ronin-88 Reviews

Corbett and Courtney Before the Kinetograph (1894)

Underdog Vs the World Heavyweight Champ

[7/10 · 4 April 2022]

James J. Corbett (better known as Gentleman Jim Corbett) was the heavyweight boxing champion of the world, a sports hero and also a stage star. In a series of six films, each 1 minute long and consisting of a single round of boxing, Corbett fights the underdog challenger Peter Courtney. In these films, Corbett plays with Courtney for five rounds before finishing him off in the sixth round. Only about 30 seconds of one of the films remains intact. In these, one can see the enthusiastic Courtney throwing an away of punches which are mostly dodged or avoided by Corbett, who sometimes answers with hard counterpunches.

Filmed on September 7, 1894, this was the second boxing film, following the Leonard-Cushing Fight also filmed by WKL Dickson on June 14, 1894. The films were shot inside the Black Maria Studios. The referee, the spectators and the boxers had to be all crammed inside this closed off area.

At one minute long, each of these filmed rounds was three times as long as Edison's regular films. A newer Kinetoscope had to be built which could play one-minute films. Viewers had to pay for each 1-minute round as a separate film. Thus, despite the expenses involved, these boxing films were by far the most profitable of the Kinetoscope era. Corbett was well compensated for his part, taking home $15,000 ($500,000 in 2022 US dollars).

The Cock Fight (1894)

Two cocks are better than one.

[4/10 · 1 April 2022]

There were actually two films made by the Edison Film Company. Cockfight (1894) was one of the first films made to play on the Edison Company's Kinetoscope viewer. The film was so popular that the negatives wore out and the director, W. K. L. Dickson remade the film the following year. For the second film, two spectators were recruited to point at the fighting cocks and act excited. It is this second film, Cockfight No. 2 that we see the day. The first film is likely gone for good.

It's an interesting and historic film although some modern viewers may be disgusted by the idea of animals fighting for the entertainment of us humans. This film and the other Edison kinetoscope products may function as a film snapshot of what interested the mass audience in the 1890s.

Annabelle Butterfly Dance (1894)

An Early Superstar!

[6/10 · 14 March 2022]

Annabelle Moore (born Annabelle Whitford) was only 16 years old when she did this film. She had made her debut dancing at the World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago the previous year. When she moved to New York City, she performed in several short films for the Edison Studios. The Butterfly Dance was the first of these films. Her costume and attractive appearance caused the film to do very well, and Annabelle was thus asked to do several more films which greatly built up her popularity.

Caicedo (with Pole) (1894)

Edison Goes Outdoors. Caicedo Flips.

[7/10 · 14 March 2022]

Juan A. Caicedo, does a number of stunts on the slack wire. This is the first Edison motion picture to be filmed outdoors. Due to the nature of Caicedo's act, the director WKL Dickson could not have filmed this inside Edison's Black Maria Studio. Caicedo and Dickson worked very well together. The framing of this shot and Caicedo's actions were matched perfectly. Even in his more vigorous jumps, Caicedo never goes out of frame. This is one of a number of films of performers released by Edison in 1894.

The Boxing Cats (Prof. Welton's) (1894)

The First Cat Video

[7/10 · 14 March 2022]

Two cats, performers from Professor Welton's Cat Circus, paw at each other with boxing gloves on. I found them rather amusing and cute. The cats seem very well trained and the way they swing their paws actually looks somewhat like a boxing match. Boxing was a very popular sport in the 1890s and this parody was a big hit with kinetoscope viewers.

The Boxing Cats was directed by William Kennedy Laurie Dickson and William Heise at Thomas Edison's Black Maria studio in West Orange, New Jersey. Even in 1894, footage of cats doing amusing things was a big hit.

Carmencita (1894)

Censored Film!

[3/10 · 14 March 2022]

In this short 24-second film, the dancer Carmencita does part of a dance routine she'd been performing at Koster and Bial's Music Hall in New York City since February 1890. The dancing seems fairly tame but it may be the first appearance of a woman in a motion picture made in the United States.

The film was shot entirely at Edison's Black Maria studios by WKL Dickson in March, 1894. It came under fire from censors because the dancer's legs were revealed briefly. If they only knew what was to come.

This was one a series of short Edison films which featured circus and vaudeville performers.

Sandow (1896)

Film's first star performer.

[5/10 · 13 March 2022]

Sandow is a series of three 1894 silent short actuality films directed by William K. L. Dickson for Edison Studios. The films show Sandow flexing his muscles in his underwear. At the time, Eugen Sandow was a star with Florenz Ziegfeld Jr's shows. He was as well known for his appearance as for his feats of strength.

After some experimental films including the "Athlete with Wand" film shot earlier in 1894 at Edison's Black Maria Studios, this film was intended for distribution for paying audiences. Sandow was the first known 'star' to appear in a film. The audiences were likely fascinated by the possibility of viewing details of human movement as much as they were by Sandow's appealing appearance.

As stated, three films were shot for Edison by WKL Dickson, Sandow No. 1, Sandow No. 2, and Sandow No. 3. Later, in 1896, after Dickson had co-founded Biograph Studios, he shot a remake simply titled "Sandow." So, with these films, we have the first movie star and the first set of sequels featuring said star. We also have reboot from a competing studio.

Athlete with Wand (1894)

Most Important Warm-Up ever.

[4/10 · 12 March 2022]

In this film, a man makes some movements, including calisthenics, while working with a 3 foot long pole. His work is not particularly athletic or artistic. Our athlete in the film is not famous. He looks like he's in good shape but we don't even know what his name is. There's also a dog in the foreground behaving like a dog.

The importance of this film lies in being an experimental film to see how movement looked to the camera. This was an early film in Edison's Black Maria studio. The director, WKL Dickson, was preparing for later films which would feature famous performers such as Eugene Sandow, the strongman, or Carmencita, the dancer. The athlete in the film looks like he is warming up. The film is also warming up for what would be come a multi-billion dollar industry. These are very early stages.

Edison Kinetoscopic Record of a Sneeze (1894)

The First Snuff Film

[5/10 · 18 February 2022]

In this film, Fred Ott, an employee of Thomas Edison, takes a pinch of snuff and sneezes. It's not a particularly dramatic sneeze. In fact, if I hadn't known it was a film showing a man sneeze, I wouldn't have been sure what he was doing. It looked more like an artificially vigorous yawn after a nose scratch.

The film was made sometime in the first week of January, 1894, and was projected through Edison's Kinetoscope, a projector that only one viewer could use at a time by looking through a peephole at the top of the device. The film was actually not initially meant to be shown as a film to audiences. Rather, it was shot for publicity reasons, to generate a series of still photographs for a Harper's Weekly article. Edison and company, led by William Kennedy Laurie Dickson, had been gearing up for commercial production of films since late 1891. Fred Ott's Sneeze was an important promotional idea which was to help with this.

The film is significant for featuring the first medium close-up shot of a performer, now one of the most common types of shots used in film and television.

Pauvre Pierrot (1892)

First Animated Film

[8/10 · 18 February 2022]

Pauvre Pierrot, directed by Charles-Émile Reynaud, is one of the first animated films ever made. It is made up of 500 individually painted images and originally lasted about 15 minutes. The version available to today is a 4 minute version, restored from pieces of the original.

It's a simple story of a woman with two men wooing her, one she cares for, and the other which is somewhat a nuisance to her, even if he is sincere. To achieve his effects, Reynaud invented his Théâtre-Optique system which was basically a zoetrope with a projector. The images showed successive images of moving figures in front of blackbackgrounds. These images could be adjusted in real-time to project tthe animated characters against an immobile background image which was being projected by a second projector from a painted glass plate.

At times the show was quite elaborate. Original music and songs were written for the show, played by an piano accompanyist and sung by an actor. Reynaud performed 12,800 shows from 1892 to 1900. Commercially successful for a time, the popularity of these shows were eventually overtaken by the projected camera live action films of the Lumières and others.

The Barbershop (1893)

A Close and Fast Shave

[6/10 · 18 February 2022]

In 1891, Thomas Edison and his staff, led by William K. L. Dickson, successfully produced demonstration films on the Kinetograph camera, and showed them to one person at a time through the Kinetoscope projector. For 1892 and the early part of 1893, Edison and Co. Geared up for commercial production. As part of this endeavour, Dickson oversaw the building of a dedicated motion picture studio, the Black Maria. This film was one of the first ones to be made at the Black Maria.

The Barbershop, along with Blacksmithing Scene, was one of the films directed by Dickson and William Heise, at the Black Maria, in 1893. In this 22 second masterpiece, while one man gets a very quick shave, and the start of a haircut, two other actors share a bit of business involving a newspaper. These may be the first instance of background performers, or extras in a scene. Although, in this case, they are more like foreground performers. There is a lot of motion in this particular film. For the time, it was quite an ambitious film.

Blacksmith Scene (1893)

First Acted Scene

[8/10 · 31 January 2022]

In 1891, Thomas Edison and his staff, led by William K. L. Dickson, successfully produced demonstration films on the Kinetograph camera, and showed them to one person at a time through the Kinetoscope projector. For 1892 and the early part of 1893, Edison and Co. Geared up for commercial production. As part of this endeavour, Dickson oversaw the building of a dedicated motion picture studio, the Black Maria. This film was one of the first ones to be made at the Black Maria.

Blacksmithing Scene is notable for a number of developments. This was one of the first films to be shown to general public instead of just a specially invited in audience. This happened at the Brooklyn Institute of the Arts and Sciences. For the first time, the film featured actors playing a role - this is not a documentation of a real-life scene. Also, note the clothing, sets, and the habit of drinking while working. This shows the film was set in the early 19th century. By 1893, when the film was made, this behaviour was long outdated. Thus, in the very first scripted and acted film, we have a period piece. From the beginning, nostalgia has been a big part of film-making.

Newark Athlete (1891)

Experimental film - a kid swings some Indian Clubs.

[5/10 · 20 January 2022]

Made in May or June, 1891, this is an experimental film shot by William Kennedy Laurie Dickson and William Heise at Edison's Black Maria studios. Edison had just shown the 'Dickson Greeting' film to the ladies of the National Federation of Women's Clubs. For Dickson and Heise, it was back to the lab to continue working on films, and to get some of them eventually fit for public viewing.

What remains of this film today is in fairly poor shape and the action appears to be cut-off. It might have just been a test of what different types of motion looked like when shot by their Kinetograph camera and viewed through the Kinetoscope peephole viewer. As such, it was likely one of many experimental films which were important to gradually get a sense of what types of motions are interesting to watch on film.

Dickson Greeting (1891)

Hello World! Welcome to the 'motion picture.'

[8/10 · 20 January 2022]

The Dickson Greeting: the filmmaker, William Kennedy Laurie Dickson, passes a hat from one hand to another, looking directly at you (the camera) and greets you with a slight nod. This is what the 147 members of the of the National Federation of Women's Clubs saw as they, one at a time, looked through a small peephole on the top of a rectangular box at Thomas Edison's lab in New Jersey.

What was the significance? It was not the first 'motion picture.' The work of Muybridge showing a series of rapidly-taken still photos in his Praxiniscope projector can be considered that. It was not the first motion picture shot with one specialized camera - that would be 'Roundhay Garden Scene' by Le Prince, shot in 1888. It was not even the first American film or the first film shot by Dickson - that might be 'Monkeyshines, No. 1' shot in late 1890.

Rather, the 'Dickson Greeting' was the first film to be projected to an audience at a public event. It was shocking to see the clear image of a man moving in a realistic way. His gaze was directly to the viewer and dealing with them directly. There was an emotional element as well as a scientific one. It announced the birth of motion pictures as a medium. The date of May 20, 1891 - when Mrs. Edison's guests from the Women's Clubs watched the film from the Kinetoscope projector, may just be the birth of the movies as a truly public event - shareable to all of us humans.

Monkeyshines, No. 1 (1890)

First American Films!

[6/10 · 20 January 2022]

Monkeyshines, No. 1, 2, and 3.

Shot in late, 1890, these are the first known films shot in the U. S. A. William Kennedy Laurie Dickson and William Heise, both working in the Edison Laboratory, shot these experimental films.

In 1888, Thomas Edison became interested in the motion picture, spurred the activity of a number of inventors in the U. S. and in Europe. Edison wanted to combine the motion picture with his previous invention, the phonograph. In this way, he would be able to capture both the sound and visuals of a live event like an opera and show it to a captive audience.

Initially, Edison thought he could capture pictures on a wax cylinder, in the same way he captured sounds on his phonograph. In early 1889, he assigned one of his employees, William Kennedy Laurie Dickson, to begin working on the design. The cylinders did not work. It was impossible to reduce a picture to a pinpoints, the way sound was reduced.

Influenced by the work of European inventors including Etiennes-Jules Mary in France and William Friese-Greene, Edison was ultimately convinced to switch to a system that involved perforated film.

By the end of 1890, Dickson and his associate, William Heise, were able to shoot this experimental films. In these, a co-worker makes some broad movements. All that you can make out are just some kind of a weird shape moving. From these humble beginnings, a monolitihic industry would grow in a relatively short period of time.

Traffic Crossing Leeds Bridge (1888)

Two seconds of History.

[8/10 · 20 January 2022]

This is only one of two films (the other being Roundhay Garden Scene) that survive from Louis Aimé Augustin Le Prince. According to his son Adolphe Le Prince, this film was shot in Oct, 1888.

The elder Le Prince was a pioneer film-maker and the inventor of the first motion picture film camera to use perforated paper film. His work predates that of WKL Dickson working for Thomas Edison, and the films of the Lumière Brothers by a few years.

Alas, Louis Aimé Augustin Le Prince was not to reap the fruits of his labour. In Sept, 1890, as he was taking a train to Paris to show his discovery to the world, Le Prince and all his camera equipment disappeared without a trace. Edison, Dickson, and Lumière would claim the credit for inventing the motion picture. But, it was really Le Prince who made the first ones (the efforts of Marey and Muybridge notwithstanding).

Roundhay Garden Scene (1888)

The First Film!

[8/10 · 20 January 2022]

Here we have it. The first film ever shot. Louis Le Prince was the first one to build a working motion picture camera. This camera used perforated paper film from the George Eastman company. This made it easier to project the images onto a screen.

In this scene, Le Prince photographed some of his family in the garden behind his laboratory at Oakwood Grange, Roundhay, Leeds, England. We know the date is October 1888 because Le Prince's mother-in-law, Sarah Whitley, who is in the film passed away shortly after that. It's a brief two second interval of time - someone's home movie, really. But, it's the first motion picture that exists to this day. (although some might consider the work of Muybridge and Marey to be motion pictures - but that's a matter for a more lengthy discussion than a movie review).

Le Prince shot an earlier film of his brother playing a Melodion in the same garden but this movie no longer exists so Roundhay Garden Scene is the oldest movie still in existence.

Alas, Louis Aimé Augustin Le Prince was not to reap the fruits of his labour. In Sept, 1890, as he was taking a train to Paris to show his discovery to the world, Le Prince and all his camera equipment disappeared without a trace. Ultimately, others like Edison, Dickson, and Lumière would claim the credit for inventing the motion picture. But, Le Prince preceded them all by years.

The Witches (2020)

Fun movie, some light fare.

[6/10 · 6 January 2022]

This was fun, and slightly scary - a good combo for a children's story. I thought the animation, especially the CGI mice, was excellent. The witches were truly horiffic and grotesque. The children's voices were performed very well. Anne Hathaway was a terrible witch. She was overdone and was frequently not believable or scary. In general, the acting was indifferent. Octavia Spencer, as the grandmother, was good though.

Sometimes, the protagonists seemed to make very insipid choices. Not all of it seemed logical. And, there was no real character development. The little boy changed into a mouse and quickly became happy. There was no gradual development. It was instantaneous. If you just want something fun to watch especially with kids, this is not a bad choice. The movie doesn't make too many demands on its viewers.

Minari (2020)

An average movie.

[5/10 · 6 January 2022]

The movie showed a lot of promise. The struggles of a family adapting to a new setting can be rich for a movie. However, even though the characters were sympathetic, they were a bit boring. I always cheered for the family but I was also a bit tired of them. There were some hugely dramatic scenes - the story could have been riveting, but too much of the time was taken up with slow expository scenes that really didn't add much to the story or to character development. The grandmother, played most enjoyably by Youn Yuh-Jung, was really the only interesting character in the story but her screentime is limited.

While it's not a bad movie, it's only average and over-rated given the critical acclaim it has been given.

The Father (I) (2020)

A first rate movie - excellence all around.

[10/10 · 6 January 2022]

The script was a beautifully written skillful work. The composition of the shots was breath-taking. It all came together well. I like how there was a sense of mystery about the whole show, as to what was really going on. I think that by the end of it, you can piece together what really happened. Most of it could have actually just been a dream. I'm not sure how long Anthony, the name of the character played by Anthony Hopkins, has been affected by dementia. Is it recent, is it many years? That part is hard to tell.

The acting was a tour de force by Anthony Hopkins - only possible when an enormous talent meets a lifetime of experience. He was perfect in the whole thing, and his mercurial switches in mood were all genuine and earned. Olivia Coleman was very amazing in her part as well, as her entire emotional life was available to her character. This is one of the more successful adaptations from a play to a movie that I've seen.

Nomadland (2020)

Understated soul searching. Excellent movie.

[9/10 · 6 January 2022]

This is a very skillfully put together film. The use of non-professional actors playing fictionalized versions of themselves is remarkable. Chloe Zhao did a masterful job of infusing their stories into the overall script. Frances McDormand is truly exceptional. She seems like she is just experiencing - she appears as real as the real nomads featured in this movie.

The scenes and cinematography were well-orchestrated and crafted. The score is spare and haunting. Then, of course, there is the story, which is an intriguing look into how Fern, the main character copes with her living conditions by going on the road, and adopting the nomad lifestyle. The first part of the movie is especially compelling as we watch Fern figure out her first steps along the way.

One thing that detracted from the greatness of this movie was the lack of personal conflict in the story. Most people just seemed to largely get along with each other, among the nomads. There was no real problem people and that didn't seem realistic. Also, none of it seemed dangerous and somehow I got to think that living as nomad could get dangerous if you're not careful. Finally, Amazon is depicted as a somewhat benevolent organization and somehow, that does not seems to gel with the super-realistic approach that Zhao is taking in this movie.

But, I have to admit, I'm quibbling here. The problems I have with the movie are minor in comparison to all that's valuable about this movie. It's one of those movies that I'm very happy to have watched - some well spent time.

Sound of Metal (2019)

Brilliant acting, writing, and use of sound. Story drags in 2nd half.

[7/10 · 27 December 2021]

Ruben (Riz Ahmed) and Lou (Olivia Cooke), a couple, perform in an avant-garde metal duo. The music is raw, energetic, and LOUD!!! They have a tough but very happy life together, making music, touring, and loving. This all comes to a stop when Ruben, the drummer, loses his hearing. Their lives become completely unravelled. Ruben gets help but he must still figure out how he's going to cope with the change.

The story was very compelling at first. I was totally hooked into what Ruben would do. How would he cope with this problem which would completely upend his life? It was a tough sad story. It took a while to realize that Ruben could not go back to the life he once had with his girlfriend Lou, no matter how badly he wanted. The school he went to built him up but they also were strict. It seemed very fundamentally Christian in a good way and in a negative way too. It built up a support network but it took away many basic choices from the individual. It was a very limiting experience and not for everyone.

There was much of value in this movie. The use of sound especially was amazing. The visuals were quite solid and the acting was understated and quite lovely. The only problem was that about midway through the movie until near the end, at the school, the pacing just dragged. It was not an exciting way to tell it. There were too many dead moments - things that could have been either shortened up or made more interesting. It's a tough situation - to get an idea of Ruben's isolation and sparseness without making things boring.

Riz Ahmed is absolutely stellar in this movie - he's so grounded and believable. Rather than get too emotional, he seems to struggle to contain his emotion and this makes his story even more heartbreaking and believable. Olivia Cooke is also brilliant and a good match to Ahmed. The movie was not nearly as interesting when she wasn't in it. The dynamics of Ruben and Lou were really the core of the movie. It was a beautiful life but it could no longer continue - how painful is that?

Phineas and Ferb the Movie: Candace Against the Universe (2020)

Fun movie to watch with kids.

[6/10 · 27 December 2021]

This was a charming and mostly entertaining movie. The music was quite good and engaging. I was particularly impressed with some of the voicework particularly from Ashley Tisdale who played Candace. Ali Wong was also great as the Super Super Big Doctor. Most of the kids voice-acting was good. A lot of the humor was goofy but still funny. Some of the scenes were a little drawn out and lame. But, it had a charm to it. It's a frivolous fun movie - great for the kids.

Judas and the Black Messiah (2021)

Starts strong and ends strong. Falters in middle.

[6/10 · 25 December 2021]

First of all, I commend the filmmakers on making this movie. It's a story that needs to be told. The life and death of Fred Hampton illustrate a state of affairs in America which is horrific and yet too believable.

The story started off very strong. Daniel Kaluuya is very impressive in his role. He speaks with purpose and intent. He radiates charisma and leadership. However, as the movie goes along, it becomes dangerously one-note. All the scenes seem to have the same tone. While this is a tense drama, there is room for different moods in different scenes. In fact, changing moods can set up the dramatic scenes even better. When intense scenes happen, they'll have more impact because they might take us somewhat unawares.

The ending of this movie was very effective. This was especially true, with the use of actual footage of the two main characters in the movie. A documentary might have made a stronger point.

The movie didn't quite deliver on its promise. Despite having an extremely compelling story, the movie was sometimes dry. Often, the actors were unclear about what they were communicating. They developed speech patterns instead of seeming like real people. The writing kept going back and forth. It didn't seem like any character was really making a journey. There was no visible change in most characters except for Hampton's girlfriend, who got pregnant, and Agent Roy Mitchell, who discovered just how far the FBI was willing to push to get what they wanted. Bill O'Neal seemed like the same guy at the start of the movie as at the end, despite what he had gone through.

In the end, it was still a good movie, but it could have been a great one.

Soul (2020)

Great animation and voice acting!

[8/10 · 25 December 2021]

The animation was stunning in this movie: some of it was incredibly vivid and lifelike. There was a solid contrast between parts of the before life and after life, and modern day New York City. Joe was a likeable character right away. We felt sympathy for him right from the start of the awful band class in his middle school class. I felt his pain.

The movie proceeded through a very solid narrative. Poor Joe died due to his lack of caution: his fixedness. They, he struggled to get back to Earth so he could fulfill this one dream that he was just a half day away from. He does get that chance. And then he gets caught, and then he gets that chance again.

The interplay between Joe and 22 is some of the best dialogue I've seen in recent years. The story was cool in so many ways. Ultimately, the philosophy of it didn't really hit home with me. I'm not sure that it really had anything too deep to offer. Maybe I'm not ready for the message: I don't know. Despite it's greatness, I gave it only 8/10. It was a movie that seemed to be aiming at something deep but in the end, it was really just a simple message: enjoy your life - don't be so caught up/fixated by "goals." Find balance.

Jamie Foxx and. Tina Fey were stellar in this. They showed just how much feeling and content you could get with just the human voice.