Georges Melies, in the The Devil And The Statue, continues his expert use of stop action motion and also uses the effect of making the devil character, played by Melies himself, a progressively giant figure. It's difficult to tell whether he uses multiple exposures and combines them via superimposition or some other combination or technique, but it is unique for the time. The male and female characters are supposedly Romeo and Juliet type characters, but one would have to research the notes for this film to know whether they are or not, as there are no real outward signs that are too obvious. The male character is quickly neutralized by the devil character, who frightens the female character. At that point, a Madonna type statue comes to life on the far right of the screen and intercedes on the female character's behalf. The interesting thing is the size changes in the devil character mirror and are a direct result of the actions of first the devil character and then the Madonna. *** of 4 stars.
6 Reviews
Melies Enjoyed the Devil
Hitchcoc13 November 2017
It seems a woman is confined to a sort of garden area. She says goodbye to a young man and comes back in ecstasy. However, her delight is short lived. Through a door comes the devil. He is quite striking and goes into a really interesting dance. He also grows larger and large. Fortunately, for the young woman, there is a Christian statue that comes to life. I would recommend this, just for the devil-dance.
More devilish stuff from Georges Méliès
planktonrules6 September 2020
Georges Méliès made hundreds of films in the very early days of silent films. Using his experience as a magician, he used many new and innovative tricks which wowed audiences in the day. Some of these are still impressive today...a few, well, less so.
Among the many types of films he made, ones involving Satan or imps tormenting people and screwing with their minds seemed to be among his favorites. And, as usual, Georges Méliès himself plays the devil
The story goes like this: A woman and her lover are interrupted by a visit from Satan...who locks the man behind bars and then Satan grows very large and scary. But the virgin Mary has been in the room all along and now she lets 'Ol Scratch have it...and the film ends.
This film, like many of his early films, lasts only a couple minutes. It's mildly interesting....but not nearly as fleshed out or fun as most of his pictures. Watchable but not much more.
By the way, the lover appears dressed as a troubadour from about the 15th century. The woman and room appear from about 1900. I can only assume they just used whatever costumes they could find, as this really made no sense.
Among the many types of films he made, ones involving Satan or imps tormenting people and screwing with their minds seemed to be among his favorites. And, as usual, Georges Méliès himself plays the devil
The story goes like this: A woman and her lover are interrupted by a visit from Satan...who locks the man behind bars and then Satan grows very large and scary. But the virgin Mary has been in the room all along and now she lets 'Ol Scratch have it...and the film ends.
This film, like many of his early films, lasts only a couple minutes. It's mildly interesting....but not nearly as fleshed out or fun as most of his pictures. Watchable but not much more.
By the way, the lover appears dressed as a troubadour from about the 15th century. The woman and room appear from about 1900. I can only assume they just used whatever costumes they could find, as this really made no sense.
Devil And The Statue, The
Michael_Elliott1 April 2008
Devil And The Statue, The (1901)
** (out of 4)
aka Le Diable géant ou le miracle de la madone
A woman is alone in her bedroom when a statue blows up and the devil himself pops out. This here is a pretty disappointing film from the director because not much happens throughout it. The devil appears in a pretty good sequence but after that he just chases the girl around with nothing happening. There's no magic on display and there's really very little action and how they get rid of the devil is also pretty standard stuff. This certainly isn't one of the director's high points.
** (out of 4)
aka Le Diable géant ou le miracle de la madone
A woman is alone in her bedroom when a statue blows up and the devil himself pops out. This here is a pretty disappointing film from the director because not much happens throughout it. The devil appears in a pretty good sequence but after that he just chases the girl around with nothing happening. There's no magic on display and there's really very little action and how they get rid of the devil is also pretty standard stuff. This certainly isn't one of the director's high points.
Flesh and the Devil
wes-connors21 July 2012
Warning: Spoilers
Reportedly, this film is set in Venice and the characters in the opening, to the left of your screen, are Romeo and Juliet. This is not obvious in the unfolding story, so you will have to check notes on Georges Melies films. The man leaves the scene early. The woman remains enthralled with her departed lover's serenade. Suddenly, a devilish creature appears in the palace. He frightens the woman and grows larger. And larger. A statue toward the right comes to life and prepares to banish the invader. Filmmaker Melies' main effects are increasing the devil's size and bringing the stature to life.
**** Le diable géant ou Le miracle de la madonne (1901) Georges Melies ~ Georges Melies
**** Le diable géant ou Le miracle de la madonne (1901) Georges Melies ~ Georges Melies
Very early religious film
Horst_In_Translation21 July 2015
Warning: Spoilers
This is a 2-minute black-and-white film by silent film legend Georges Méliès and it is probably among the earliest films about religion. The devil appears from a cloud and becomes stronger and stronger and bigger in size until, near the end, he is put back in his place again. Méliès used colors on previous works, but not in this one. Shame. A nice red could have elevated this film and the devil a lot. It is also really telling that good prevails in the end. An unhappy ending would actually have been a bit too much for that era, especially for such a sensitive subject. I thought it was an okay watch, but not really among Méliès best I have to say.
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