A Trip to the Moon ( French: Le Voyage dans la lune ) is a 1902 film written, directed, and produced by    • Georges Méliès  , without a doubt the most famous of his filmography and among the most significant works in the History of Cinema. It was not the first science fiction film, but it was the one that made the world discover the imaginative power of cinema. With this work by Méliès , fictional cinema permanently captured the public's attention. Partly inspired by Jules Verne 's novel, From the Earth to the Moon , and partly by The First Men in the Moon by Herbert G. Wells , the film tells the adventure of a group of eccentric scientists who are shot to the Moon in a projectile.

Chapters
00:00 Intro
00:09 The Grand Congress
02:58 The Workshops
03:46 The Foundries
04:13 The Embarkation
05:39 The Big Bang
06:01 ...en pleine lune
06:21 The Landing
06:52 Earth Seen from the Moon
07:30 Night on the Moon
08:43 The Selenites
09:41 The King of the Moon
10:16 The Escape
10:36 A Hasty Departure
11:11 At the Bottom of the Sea
11:25 A Glorious Return


Synopsis . (00:09) During the Grand Congress of Astronomers, the project to go to the Moon is presented and enthusiastically received by everyone. A delegation of scientists visits the workshops (02:58) and the foundries (03:46) where the howitzer and the giant cannon that will allow them to reach the Moon are being built. (04:13) Everything is ready for departure; six astronomers board the howitzer, which is loaded into the cannon. (05:39) After the parade of the grenadiers and the salute to the flag, the cannon's fuse is lit and the howitzer is fired toward the satellite. (06:01) The Moon, with a human face, approaches from the black sky, but the projectile lands right in its right eye, causing it to bleed. (06:21) The projectilecraft lands on the lunar surface, and the scientists, safe and sound, emerge to admire the spectacle of Earth seen from the Moon (06:52). Finally tired, they lie down to sleep. (07:30) As soon as they close their eyes, the sky begins to fill with anthropomorphic celestial bodies, and then it suddenly starts to snow. Awakened by the intense cold, the scientists decide to begin their exploration. (08:43) While crossing a forest of giant mushrooms, they encounter the Selenites, the inhabitants of the Moon, who attack them. (09:41) Captured, the six Earthlings are taken to the King of the Moon. He seems rather angry, but one of the astronomers manages to break free, grabs the king by the collar, and throws him to the ground, causing him to explode. (10:16) Taking advantage of the commotion, they escape pursued by the Selenites. (10:36) They reach the spacecraft, which is launched by falling off a cliff. (11:11) They land at the bottom of the sea and are recovered by a ship. (11:25) Once ashore, they are celebrated with all honors.

Georges Méliès recounted how the film was received when it was first shown at a country fair:

"That very evening everything was ready, the crowd began to gather, the parades were in full swing, and the public was massed in front of the big moon, but the poster, although it made people laugh, was met with various jeers: 'It's nonsense, a scam, do they take us for fools at this stand? Do you really think you can go to the moon and film it? They are taking us for idiots, etc..' (At that time, the audience, unaware of cinematic tricks, thought only real things could be filmed). The result was that despite the daytime skeptics, there were about fifteen unsympathetic spectators at the first show, ready to criticize the performance if they had been deceived. After a series of scenes lasting 20 or 30 meters, the announced image finally arrived. At the first scene, the audience was silent, at the second, they began to show interest. (...) At the last scene, there was delirium. Never had such a film been seen, it was the first of its kind, which explains the effect it produced."

(translation by Piergiorgio Mariniello)

#Méliès #atriptothemoon

Check out this video:    • Video  

This video is included in the playlist    • Journey through Silent Cinema  

   / @iconaus  
This Channel is intended to be a Free Video Library for all those interested in the History of Cinema and for all those who want to understand the origins of its wonderful language. Please, support us by subscribing to our Channel and sharing videos You like more.
Thank You