A Chess Dispute

Starring: Unknown
Directed by: Robert W. Paul
Rating: Not rated
Genre: Short, Comedy
Length: 1 minute
1903

Times Seen:
Tim: 2

Summary: Two men are playing chess, and get into a violent dispute.

Review:

Tim: It is really interesting to see how film involved in its earliest years. The earliest films were only about 30-40 seconds. This film clocks in just over a minute long, but you can tell here how the cinema was involving, even in just a few short years. The quality of the film is quite good.

The story is basic, but it's enjoyable. We see two men playing chess. When one of them looks away, the other cheats, moving pieces on the board. The first man calls him on it, and all hell breaks loose. Their argument quickly turns into a physical fight. Now, the majority of the fighting takes place below the film. We see the tops of the fighters, we see clothing flying in the air, someone gets flipped over, etc. It's funny, but it makes you wish you could have seen a little more. Perhaps the most dangerous part of the fight is when one of them apparently starts clubbing the other with a glass water bottle. That could not have felt good. Like most of the films in this era, subtlety didn't exist. The movements of both men are a bit exaggerated, but that only adds to the humor. At the end of the film, a waiter comes by and grabs both men, who are surprisingly bruised and bloody.

It's interesting to compare this film to some of Robert W. Paul's earlier films. There are still huge limitations of film (the camera remains static, obviously), but you can tell that he's more comfortable with the camera and creating humorous stories. In this film, he expertly utilizes the camera's limitations in a funny way. This is a short, one-minute film, but it is enjoyable.

Rating 1-10
Tim's Rating: N/A



If You Enjoyed This Movie, We Recommend: N/A