A man and his box of tricks...

The Famous Box Trick (1898)
Starring: Georges Méliès
Director: Georges Méliès
Rating: Ten of Ten Stars

A magician performs his signature trick, involving a box, a bird, a boy, and a big axe.

"The Famous Box Trick" is, as the title should make clear, another one of trailblazing filmmaker and special effects artist Georges Méliès short films that presents and, using trick photography, enhances a fairly standard stage illusion. As I've mentioned in previous articles, these are among my least favorite of his films, but this one I absolutely adore. In fact, I am so fond of it that I watched it, and then came back a week later and watched it again, just make sure I wasn't in some strange mood when I first saw it.

In the final analysis, this is, by far, the most charming of Méliès' films I've seen, and I recommend it to everyone reading this--whether you want to watch something fun or something historic.

At just over a minute, this film is so brimming with joy and excitement that even the most surly of viewers can't help but have his or her spirits lifted. The creative energy of Méliès as he essentially creates not only the art of special effects but, arguably, filmed fiction in general, is also so evident here that it's impossible not to love this effort. Even better, despite being one of his earliest efforts, every bit of trick photography is executed with absolute perfection. 

Take a look at "The Famous Box Trick" for yourself. I hope I haven't raised expectations to high with my praise above, but I really to think it's a perfect little film. If I could time travel, I think I'd want to go back to see how the audience reacted in 1898 when Méliès screened this film for them, as an add-on to the live magic act he performed in his theatre.