The Miser

I should point out that although I have read a few of Moliere's plays, I have never read "The Miser" and know nothing about it. This Georges Méliès film is based on that and I have no idea if it's close to the story or not. So, I read a summary and have to say that what I saw seemed to have little to do with the play! And, according to IMDB, the entire film no longer exists...only a 4 minute fragment. Fortunately, the quality of the print is quite nice...which I didn't expect since it was fragmented.

The story is set in the miser's office. He keeps a large safe there and various people come to him for help but being a stingy old guy, he tells them to get lost. He also spends much of his time worrying about and hiding his money. Clearly the man is not exactly overflowing with the milk of human kindness!

The film then jumps ahead to a scene outside at a well. The miser is rolling about on the ground for no discernible reason when folks come upon him. He's very distraut....you assume he's lost his money. And then, the film ends.

You really cannot make much out of the story here. Obviously we are missing important portions and what's left is confusing and a mess. The sets, however, are quite nice and it's worth watching IF you are a huge fan of the director...otherwise, you'd do better with one of his other films.