Les Quatre Cents Farces du diable

"The Merry Frolics of Satan" is a fairly enjoyable fantasy adventure from early cinema magician Georges Méliès. As historian Richard Abel ("The Ciné Goes to Town") points out, these spectacles from Méliès were becoming increasingly elaborate and expensive to produce, especially by comparison to the smaller costs of his competitor's films, such as those by Pathé. As with some of his other pictures around this time, "The Merry Frolics of Satan" was produced specially for music-hall screenings. In this case, it was for the Chatelet's stage féerie "The Merry Deeds of Satan", from which this film is based (Abel).

In the film, Satan, disguised as a person, leads some misfortunate people on a hellish journey, including via a train the size of a child's amusement ride and a phantom carriage pulled by an apocalyptic skeletal horse. In the end, they're roasted by performers dressed in pig-like costumes. "The Merry Frolics of Satan" has its moments, including the phantom-carriage ride where movement is simulated by a moving backdrop of space stuff. This scene has become famous for having been used in many documentary clips on Méliès and early cinema. The print available from Flicker Alley is also hand-colored and tinted and includes narration. Yet, Méliès, unfortunately, also seemed to be relying more on theatrical tricks and less on cinematic ones as he had in his earlier spectacles. Stop-substitution splices and multiple-exposure photography remained the basis for his single-scene trick films, but his longer multi-scene fantasy adventures seemed to be becoming increasingly theatrical. The preference to use trap doors here instead of stop motion and editing for appearances and disappearances seems to evidence this increased theatricality.

Visionary Director Georges Melies' THE 400 TRICKS OF THE DEVIL is about the fantastic journey of Crackford and his companion, John, through Europe, into Mount Vesuvius, into outer space, and ultimately winding up in Hell itself.

Considering the year in which the Director made this film, it's a marvel of special effects, slapstick humor, and acrobatics. The sets and props are simple, but add to the overall dream / nightmare atmosphere of the film, especially the magic train, the cadaverous horse and carriage, the trip through stars and comets, and the depths of the inferno. Mr. Melies saves the part of Satan for himself.

Highly recommended for lovers of fantasy, horror, and historical films in general...

The copy of "The 400 Tricks of the Devil" I watched had no sound at all. That means no music for atmosphere and mood. That severely hampers a silent film, because then it is truly silent. Now you have nothing to listen to except the various sounds of your environment and maybe your own breathing.

This was another Georges Melies film. By this point his motion pictures are getting longer and more complex; meaning that they are getting harder to decipher without dialogue or a helping bit of text. The film is an updated comedic adaptation of the Faust legend. At the beginning the devil shows the main character, perhaps a scientist, some magic balls that, if thrown to the ground, produce whatever you fancy. The scientist doesn't know he's dealing with the devil even after the devil refuses money for the magic balls.

Watchable on YouTube.

This Georges Méliès film is another imaginative fantasy. It's effects-driven, not story-based. The visuals are everything. What plot there is merely serves as a structure to base the visual wizardry around. It features a couple of travellers who are persecuted by the devil. They are taken on a carriage ride through the cosmos led by a skeletal horse.

It's quite common material for a film from the 1900's. For some reason stories featuring Satan were common-place. Anyway, this one is very nice to look at. The ride through outer space is hypnotic and dream-like with an array of intergalactic attractions passing the stagecoach by. The colour tinting of course helps a lot. It's very effectively used here and is quite explosive in the scene with the volcano with an eruption of deep red. It's a trip worth taking.

A carriage pulled by a skeletal horse is making its way to hell. The man in the carriage has signed a deal with the devil and must face the music. The backgrounds and the carriage itself are great fun. Of course, it's really cruel and deals with that old time religion. I don't know what this guy did, but he ain't gonna like where he's going. There are some pretty solid pyrotechnics which make it fun.