Prior to 1910 - my favorites
by guisreis | created - 08 Nov 2016 | updated - 10 months ago | PublicSee also the list of my favorite movies between 1910 and 1959, a list of my favorite movies between 1960 and 1970, one about my favorite films from the 70's and one about my favorite film of each year.
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1. The Fat and the Lean Wrestling Match (1901)
Not Rated | 2 min | Short, Comedy
Right in front of our very eyes, two attractive and feminine women metamorphose into two professional wrestlers who begin a no-holds-barred wrestling match.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Jehanne d'Alcy, Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,166
Absolutely brilliant, the very best of genius Méliès. Watch it here: https://youtu.be/S6GtYNEdYfQ
2. The Black Imp (1905)
Not Rated | 4 min | Short, Comedy, Fantasy
A traveler at an inn is harassed by a mischievous devil in his room.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 2,284
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wbJ01n5uoxc
3. The Kingdom of the Fairies (1903)
Not Rated | 16 min | Short, Adventure, Fantasy
In this spectacular free adaptation of the popular theatre play "La Biche au Bois", the valiant Prince Bel-Azor pursues a baleful old witch to her impregnable castle, to save the beautiful young Princess Azurine.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Georges Méliès, Marguerite Thévenard, Bleuette Bernon, André Deed
Votes: 1,823
https://archive.org/details/LeRoyaumeDesFes
4. Four Heads Are Better Than One (1898)
TV-PG | 1 min | Short, Comedy
Much to our amazement, an elegant and masterful illusionist detaches his own head effortlessly from his shoulders for a once-in-a-lifetime performance.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 4,019
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IKQRV4XKZt4
5. Le frotteur (1907)
3 min | Short, Comedy
An extremely clumsy man tries to clean a woman's house with disastrous results.
Directors: Louis Feuillade, Alice Guy
Votes: 167
https://youtu.be/KcP-ZSbYz0A
6. The Devilish Tenant (1909)
6 min | Short, Comedy
A man rents an apartment and furnishes it in remarkable fashion.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Charles Claudel, Octavie Huvier, François Lallement, André Méliès
Votes: 1,978
https://youtu.be/GrtIGM0lBRU
7. An Impossible Voyage (1904)
Not Rated | 24 min | Short, Action, Adventure
Using every known means of transportation, several savants from the Geographic Society undertake a journey through the Alps to the Sun which finishes under the sea.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Georges Méliès, Fernande Albany, Jehanne d'Alcy, May de Lavergne
Votes: 4,002
After famous trip to the moon, a no less fantastic trip to the sun (indeed, I liked this even more). Great machines, amusing crowd, troublesome and outstanding events. https://youtu.be/vUWX8JHSFX0
8. Adventures of William Tell (1898)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Comedy
Atop a wonderful central pedestal, a happy clown puts the finishing touches on a William Tell's incomplete model, assembling the mannequin limb by limb with the intention of shooting a target off of its head with a potent crossbow.
Director: Georges Méliès
Votes: 604
https://youtu.be/uzRIybBfx70
9. L'homme à la tête en caoutchouc (1901)
TV-14 | 3 min | Short, Comedy, Fantasy
A chemist carries out a bizarre experiment with his own head.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 3,179
https://youtu.be/yK7XpRe9ZGE
10. Chapellerie et charcuterie mécanique (1900)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short
Filmmaker Alice Guy creates something of an oddity with this one-minute comedy. An inventor and his assistant create a machine that, true to its title, makes hats and grinds sausages! The ... See full summary »
Director: Alice Guy | Star: Henri Vallouy
Votes: 267
https://youtu.be/vuDqpAslY0U
11. Pauvre Pierrot (1892)
TV-PG | 5 min | Animation, Comedy, Short
One night, Arlequin come to see his lover Colombine. But then Pierrot knocks at the door and Colombine and Arlequin hide. Pierrot starts singing but Arlequin scares him and the poor man goes away.
Director: Émile Reynaud
Votes: 2,006
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=426mqlB-kAY
12. Jack and the Beanstalk (1902)
Not Rated | 10 min | Short, Fantasy
Porter's sequential continuity editing links several shots to form a narrative of the famous fairy tale story of Jack and his magic beanstalk. Borrowing on cinematographic methods ... See full summary »
Directors: George S. Fleming, Edwin S. Porter | Stars: James H. White, Thomas White
Votes: 803
https://youtu.be/TAeBYLI6mic https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U12rUOQAqNk
13. The House of the Devil (1896)
Not Rated | 3 min | Short, Horror
With the help of a magic cauldron, Mephistopheles conjures up a variety of supernatural characters.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Jehanne d'Alcy, Jules-Eugène Legris, Georges Méliès
Votes: 3,987
The first horror film ever! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPmKaz3Quzo
14. The Great Train Robbery (1903)
TV-G | 11 min | Short, Action, Adventure
A group of bandits stage a brazen train hold-up, only to find a determined posse hot on their heels.
Director: Edwin S. Porter | Stars: Gilbert M. 'Broncho Billy' Anderson, A.C. Abadie, George Barnes, Justus D. Barnes
Votes: 20,998
15. The Monster (1903)
Not Rated | 3 min | Short, Fantasy, Horror
Against a moonlit Egyptian backdrop duly encompassing the Sphinx, a narrator explains how a prince hires a mystic to bring back his beloved late wife.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,339
https://archive.org/details/LeMonstre
16. The Conjuring of a Woman at the House of Robert Houdin (1896)
1 min | Short, Horror
As an elegant maestro of mirage and delusion drapes his beautiful female assistant with a gauzy textile, much to our amazement, the lady vanishes into thin air.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Jehanne d'Alcy, Georges Méliès
Votes: 2,057
https://youtu.be/u3VERvzjeEs
17. Conquering the Skies (1901)
1 min | Short, Fantasy
Fend l'air, a flying machine, flies over the heights of Paris.
Director: Ferdinand Zecca | Star: Ferdinand Zecca
Votes: 165
Half of the short film: https://youtu.be/6bgkhGSan60
18. A Trip to the Moon (1902)
TV-G | 13 min | Short, Action, Adventure
A group of astronomers go on an expedition to the Moon.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Georges Méliès, Victor André, Bleuette Bernon, Brunnet
Votes: 55,800
19. The X-Ray Fiend (1897)
TV-PG | 1 min | Short, Comedy, Horror
A man and woman are flirting when a professor turns on an X-ray machine, revealing their insides. After turning it off again the two have a dispute and break up.
Director: George Albert Smith | Stars: Laura Bayley, Tom Green
Votes: 1,049
20. The Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots (1895)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, History
This short film, one of the first to use camera tricks, depicts the execution of Mary, Queen of Scots.
Director: Alfred Clark | Stars: Robert Thomae, Mrs. Robert L. Thomas
Votes: 2,558
21. The Enchanted Well (1903)
Not Rated | 4 min | Fantasy, Drama, Short
Denied a handout, a witch exacts vengeance by cursing the village well.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 483
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AKmfsTwnzBQ
22. Une nuit terrible (1896)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Comedy, Horror
A man tries to get a good night's sleep, but is disturbed by a giant spider that leaps onto his bed, and a battle ensues in hilarious comic fashion.
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,527
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fLJDDTjTSjY
23. Santa Claus (1898)
1 min | Short, Family, Fantasy
Brother and sister are sent to bed on Christmas Eve, and while they are asleep, Santa Claus comes down the chimney and fills their waiting stockings with toys.
Director: George Albert Smith | Stars: Laura Bayley, Dorothy Smith, Harold Smith
Votes: 1,067
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fZ7QozWYl30
24. The Story of the Kelly Gang (1906)
Not Rated | 70 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
Originally 70 minutes in running time, only 17 minutes of the world's first full-length narrative feature film survived in stills and other fragments and tell the story of Ned Kelly, an infamous 19th-century Australian outlaw.
Director: Charles Tait | Stars: Elizabeth Tait, John Tait, Nicholas Brierley, Norman Campbell
Votes: 894
https://youtu.be/1A6niZmzvoc
25. The Corbett-Fitzsimmons Fight (1897)
100 min | Documentary, News, Sport
Documentary film depicting the 1897 boxing match between James J. Corbett and Bob Fitzsimmons in Carson City, Nevada on St. Patrick's Day. Originally running for more than 100 minutes, it is the world's first feature film.
Director: Enoch J. Rector | Stars: James J. Corbett, Bob Fitzsimmons, Billy Madden, George Siler
Votes: 512
The earliest known feature-length film and the very first movie shot in widescreen! Among the 90 to 100 recorded minutes of that historical boxing fight, less than halh hour survived: https://youtu.be/vWercNF6dFE
26. His First Cigar (1908)
5 min | Short, Comedy
A well-grown boy sees a box of his father's cigars, and pockets one. He goes downstairs, and no sooner is he out of the building when he joyously sticks the cheroot into his mouth. Feeling ... See full summary »
Director: Louis J. Gasnier | Star: Max Linder
Votes: 172
27. The Devil's Castle (1897)
3 min | Short, Horror
A man dressed in red is ushered into an antechamber in a Castle and offered a seat. When he tried to sit down the chair moves to the other side of the room causing the man to fall on the ... See full summary »
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 1,430
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nudGYB4pfZ4
28. The Boxing Cats (Prof. Welton's) (1894)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Action, Comedy
"A glove contest between trained cats. A very comical and amusing subject, and is sure to create a great laugh." (by Edison Films)
Directors: William K.L. Dickson, William Heise | Star: Henry Welton
Votes: 1,441
https://youtu.be/k52pLvVmmkU
29. The Dancing Pig (1907)
Not Rated | 4 min | Short, Comedy, Horror
A humongous and obese anthropomorphic swine dressed like a fine gentleman in a fancy dinner attire tries to make a pass at a solitary lady having a picnic.
Director: Millard Mercury | Stars: Ewing Tordella, Edith Trublanchet
Votes: 1,406
https://youtu.be/GYF8BKwZj5g
30. Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves (1902)
9 min | Adventure, Short
An early adaptation of the Ali Baba tale.
Director: Ferdinand Zecca
Votes: 422
31. A Fantasy (1908)
2 min | Animation, Short, Comedy
The first all-animated film in history, a series of scenes without much narrative structure, but morphing into each other.
Director: Émile Cohl
Votes: 2,833
The first animated film ever! https://youtu.be/pTZ-SwSkWKE
32. Up-to-Date Clothes Cleaning (1908)
Not Rated | 8 min | Short
At a carnival several comic wrestling matches are displayed, ending with one match where an inexperienced man surprisingly beats a stronger wrestler.
Director: Georges Méliès
Votes: 151
https://youtu.be/fZwJcBCXzR8
a.k.a. Side Show Wrestlers
33. The Miser (1908)
Not Rated | 5 min | Short
Georges Méliès presents his version of Molière's classic play "L'avare" (The Miser). The brief fragments presents a greedy old man who keep turning down several people who come to him in ... See full summary »
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 177
https://youtu.be/C-rwWcjY7-k
34. Alice in Wonderland (1903)
9 min | Short, Family, Fantasy
This is the first movie version of the famous story. Alice dozes in a garden, awakened by a dithering white rabbit in waistcoat with pocket watch. She follows him down a hole and finds herself in a hall of many doors.
Directors: Cecil M. Hepworth, Percy Stow | Stars: May Clark, Cecil M. Hepworth, Blair, Geoffrey Faithfull
Votes: 2,890
The first filmed "Alice in Wonderland" ever! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zeIXfdogJbA
35. Cinderella (1899)
Not Rated | 6 min | Short, Drama, Family
A fairy godmother magically turns Cinderella's rags to a beautiful dress, and a pumpkin into a coach. Cinderella goes to the ball, where she meets the Prince - but will she remember to leave before the magic runs out?
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Mlle Barral, Bleuette Bernon, Carmelli, Jehanne d'Alcy
Votes: 1,808
36. A Corner in Wheat (1909)
G | 14 min | Short, Crime, Drama
An unscrupulous and greedy capitalist speculator decides to corner the wheat market for his own profit, establishing complete control over the markets.
Director: D.W. Griffith | Stars: Frank Powell, Grace Henderson, James Kirkwood, Linda Arvidson
Votes: 2,746
A progressive movie made by a great master of cinema more famous for far right wing The birth of a nation.
37. Faust et Méphistophélès (1903)
Not Rated | 2 min | Short, Drama, Horror
A re-telling of the classic tale of Faust in all of two minutes by French filmmaker Alice Guy (later known as Alice Guy-Blaché).
Director: Alice Guy
Votes: 303
https://youtu.be/jOYvuuv0qgg
38. Haggard's She: The Pillar of Fire (1899)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Adventure, Fantasy
A devil conjures up a dancing woman from a mystical flame.
Director: Georges Méliès | Stars: Jehanne d'Alcy, Georges Méliès
Votes: 968
https://youtu.be/tvULdo1lDzQ
39. Corbett and Courtney Before the Kinetograph (1894)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Sport
James J. Corbett and Peter Courtney meet in a boxing exhibition.
Directors: William K.L. Dickson, William Heise | Stars: James J. Corbett, Peter Courtney
Votes: 859
Famous James "Gentleman Jim" Corbett in bizarre butt-showing short shorts fights Peter Courtney on the ring. http://youtu.be/gpDhbpmtpvo
40. Dickson Experimental Sound Film (1894)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Music
The earliest extant sound film. William K.L. Dickson stands in the background next to a huge sound pickup horn connected to a Thomas Edison phonograph recorder. As he plays a violin, two ... See full summary »
Director: William K.L. Dickson | Star: William K.L. Dickson
Votes: 2,563
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6b0wpBTR1s
41. The Waterer Watered (1895)
Not Rated | 1 min | Short, Comedy
An impudent child plays a prank on a gardener innocently watering his plants.
Director: Louis Lumière | Stars: François Clerc, Benoît Duval
Votes: 5,845
Possibly, the first fiction film ever, the first comedy and the first use of film to portray a fictional story, and the first use of a promotional film poster. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlbiNuT7EDI
42. Das boxende Känguruh (1895)
1 min | Short
The third sequence of the "Wintergartenprogramm (1895)" by the Skladanowsky Brothers. In it, a man and a kangaroo stand up in front of each other with boxing gloves, and simulate a boxing match on a theatre stage.
Director: Max Skladanowsky | Star: Delaware
Votes: 627
One of the earliest German films. It shows a man boxing a kangaroo at the Circus Busch. Watch it here: https://youtu.be/43jkqQmuajM
43. Ringkämpfer (1895)
1 min | Documentary, Short
The eighth sequence of the "Wintergartenprogramm (1895)" by the Skladanowsky Brothers. In it, two men in white leotards and tights, and black slips over it, wrestle on a theatre stage.
Directors: Emil Skladanowsky, Max Skladanowsky | Stars: Greiner, Eugen Sandow
Votes: 438
Early German film showing a wrestling footage with famous strongman Eugen Sandow. Watch it here: https://youtu.be/aC7YJFlfl7g
44. Tartans of Scottish Clans (1906)
2 min | Documentary, Short
Pioneering color guide to various Scottish tartans.
Director: George Albert Smith
Votes: 83
45. Newcastle United v. Liverpool (1901)
7 min | Documentary, Short, Sport
Stars: Liverpool F.C., Newcastle United F.C.
Votes: 55
46. Leaving the Factory (1895)
Not Rated | 1 min | Documentary, Short
Workers leaving the Lumière factory for lunch in Lyon, France in 1895; a place of great photographic innovation and one of the birth places of cinema.
Director: Louis Lumière
Votes: 7,555
47. The Arrival of a Train (1896)
Not Rated | 1 min | Documentary, Short
A train arrives at La Ciotat station.
Directors: Auguste Lumière, Louis Lumière | Stars: Madeleine Koehler, Marcel Koehler, Mrs. Auguste Lumiere, Jeanne-Joséphine Lumière
Votes: 12,875
48. Blacksmith Scene (1893)
Unrated | 1 min | Short, Comedy
Three men hammer on an anvil and pass a bottle of beer around.
Director: William K.L. Dickson | Stars: Charles Kayser, John Ott
Votes: 2,771
49. La vague (1891)
1 min | Short
In this early film experiment a wave crashes against a jagged rock.
Director: Étienne-Jules Marey
Votes: 513
50. Rabbits (1893)
1 min | Documentary, Short
Rabbits jump, play and interact with each other in multiple different sequences.
Director: Étienne-Jules Marey
Votes: 151
51. Mosquinha (1890)
1 min | Short
Shot of the flight of a fly.
Director: Étienne-Jules Marey
Votes: 745
52. Passage de Venus (1874)
1 min | Documentary, Short
Series of photographs of the transit of the planet Venus across the Sun in 1874.
Director: P.J.C. Janssen
Votes: 2,084
53. The Little Train Robbery (1905)
Not Rated | 12 min | Short, Action, Crime
In this parody of 1903's _Great Train Robbery, The (1903)_, also made by Edwin S. Porter, young bandits rob the passengers of a kiddie train and are chased by police officers.
Director: Edwin S. Porter
Votes: 344
54. Humorous Phases of Funny Faces (1906)
3 min | Animation, Short, Comedy
A cartoonist draws faces and figures on a blackboard - and they come to life.
Director: J. Stuart Blackton | Star: J. Stuart Blackton
Votes: 1,462
55. Dream of a Rarebit Fiend (1906)
Not Rated | 7 min | Short, Comedy, Fantasy
The fiend faces the spectacular mind-bending consequences of his free-wheeling rarebit binge.
Directors: Wallace McCutcheon, Edwin S. Porter | Star: Jack Brawn
Votes: 1,993
56. A Day with the Gipsies (1906)
7 min | Short, Drama
A troupe of gypsies takes a traveler along with them on their day trip.
Director: Gaston Quiribet
Votes: 24
57. A Photographic Contortion (1901)
1 min | Comedy, Short
A man, objecting to being filmed, comes closer and closer to the camera lens until his mouth is all we see. Then he opens wide and swallows camera and cinematographer. He steps back, chews, and grins.
Director: James Williamson | Star: Sam Dalton
Votes: 2,092
58. Sage-femme de première classe (1902)
4 min | Short, Comedy
A young couple go shopping for a baby.
Director: Alice Guy | Stars: Alice Guy, Germaine Serand, Yvonne Serand
Votes: 275
59. The Consequences of Feminism (1906)
Not Rated | 7 min | Short, Comedy
In a society in which gender roles are switched, will men tolerate being unequal?
Director: Alice Guy
Votes: 992
60. Stop Thief! (1901)
Not Rated | 2 min | Short, Action, Comedy
A hungry vagabond snatches a wrapped leg of lamb and jumps into a large wooden barrel to hide. Will he get away scot-free?
Director: James Williamson | Star: Sam Dalton
Votes: 658
61. The Wandering Jew (1904)
3 min | Short, Drama
Based on an early 13th century myth, this short film tells the story of a Jew who is forced to walk throughout eternity having refused water to Christ on his way to Calvary. He falls asleep... See full summary »
Director: Georges Méliès | Star: Georges Méliès
Votes: 248
62. The Haunted Hotel (1907)
5 min | Animation, Short, Comedy
On a dark and stormy night, a traveler takes a room at a spooky hotel in the forest. As soon as the proprietor leaves, the room comes alive with ghosts and poltergeists who torment the man as he tries to unpack, eat, and go to sleep.
Director: J. Stuart Blackton | Stars: Paul Panzer, William V. Ranous
Votes: 528
63. Princess Nicotine; or, the Smoke Fairy (1909)
Unrated | 5 min | Comedy, Short, Fantasy
A drowsy pipe-smoker attempts to nap, only to be tormented relentlessly by the mischievous Princess Nicotine and her fairy companion.
Director: J. Stuart Blackton | Stars: Paul Panzer, Gladys Hulette
Votes: 1,025
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