A few thoughts: Considered by many to be the first ever horror film, and this being its 120th anniversary, now seemed like an appropriate time to watch this one again. At only 3 minutes long, a whole tons of craziness happens here, objects and characters appearing and disappearing, sometimes in a puff of smoke. Thanks to Georges Melies' technical wizardry, the single frame setting never feels empty or boring, with action of all sorts taking up the screen with little hesitation. While it's definitely difficult to rank this alongside most other horror films (or films of any kind, for that matter), the strange impact this as well as many other Melies films has had on horror and film as a whole is hard to ignore. The effects, while rudimentary and crude by today's standards were undoubtedly pure magic at the time, and the imagination and effort put into something like this is clear as day. Maybe people won't look at this as some masterful film, but for what it is and how fun it still is to watch, I can't say I'd ever tell anyone to ignore it.
Film historians and real horror junkies who want to see where it all started. It's insanely short, too, so you can't even complain about not having the time to put it on.
My grade: B
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