There were undoubtedly many people working on some of our most important inventions around the time they became prominent. William Friese-Greene spent his life working on the motion picture camera, and though he isn't the official inventor, he is someone who contributed his work to what became the final product. His story is told by an all-star cast (even in tiny roles) in 1951's "The Magic Box" starring Robert Donat and Maria Schell.
Greene held the first patent on a motion picture camera, and financial problems, by which he was beset his entire life, caused him to sell his patent for 500 pounds. He also created a "Biocolor" system which won in a lawsuit against a system called Kinemacolor. This early color process was too expensive for commercial use, however.
From what I can gather, Greene had good ideas that weren't very practical, and the film is basically about how he went from a highly successful photographer to a bankrupt inventor, and how his obsession with film and color controlled his life. Not mentioned is the fact that his son Claude Friese-Greene became a cinematographer and was very prolific in British films until his death in 1943. He continued to develop his father's color process and produced a series of travelogues in the 1920s using this system.
Robert Donat is excellent, but the film is not very interesting except to spot all of the huge British stars in minor roles, such as Laurence Olivier as a bobby.
Some people are fairly dismissive of Friese-Greene, and his place in the creation of the moving picture is controversial. There's no question that today he is considered an early pioneer in moving pictures and in working with color. He was in touch with Edison regarding his work, and just because the credit goes to the individual who makes a product commercial is no reason to ignore the work of others. If this film makes people aware that a credited inventor isn't always the only inventor, so be it.
Greene held the first patent on a motion picture camera, and financial problems, by which he was beset his entire life, caused him to sell his patent for 500 pounds. He also created a "Biocolor" system which won in a lawsuit against a system called Kinemacolor. This early color process was too expensive for commercial use, however.
From what I can gather, Greene had good ideas that weren't very practical, and the film is basically about how he went from a highly successful photographer to a bankrupt inventor, and how his obsession with film and color controlled his life. Not mentioned is the fact that his son Claude Friese-Greene became a cinematographer and was very prolific in British films until his death in 1943. He continued to develop his father's color process and produced a series of travelogues in the 1920s using this system.
Robert Donat is excellent, but the film is not very interesting except to spot all of the huge British stars in minor roles, such as Laurence Olivier as a bobby.
Some people are fairly dismissive of Friese-Greene, and his place in the creation of the moving picture is controversial. There's no question that today he is considered an early pioneer in moving pictures and in working with color. He was in touch with Edison regarding his work, and just because the credit goes to the individual who makes a product commercial is no reason to ignore the work of others. If this film makes people aware that a credited inventor isn't always the only inventor, so be it.