Georges Melies

Rating:
Summary: Melies was more than a cinema magician
Review: Georges Melies was a professional magician who began making "trick" films in the late 1800's. He is most famous for A TRIP TO THE MOON (1902). Elizabeth Ezra's book tries to burst three myths about Melies. 1. Melies only made "fairy" films and childlike fantasies. 2. Melies' style was just theatrical, with little cinematic effects. 3. Melies' films lack narrative structure and can't be analyzed using film theory. She does a good job showing how these myths aren't always true. However, the book sometimes reads more like a graduate thesis. While she does a good job of analyzing some of Melies more prominent films, she sometimes over-analyzes the films. The book has a short history of Melies' life, and has a filmography of all of his existing films. This book is a good introduction to Melies for film students, but serious silent film buffs will be disappointed that the book does not cover Melies career in more detail.

Rating:
Summary: Melies was more than a cinema magician
Review: Georges Melies was a professional magician who began making "trick" films in the late 1800's. He is most famous for A TRIP TO THE MOON (1902). Elizabeth Ezra's book tries to burst three myths about Melies. 1. Melies only made "fairy" films and childlike fantasies. 2. Melies' style was just theatrical, with little cinematic effects. 3. Melies' films lack narrative structure and can't be analyzed using film theory. She does a good job showing how these myths aren't always true. However, the book sometimes reads more like a graduate thesis. While she does a good job of analyzing some of Melies more prominent films, she sometimes over-analyzes the films. The book has a short history of Melies' life, and has a filmography of all of his existing films. This book is a good introduction to Melies for film students, but serious silent film buffs will be disappointed that the book does not cover Melies career in more detail.