NekoHomey Purely Joyful Movie!

Tockinit not horrible nor great

Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

StyleSk8r At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

Hitchcoc There are numerous visual delights here as an alchemist works with others to invent. What actually happens is the magic that has been done before resurfaces. Still, I really enjoy the faces that are presented to us. The magician never leaves character and continues to work, even though there are complicated issues. Nice little venture.

JoeytheBrit Although this Georges Melies special effects extravaganza shows that after ten years the French wizard had lost none of his energy and enthusiasm, there's something a little 'same-y' about this three minute short in which an Alchemist has weird dreams in his laboratory which ultimately result in his death.While Melies' visual imagination was insuperable he often seemed to have difficulty creating scenarios in which his special effects could be put to good use outside of the tired 'dream' idea. Given his prodigious output, and the confines of the medium back in 1906, this isn't entirely surprising.The special effects in this one are up to Melies' usual high standards (apart from that pantomime snake), with the spiders web in the retort being particularly striking.

MartinHafer I love the films of Méliès, as for their day, they were the most clever, creative and had the best trick cinematography of the day. His movies such as Le Voyage Dans le Lune are classics and I try to see every one I can--they are just so amazing and watchable even today (unlike the films of Edison and Lumiere which seem pretty pointless today).Unfortunately, while this IS a wonderful film, it is NOT among Méliès' best--in fact, oddly, it is almost plot less and is just an excuse to create special effect after special effect. The effects (apart from the cheesy snake) are great and the film is well worth seeing, but it has little lasting value unlike most of his other films I have seen.If you want to see this film online, go to Google and type in "Méliès" and then click the video button for a long list of his films that are viewable without special software.

karl-68 very nice fantasy movie with good special effects for its time, the spider in the glass vial is very funny and well done,also when the vial spit fireworks into a tun a ghost appears is a great moment in this short fantasy with some horror influence.