Gaumont Treasures AGB 1906-1907

Few individual artists have exerted as profound an influence upon the evolution of cinema as Alice Guy (later known as Guy-Blaché). With this collection of more than 60 films, culled from the world’s leading archives and carefully mastered, Guy may no longer be seen as a “woman filmmaker.” These films, produced by Guy for Gaumont before she moved to the US, reveal her to be an unqualified pioneer whose work stands alongside that of the Lumière Brothers, Georges Méliès, and Edwin S. Porter, in cinema’s rapid growth from an optical illusion to a storytelling medium to an art form. Among the highlights are a 19th-century serpentine dance, early “trick” films, experiments with hand-coloring and synchronized sound, comedies, social commentaries, and (as the collection’s centerpiece) a 33-minute religious epic: The Birth, the Life and the Death of Christ (1906). 1906 An Obstacle Course Madame’s Cravings A Sticky Woman The Hierarchies of Love The Cruel Mother A Story Well Spun The Drunken Mattress The Parish Priest’s Christmas The Truth Behind the Ape-Man The Consequences of Feminism Ocean Studies The Game-Keeper’s Son 1907 The Race for the Sausage The Glue The Fur Hat The Cleaning Man A Four-Year-Old Hero The Rolling Bed The Irresistible Piano On the Barricade The Dirigible “Homeland” * In the original hand-tinted color † A synchronized-sound “Phonoscène” Curated by Pierre Philippe Total running time: 225 Min. Full-frame (1.33:1) Music by Sorties d’Artistes, except The Birth, the Life and the Death of Christ: Music by Patrick Laviosa American Edition produced by Bret Wood hosted by YiFeng, Lily, Bob Recorded on April 14, 2020