Viewed at Teatro Verdi, Le Giornate del Cinema Muto, Pordenone, with e-subtitles in English and Italian, grand piano: John Sweeney, 5 Oct 2011. Total duration 77'24"
EXCURSION AUX CHUTES DU NIAGARA (Trip to Niagara Falls) (Pathé, FR 1906) D: Léo Lefebvre; DP: Georges Daret; 35 mm, 590 ft, 9'50" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #116). Main title in English, no intertitles.
Leslie Anne Lewis (GCM Catalogue): "The naturally photogenic Niagara Falls were the subject of dozens of films by numerous producers in the first decades of cinema; the Corricks themselves had two titles featuring this natural wonder: Pathé’s Excursion aux chutes du Niagara (filmed in August 1906) and Charles Urban’s Niagara in Winter 1909 (depicting the Falls during one of the then-yearly freezes). This is a more traditional view taken from the deck of a tourist boat as it sets out on the river, showing images of the Falls as the ship and its passengers travel down the gorge towards the deadly whirlpool." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction, one of the best early Niagara Falls movies, starting upriver and moving towards the falls. Interesting coverage, first with the river boat as the camera dolly, and finally from exciting angles showing the sublime grandeur of the falls. Beautiful toning.
LE PIÈGE À LOUP (Pathé, FR 1906) D: ?; 35 mm, 265 ft, 4'25" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #110). English intertitles.
"In a straightforward example of cross-cutting used to heighten effect, a hunter with his leg stuck in a wolf trap sends his young son for help – unfortunately the boy is easily distracted and loses track of his mission. The father becomes more and more desperate each time the action cuts back to him. Finally he manages to escape and returns home to punish his wayward son. The Corricks advertised this film under the English title The Wolf Trap." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Humoristic drama. "Play comes first, daddy after" for the young boy who forgets that his father has been caught in a wolf trap. A good print.
SAN FRANCISCO (Biograph, US 1906) D: ?; DP: Herbert J. Miles; 35 mm, 128 ft, 2'08" (16 fps); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #84 & #86). No intertitles.
"The devastating 1906 San Francisco earthquake was one of the first major natural disasters whose aftermath was documented on film and distributed to a worldwide audience. Like many exhibitors, the Corricks started screening “before and after” views of the city as soon as they became available. For the pre-earthquake scenes the family used Biograph’s San Francisco, released one month after the quake for presumably just such use. This compilation of five short Biograph films originally released in 1903 includes shots of President Theodore Roosevelt’s reception in San Francisco and landmarks such as Union Square, Market Street, and the Cliff House at Ocean Beach." LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction. Parades and impressive long views from the city. Ok print.
SAN FRANCISCO DISASTER (Edison, US 1906) D: ?; DP: Robert K. Bonine; 35 mm, 450 ft, 7'30" (16 fps); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #84 & #86). English intertitles.
"Following the pre-earthquake images of the city seen in Biograph’s San Francisco (1906) (see previous note), the family would show images of the now-decimated landscape using films from Edison’s San Francisco Disaster series. In his review of the family’s performance, a reporter in the mining town of Broken Hill, Australia, poetically described the views that captivated voyeuristic audiences the world over: “‘Frisco, the Paris of the West – the proud city on the Golden Horn – is seen stricken to the earth, a mass of debris – a Pompeii or Herculaneum of the new world.” The complete Edison series contained 13 short panoramas that could be shown independently or in succession; included here are six views: “City Hall, Van Ness Avenue and College of St. Ignatius,” “Notorious ‘Barbary Coast’,” “Nob Hill and Ruins of Millionaire Residences,” “City Hall and Surroundings,” “Ruins Artistocratic Apartments,” and “Earthquake Ruins New Majestic Theatre and City Hall.”" LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction documentation of high value, these famous and devastating shots are now available in good visual quality.
GREAT STEEPLE-CHASE (Pathé, FR 1905) D: ?; 35 mm, 441 ft, 7'21" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #53). Main title in English, no intertitles.
"Four on-screen spectators serve as the viewer’s proxy at a running of the annual French championship steeplechase held at Paris’s Auteuil Hippodrome. The structure alternates between the action of the race shown through a binocular-shaped mask and shots of the spectators’ reactions. Though it is not present in this print, a note in the Pathé catalogue describes an introductory title-card explaining how they have finally overcome the difficulties in presenting such an event on film: “Our clients know that we have never drawn back from any impossibility when it comes to satisfying them.”" – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction, inventive cinematography, an exciting documentary.
THE WATERMELON PATCH (Edison, US 1905) D: Edwin S. Porter; cast: Florence Auer?; 35 mm, 679 ft, 10'19" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #127). Main title in English, no intertitles.
"Though troubling to modern sensibilities, The Watermelon Patch is a not-uncommon portrayal of African-Americans in the United States 40 years after the end of the Civil War. Porter’s film is filled with striking (although disconcerting) images, including people boarded into a burning house and later desperately fleeing the scene as others look on and laugh, as well as several shots depicting derogatory stereotypes of African-Americans still prevalent decades after slavery was outlawed. Reviews of the film highlight cinema’s power to help distribute and normalize certain images and ideas: a contemporary film review notes that The Watermelon Patch “besides being provocative of mirth,” is also “an interesting study of the American negro.” Known as an early example of effective cross-cutting, this film also serves as a reminder that cinema doesn’t always reflect a history we’d like to remember, but that must still be acknowledged as a part of the viewing landscape all the same." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: A farce with a disgusting racist attitude. A good toned print.
[SHIP AT SEA] (Pathé, FR, ca. 1905) D: ?; 35 mm, 109 ft, 1'49" (16 fps); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #108). No intertitles.
"This unidentified fragment shows a ship flying both American and tricolored flags. Although also on a boat, the second shot may be from a different film. Edgemarks on the film stock suggest a date of 1905." LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction. A ship leaves the port.
LA COURSE À LA PERRUQUE (Wig Chase) (Pathé, FR 1906) D: Georges Hatot; SC: André Heuzé; cast: André Deed, René Gréhan, Roméo Bosetti?; 35 mm, 403 ft, 6'43" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #129). Main title in English, no intertitles.
"Re-titled by at least one Corrick reviewer as “Wigs in the Air!”, La Course à la perruque features an unfortunate woman who loses her wig when a gang of troublesome children attach it to some heliumfilled balloons. A mad chase follows as the wig flies across the Seine, up the Eiffel Tower, and finally into a burning building, before descending to Earth – followed at every step by the ever-growing crowd." LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Farce, a comedy based on the hyperbole principle. André Deed's famous first film for Pathé has been available before, and now there is this ok tinted Corrick print.
JEUX OLYMPIQUES D’ATHÈNES (Olympic Games in Athens) (Pathé, FR 1906) D: ?; 35 mm, 378 ft, 6'18" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #89). English intertitles.
"Jeux Olympiques d’Athènes depicts events at the 1906 Athens Olympics, the first of the Games known to be filmed (although Étienne-Jules Marey did take chronophotographic sequences of athletes at the 1900 Paris Games). These interim games were held partly to revive interest in the Olympics after the 1900 Paris and 1904 St. Louis Games, both widely considered debacles. Although part of an early plan to hold the Games every two years, alternating between Greece and a changing international venue, this was the only time the Intercalated Greek games were held. Though now considered “unofficial” (after a 1948 Olympic committee ruling), the 1906 Games made their mark, introducing several elements that are now considered Olympic traditions, including having the athletes march into the opening ceremony as national teams and following their country’s flag, as well as holding an official closing ceremony. In addition to footage of these two ceremonies, events depicted here include the arrival of the King of Greece to the stadium, the Traction Competition (Tug o’ War), Barrier Jumping (Hurdles), Bicycling, Combined Movements (Gymnastics), medals ceremonies, and the King’s departure from the stadium. The Pathé catalogue indicates the released version had eight segments – the Regatta Race scenes are missing from the Corrick Collection print." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction. A humoristic Olympic documentary, the bizarre aspects such as the bicycle show with the huge bicycles had the audience laughing.
VOLEURS DE BIJOUX MYSTIFIÉS (Jewel Robbers Mystified) (Pathé, FR 1906) D: ?; 35 mm, 414 ft, 6'54" (16 fps), col. (pochoir/stencil-colour); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #60). Main title in English, no intertitles.
"The comedic misadventures of a gang of thieves eventually results in a poor haul for the would-be robbers in this Pathé “screamer.” Color stenciling is used sparingly but effectively to highlight the stolen jewels." LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: A comedy, a spoof of a crime film. Changed jewel boxes, planting a bomb in a box. A pretty good print, fine colour, beautiful black and white.
[TRAVEL SCENES] (Charles Urban Trading Co., GB, ca. 1905) D: ?; 35 mm, 73 ft, 1'13" (16 fps); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #106). No intertitles.
"Though we know that this film and the one that follows are from the Charles Urban Trading Company and can estimate their years of release, we have been unable to concretely identify them in the Urban catalogues. It is unclear if [Travel Scenes] and [Procession of Boats on River, Burma ?] (ca. 1905) were two separately released films, a single title divided by the Corricks in their original programs, or separated at a later date by John Corrick, donor of the Corrick Collection to the NFSA and son of Leonard, the family’s projectionist." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction, huge masses, a magnificent procession.
[PROCESSION OF BOATS ON RIVER, BURMA?] (Charles Urban Trading Co., GB, ca. 1905) D: ?; 35 mm, 218 ft, 3'38" (16 fps); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #10). No intertitles.
"In the second of these two unidentified films from the Charles Urban Trading Company, highly decorated boats float down a river away from the camera. Male and female Western tourists(?) are shown on board enjoying the view. In the distance the silhouettes of ornate structures can be seen on the riverbank. It has been suggested that this may be Scenes on the River Jhelhum, from Urban’s 1903 “India, Burma, Cashmere” series, but that identification remains uncertain. This film and [Travel Scenes] would have been shown as part of the Corricks’ staple “Trip Round the World” program, where footage from a wide variety of sources was spliced together into one series aimed at taking the audience on a sight-seeing tour covering the world “From Pole to Pole.”" – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction, fascinating, views from a profoundly strange culture with incredible palace-like boats with dozens of rowers.
OHÉ! OHÉ! RÉMOULEUR (Hallo! Halloo! Grinder) (Pathé, FR 1906) D: ?; 35 mm, 166 ft, 2'46" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #55). Main title in English, no intertitles.
"A housewife is particularly determined to get her cooking knife sharpened by a travelling grinder, terrifying her neighbors and assorted pedestrians as she chases the man down the street while waving the weapon. A fabulous close-up shot shows the woman hanging out of her window, brandishing the comically large knife as she tries to attract the grinder’s attention." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: A comedy. The comedy about the housewife's run to the knife grinder. Commotion on the narrow streets with men with ladders, a flock of geese, deep, long steps. There is vitality and a sense of humour in how the big city crowds are portrayed. A good quality in the black and white shots.
LA FÉE AUX FLEURS (The Flower Fairy) (Pathé, FR 1905) D: Gaston Velle; FX: Segundo de Chomón; 35 mm, 71 ft, 1'12" (16 fps), col. (pochoir/stencil-colour); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #140). No intertitles.
"Directed by Gaston Velle and with special effects by Segundo de Chomón, La Fée aux fleurs features a young woman dressed as Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, the Marquise de Pompadour, member of the French court and mistress of Louis XV, waving to the audience as brightly-colored stenciled flowers bloom around her. Though quite short, Corrick reviewers frequently mentioned the film, commenting on its beauty and charm." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Féerie. The flower fairy blows a kiss to us in this charming stencil-coloured movie.
EXCURSION AUX CHUTES DU NIAGARA (Trip to Niagara Falls) (Pathé, FR 1906) D: Léo Lefebvre; DP: Georges Daret; 35 mm, 590 ft, 9'50" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #116). Main title in English, no intertitles.
Leslie Anne Lewis (GCM Catalogue): "The naturally photogenic Niagara Falls were the subject of dozens of films by numerous producers in the first decades of cinema; the Corricks themselves had two titles featuring this natural wonder: Pathé’s Excursion aux chutes du Niagara (filmed in August 1906) and Charles Urban’s Niagara in Winter 1909 (depicting the Falls during one of the then-yearly freezes). This is a more traditional view taken from the deck of a tourist boat as it sets out on the river, showing images of the Falls as the ship and its passengers travel down the gorge towards the deadly whirlpool." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction, one of the best early Niagara Falls movies, starting upriver and moving towards the falls. Interesting coverage, first with the river boat as the camera dolly, and finally from exciting angles showing the sublime grandeur of the falls. Beautiful toning.
LE PIÈGE À LOUP (Pathé, FR 1906) D: ?; 35 mm, 265 ft, 4'25" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #110). English intertitles.
"In a straightforward example of cross-cutting used to heighten effect, a hunter with his leg stuck in a wolf trap sends his young son for help – unfortunately the boy is easily distracted and loses track of his mission. The father becomes more and more desperate each time the action cuts back to him. Finally he manages to escape and returns home to punish his wayward son. The Corricks advertised this film under the English title The Wolf Trap." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Humoristic drama. "Play comes first, daddy after" for the young boy who forgets that his father has been caught in a wolf trap. A good print.
SAN FRANCISCO (Biograph, US 1906) D: ?; DP: Herbert J. Miles; 35 mm, 128 ft, 2'08" (16 fps); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #84 & #86). No intertitles.
"The devastating 1906 San Francisco earthquake was one of the first major natural disasters whose aftermath was documented on film and distributed to a worldwide audience. Like many exhibitors, the Corricks started screening “before and after” views of the city as soon as they became available. For the pre-earthquake scenes the family used Biograph’s San Francisco, released one month after the quake for presumably just such use. This compilation of five short Biograph films originally released in 1903 includes shots of President Theodore Roosevelt’s reception in San Francisco and landmarks such as Union Square, Market Street, and the Cliff House at Ocean Beach." LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction. Parades and impressive long views from the city. Ok print.
SAN FRANCISCO DISASTER (Edison, US 1906) D: ?; DP: Robert K. Bonine; 35 mm, 450 ft, 7'30" (16 fps); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #84 & #86). English intertitles.
"Following the pre-earthquake images of the city seen in Biograph’s San Francisco (1906) (see previous note), the family would show images of the now-decimated landscape using films from Edison’s San Francisco Disaster series. In his review of the family’s performance, a reporter in the mining town of Broken Hill, Australia, poetically described the views that captivated voyeuristic audiences the world over: “‘Frisco, the Paris of the West – the proud city on the Golden Horn – is seen stricken to the earth, a mass of debris – a Pompeii or Herculaneum of the new world.” The complete Edison series contained 13 short panoramas that could be shown independently or in succession; included here are six views: “City Hall, Van Ness Avenue and College of St. Ignatius,” “Notorious ‘Barbary Coast’,” “Nob Hill and Ruins of Millionaire Residences,” “City Hall and Surroundings,” “Ruins Artistocratic Apartments,” and “Earthquake Ruins New Majestic Theatre and City Hall.”" LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction documentation of high value, these famous and devastating shots are now available in good visual quality.
GREAT STEEPLE-CHASE (Pathé, FR 1905) D: ?; 35 mm, 441 ft, 7'21" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #53). Main title in English, no intertitles.
"Four on-screen spectators serve as the viewer’s proxy at a running of the annual French championship steeplechase held at Paris’s Auteuil Hippodrome. The structure alternates between the action of the race shown through a binocular-shaped mask and shots of the spectators’ reactions. Though it is not present in this print, a note in the Pathé catalogue describes an introductory title-card explaining how they have finally overcome the difficulties in presenting such an event on film: “Our clients know that we have never drawn back from any impossibility when it comes to satisfying them.”" – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction, inventive cinematography, an exciting documentary.
THE WATERMELON PATCH (Edison, US 1905) D: Edwin S. Porter; cast: Florence Auer?; 35 mm, 679 ft, 10'19" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #127). Main title in English, no intertitles.
"Though troubling to modern sensibilities, The Watermelon Patch is a not-uncommon portrayal of African-Americans in the United States 40 years after the end of the Civil War. Porter’s film is filled with striking (although disconcerting) images, including people boarded into a burning house and later desperately fleeing the scene as others look on and laugh, as well as several shots depicting derogatory stereotypes of African-Americans still prevalent decades after slavery was outlawed. Reviews of the film highlight cinema’s power to help distribute and normalize certain images and ideas: a contemporary film review notes that The Watermelon Patch “besides being provocative of mirth,” is also “an interesting study of the American negro.” Known as an early example of effective cross-cutting, this film also serves as a reminder that cinema doesn’t always reflect a history we’d like to remember, but that must still be acknowledged as a part of the viewing landscape all the same." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: A farce with a disgusting racist attitude. A good toned print.
[SHIP AT SEA] (Pathé, FR, ca. 1905) D: ?; 35 mm, 109 ft, 1'49" (16 fps); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #108). No intertitles.
"This unidentified fragment shows a ship flying both American and tricolored flags. Although also on a boat, the second shot may be from a different film. Edgemarks on the film stock suggest a date of 1905." LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction. A ship leaves the port.
LA COURSE À LA PERRUQUE (Wig Chase) (Pathé, FR 1906) D: Georges Hatot; SC: André Heuzé; cast: André Deed, René Gréhan, Roméo Bosetti?; 35 mm, 403 ft, 6'43" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #129). Main title in English, no intertitles.
"Re-titled by at least one Corrick reviewer as “Wigs in the Air!”, La Course à la perruque features an unfortunate woman who loses her wig when a gang of troublesome children attach it to some heliumfilled balloons. A mad chase follows as the wig flies across the Seine, up the Eiffel Tower, and finally into a burning building, before descending to Earth – followed at every step by the ever-growing crowd." LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Farce, a comedy based on the hyperbole principle. André Deed's famous first film for Pathé has been available before, and now there is this ok tinted Corrick print.
JEUX OLYMPIQUES D’ATHÈNES (Olympic Games in Athens) (Pathé, FR 1906) D: ?; 35 mm, 378 ft, 6'18" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #89). English intertitles.
"Jeux Olympiques d’Athènes depicts events at the 1906 Athens Olympics, the first of the Games known to be filmed (although Étienne-Jules Marey did take chronophotographic sequences of athletes at the 1900 Paris Games). These interim games were held partly to revive interest in the Olympics after the 1900 Paris and 1904 St. Louis Games, both widely considered debacles. Although part of an early plan to hold the Games every two years, alternating between Greece and a changing international venue, this was the only time the Intercalated Greek games were held. Though now considered “unofficial” (after a 1948 Olympic committee ruling), the 1906 Games made their mark, introducing several elements that are now considered Olympic traditions, including having the athletes march into the opening ceremony as national teams and following their country’s flag, as well as holding an official closing ceremony. In addition to footage of these two ceremonies, events depicted here include the arrival of the King of Greece to the stadium, the Traction Competition (Tug o’ War), Barrier Jumping (Hurdles), Bicycling, Combined Movements (Gymnastics), medals ceremonies, and the King’s departure from the stadium. The Pathé catalogue indicates the released version had eight segments – the Regatta Race scenes are missing from the Corrick Collection print." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction. A humoristic Olympic documentary, the bizarre aspects such as the bicycle show with the huge bicycles had the audience laughing.
VOLEURS DE BIJOUX MYSTIFIÉS (Jewel Robbers Mystified) (Pathé, FR 1906) D: ?; 35 mm, 414 ft, 6'54" (16 fps), col. (pochoir/stencil-colour); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #60). Main title in English, no intertitles.
"The comedic misadventures of a gang of thieves eventually results in a poor haul for the would-be robbers in this Pathé “screamer.” Color stenciling is used sparingly but effectively to highlight the stolen jewels." LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: A comedy, a spoof of a crime film. Changed jewel boxes, planting a bomb in a box. A pretty good print, fine colour, beautiful black and white.
[TRAVEL SCENES] (Charles Urban Trading Co., GB, ca. 1905) D: ?; 35 mm, 73 ft, 1'13" (16 fps); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #106). No intertitles.
"Though we know that this film and the one that follows are from the Charles Urban Trading Company and can estimate their years of release, we have been unable to concretely identify them in the Urban catalogues. It is unclear if [Travel Scenes] and [Procession of Boats on River, Burma ?] (ca. 1905) were two separately released films, a single title divided by the Corricks in their original programs, or separated at a later date by John Corrick, donor of the Corrick Collection to the NFSA and son of Leonard, the family’s projectionist." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction, huge masses, a magnificent procession.
[PROCESSION OF BOATS ON RIVER, BURMA?] (Charles Urban Trading Co., GB, ca. 1905) D: ?; 35 mm, 218 ft, 3'38" (16 fps); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #10). No intertitles.
"In the second of these two unidentified films from the Charles Urban Trading Company, highly decorated boats float down a river away from the camera. Male and female Western tourists(?) are shown on board enjoying the view. In the distance the silhouettes of ornate structures can be seen on the riverbank. It has been suggested that this may be Scenes on the River Jhelhum, from Urban’s 1903 “India, Burma, Cashmere” series, but that identification remains uncertain. This film and [Travel Scenes] would have been shown as part of the Corricks’ staple “Trip Round the World” program, where footage from a wide variety of sources was spliced together into one series aimed at taking the audience on a sight-seeing tour covering the world “From Pole to Pole.”" – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Non-fiction, fascinating, views from a profoundly strange culture with incredible palace-like boats with dozens of rowers.
OHÉ! OHÉ! RÉMOULEUR (Hallo! Halloo! Grinder) (Pathé, FR 1906) D: ?; 35 mm, 166 ft, 2'46" (16 fps), col. (tinted); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #55). Main title in English, no intertitles.
"A housewife is particularly determined to get her cooking knife sharpened by a travelling grinder, terrifying her neighbors and assorted pedestrians as she chases the man down the street while waving the weapon. A fabulous close-up shot shows the woman hanging out of her window, brandishing the comically large knife as she tries to attract the grinder’s attention." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: A comedy. The comedy about the housewife's run to the knife grinder. Commotion on the narrow streets with men with ladders, a flock of geese, deep, long steps. There is vitality and a sense of humour in how the big city crowds are portrayed. A good quality in the black and white shots.
LA FÉE AUX FLEURS (The Flower Fairy) (Pathé, FR 1905) D: Gaston Velle; FX: Segundo de Chomón; 35 mm, 71 ft, 1'12" (16 fps), col. (pochoir/stencil-colour); from: National Film and Sound Archive, Canberra (Corrick Collection #140). No intertitles.
"Directed by Gaston Velle and with special effects by Segundo de Chomón, La Fée aux fleurs features a young woman dressed as Jeanne Antoinette Poisson, the Marquise de Pompadour, member of the French court and mistress of Louis XV, waving to the audience as brightly-colored stenciled flowers bloom around her. Though quite short, Corrick reviewers frequently mentioned the film, commenting on its beauty and charm." – LESLIE ANNE LEWIS
AA: Féerie. The flower fairy blows a kiss to us in this charming stencil-coloured movie.
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