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Professor Barbenfouillis (Georges Méliès) mans an expedition to the
moon, via a rocketship shot from a giant cannon. Once on the moon, the
professor and his companions explore the caves and have an encounter with
the Selenites, fierce creatures who blow up though when poked with
umbrellas - good thing then, that our explorers all carry umbrellas ...
Eventually, though, our heroes are outnumbered by the Selenites and
brought before their king, and it's only when the professor makes the king
blow up that they can escape - and leave the moon by pushing the rocket
off the edge. Widely regarded as teh first ever science fiction
film, Le Voyage dans la Lune actually comes across as a major
cinematic achievement: While there may be no camera moviement and all the
action might be captured in wide range shots, the use of amazingly rich
sets and simple stage- and cameratricks to get the film's special
effects-heavy story across is simply amazing (and not only for the film's
date of release). Plus, given that cinema as such was yet in its infancy, Le
Voyage dans la Lune's narrative build-up is also something not to be
underrated. In these aspects, the film is a pure masterpiece, though seen
from today's (as in more than 100 years later) point of view, one can't
but notice its naive approach to the genre, that also makes Le Voyage
dans la Lune incredibly endearing. Actually, this film is pretty much
a must-see.
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