The Haunted Castle (1896 film)
| The Haunted Castle | |
|---|---|
 An image from the film The Haunted Castle |
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| Directed by | Georges Méliès |
| Produced by | Georges Méliès |
| Written by | Georges Méliès |
| Starring | Jeanne d'Alcy Georges Méliès |
| Editing by | Craig Herring |
| Studio | Star Films |
| Distributed by | Georges Méliès |
| Release date(s) | December 24, 1896 |
| Running time | 3 minutes |
| Country | France |
| Language | Silent |
The Haunted Castle [1] (French: Le Manoir du Diable which means "The Manor of the Devil") is a 1896 three-minute-long French film by Georges Méliès and number 78-80 on the Star Films catalog.[1] The film contained many traditional pantomime elements and was intentionally meant to amuse people, rather than frighten them. Nonetheless, it is considered by many to be the first horror film, as well as the first vampire film.[2] The Haunted Castle is now in the public domain.[3][4]
In English, this film has been known as The Haunted Castle, The Devil's Castle, The Devil's Manor, The Manor of the Devil, and The House of the Devil.[5][6]
It was released on Christmas Eve, 1896, at the Theatre Robert Houdin, 8 boulevard des Italiens, Paris.[6]
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[edit] Plot summary
The film starts off with a large bat flying into a medieval castle. Once in, the bat circles slowly while flapping its monstrous wings before suddenly changing into Mephistopheles (Georges Méliès). After preparing a cauldron, the demon produces skeletons, ghosts, and witches from its bubbling contents before one of the summoned underworld cavaliers holds up a crucifix and Satan vanishes in a blast of smoke.
[edit] Home Media
The Haunted Castle was released on February 16, 2010 as part of a DVD box set called "Georges Melies: Encore" by Flicker Alley.[7]
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Georges Méliès: Encore". Flicker Alley. http://www.flickeralley.com/fat_melies_encore_05.html. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
- ^ Hardy, Phil, ed. (September 1994). The Overlook Film Encyclopedia: Horror. The Overlook Film Encyclopedia Series. 3. Overlook Press. ISBN 978-0879515188.
- ^ "The Haunted Castle online streaming". Internet Archive. http://www.archive.org/details/LaManoirDuDiable1896. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
- ^ Wemaere, Severine; Duval, Gilles (April 2011) (PDF). A Trip to the Moon: Back in color (La Couleur retrouvee du Voyage dans la Lune). Groupama Gan Foundation for Cinema and Technicolor Foundation for Cinema Heritage. p. 192. http://www.technicolorfilmfoundation.org/fileadmin/user_upload/fr/pdf/Melies/LIVRET_MELIES.pdf. Retrieved September 3, 2011.
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0000091/releaseinfo#akas
- ^ a b "Le Manoir du Diable (1896)". steve-calvert.co.uk. http://www.steve-calvert.co.uk/pub-dom/le-manoir-du-diable.htm. Retrieved January 29, 2012.
- ^ "Georges Méliès: Encore". Flicker Alley. http://www.flickeralley.com/fat_melies_encore_01.html. Retrieved September 1, 2011.
