assortment of creatures, visions and eventually the Moon itself, or is it an elephant with glasses, not sure. It totally captures the wackiness seen in the Terry Gilliam film.
I hope Melies was proud of this one too. It didn't disappoint me at all. I do worry that some viewers might take points off of their grade for this film, because of a weird edit near the end of the film. Without giving anything away, I think that was a splice of lost film, that was never replaced. It wasn't the filmmakers mistake and I don't think it should be scrutinized. It just is a reminder of what the ravages of time can do to old movies. The Hallucinations of Baron Munchausen (1911), is a great commentary on the incredible, evolved growth, that the pioneering era of film has gone though, in the first 15 years of film history.
8.5 (B+ MyGrade) = 8 IMDB.
My only real familiarity with the character stems from seeing the 1988, Terry Gilliam classic, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen (1988), so this was a cool foray into the character, seeing it in an earlier incarnation. This film does capture that familiarity right off the bat too. After a party he throws one night, the drunk Baron makes it to bed with the aid of some friends and falls asleep in front of a huge mirror. This is where the hallucinations start, which the audience gets to view in the mirror, while the Baron dreams. Lying on the couch, he is annoyed and assailed by an assortment of creatures, visions and eventually the Moon itself, or is it an elephant with glasses, not sure. It totally captures the wackiness seen in the Terry Gilliam film.
I hope Melies was proud of this one too. It didn't disappoint me at all. I do worry that some viewers might take points off of their grade for this film, because of a weird edit near the end of the film. Without giving anything away, I think that was a splice of lost film, that was never replaced. It wasn't the filmmakers mistake and I don't think it should be scrutinized. It just is a reminder of what the ravages of time can do to old movies. The Hallucinations of Baron Munchausen (1911), is a great commentary on the incredible, evolved growth, that the pioneering era of film has gone though, in the first 15 years of film history.
8.5 (B+ MyGrade) = 8 IMDB.