The Bewitched Inn (1897)

L‘auberge Ensorcelée is another jump into the experiments in film. Georges Méliès jumped into this one just after his first “horror” film Le Manoir du Diable. This short shows a man that is staying at a haunted hotel that is constantly harassing our hero. Think of this film as a family friendly and extremely short version of 1408. The movie has a very usual equation. There is one person who is being tormented to show the different use of effects during the time. The man just becomes extremely frustrated instead of scared and the whole thing plays out more like a comedy then an actual horror movie. The jokes or “scary-scenes” are more campy than jumpy. There are various articles disappearing and reappearing. There is a pair of boots that walk on their own. There is a bed that disappears completely. However, this is all just done to showcase the “Jump Cut” and use of magnets in film. Georges Méliès plays himself in the film, again.