Film review︱"A Trip to the Moon", the first science fiction film in history

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Speaking of science fiction movies, you may have seen "Inception", "The Matrix", "Jurassic Park" and "The Wandering Earth".

So, do you know what the earliest science fiction film in history is? Who is the director of this science fiction film?

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Last night, I accidentally watched this science fiction film, "A Journey to the Moon." It feels very fun. After writing so many movie reviews, this is the first time I use the word "fun" to evaluate a movie.

Movies nowadays are usually two hours or ninety minutes long, with the longest being three hours. However, this science fiction film shot in 1902 only lasts 15 minutes.

There are two versions circulating today, one is a black and white film and the other is a color film. Color films are still "artificially colored". It means that a special person will color the film copy.

I think it is the latter, because it is "artificially colored". When watching, it creates a very dreamy feeling.

A short fifteen minutes, consisting of different scenes. For example, science conference, making cannonball spaceship, lunar wonders, lunar distress, falling into the sea, triumphant return, etc.

When watching today’s movies, we viewers generally cannot feel the presence of the camera.

However, when watching this movie, the camera does not move. We, the audience, are just like watching a stage play.

Whether it’s a meeting or a battle with aliens on the moon, the actors’ movements are exaggerated, cute and silly.

Among them, there is a detail, the battle between earthlings and aliens. When an alien is hit, it turns into a puff of colored smoke and flies away. This detail reminds me of the "three dozen white-bone demons" in "Journey to the West", which I find very interesting.

Even though the movie is not long, it still tells a complete story.

The dubbing is also great, and the plot is compact. Judging from the technological level at that time, it should be one of the best movies at the time.

I also looked for and watched the earliest movie "Factory Gate". It seems that current documentaries simply record people walking out of factories after get off work.

Nowadays, people with a smartphone may be able to take better photos than that. Of course, it is not that people today are smart and capable, but that the development of technology has brought about earth-shaking changes.

This film is adapted from two novels written by Jules Verne and Wells.

The imagination is extremely rich and can be said to be unconstrained, breaking people's inherent cognitive limitations. As a result, the movie becomes lively, interesting and full of fun.

After reading it, I couldn’t help but sigh. At that time, people had quite a lot of imagination.

So, who is the director of this movie?

He is the famous father of comedy films "Georges Méliès".

Georges Méliès was a native of Paris, France, born in 1861. His father was a businessman and his family was quite wealthy. Only then did he have the conditions to "play movies". At that time, movies were the most luxurious "art".

Before he started making movies, he was a magician and a puppeteer. With movies, he wears many hats: actor, director, and photographer.

Georges Méliès had his own theater, and he showed movies in his theater.

He is also keen on studying movies and has discovered many "secrets" of filmmaking.

He has filmed many movies, such as "Joan of Arc", "Music Maniac", "Fairy Country", etc.

He made more than 400 films in his life, but most of them have not been preserved.

Life has its ups and downs. In the second half of his life, he hit the bottom of his career. The poor man relies on his wife's toy store to survive.

Many copies of the film were burned by the frustrated and miserable Méliès. It has become a great pity for the film industry.

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Although the movie did not bring real success to Georges Méliès at the time, he is an unavoidable monument in the history of film. His name will forever be recorded in history. His science fiction film "Journey to the Moon" will also be an eternal classic.