The City Struck by Lightning
∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗ (6/10) The first feature film containing a death ray is a rather obscure little French movie from 1924 about a man threatening to destroy Paris unless he is paid […]
The Early Death Ray Serials
NO RATING The death ray was a staple of American silent film serials. In this post we’ll explore the real-life background of the death ray, as well as the early […]
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗ (4/10) This 1920 version of R.L. Stevenson’s novella is not the famous John Barrymore version. This is the much ridiculed Sheldon Lewis version, which is in fact not as […]
The Last Man on Earth
NO RATING: FILM NOT AVAILABLE The United States’ first all-out sci-fi film, released in 1924, imagines what the world would look like if all men (but one) had been wiped […]
Aelita, Queen of Mars
∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗ (8/10) Ostensibly Russia’s/USSR’s first sci-fi film, this political 1924 space fantasy lays down a surprisingly intelligent criticism of the communist revolution, once you look past the clunky, propagandistic symbolism […]
The Hands of Orlac
∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗ (9/10) The Austrian 1924 film that inspired cult classics like Mad Love, The Beast with Five Fingers and Body Parts is a tour de force of psychological Expressionist terror. […]
Black Oxen
∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗ (7/10) This 1923 film about a woman who undergoes medical treatment to become thirty years younger is a steadily paced and calmly directed mystery drama as well as a poignant, […]
The Man from Beyond
∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗ (2/10) Harry Houdini is frozen in ice for a hundred years, and is too busy longing for love and escaping from danger to realise it is no longer 1820, […]
Top 10 Sci-Fi Films Pre-1910
1895 is generally considered the the starting point for the movies as a mass medium, and sci-fi films were part of the staple diet from the very beginning. Here’s a […]
L’uomo meccanico
NO RATING: PARTIALLY LOST FILM Partially lost Italian silent sci-fi action comedy from 1921, notable for being the first feature film to revolve around a robot. Comedy superstar André Deed […]
Algol
∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗ (6/10) Sci-fi inspired melodrama with political undertones, this 1920 film is an early, but slightly clumsy, example of German expressionism. Occasionally stunning visuals and camera work are hampered by […]
Melchiad Koloman
∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗ (2/10) Czechoslovakia’s first science fiction film, and one of its earliest domestically produced feature-length films, this 1920 production brings together a mad scientist, a spiritualist and a Japanese businessman […]
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗ (8/10) In a career-defining role as Jekyll/Hyde screen legend John Barrymore elevates this 1920 adaptation of Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel from a run-of-the-mill potboiler to a minor masterpiece. Barrymore’s […]
The Master Mystery
∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗ (4/10) In a nutshell: This 1919 serial starring Harry Houdini is fast-paced, action-packed and well filmed, and features the first robot in a lengthy American feature. A thin, repetitive […]
The Ghost of Slumber Mountain
∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗∗ (6/10) This 1918 short by stop-motion wizard Willis O’Brien and Herbert M. Dawley is probably the first film to describe time travel, and is a showcase for their marvellous […]
