The Sprinkler Sprinkled

Starring: Francois Clerc, Benoit Duval
Directed by: Louis Lumiere
Rating: Not rated
Genre: Short, Comedy
Length: 45 seconds
1895

Times Seen:
Tim: 3

Summary: A boy pulls a prank on a gardener, causing him to sprinkle himself with his hose.

Review:

Tim: One of the reasons I love watching these early films from the birth of the cinema is that you never know when you'll come across a gem. Some of the films are interesting just because they are a window into the past. Sometimes, though, you a get a film that is just plain fun to watch. That is the case with The Sprinkler Sprinkled. It's so hard for me to proclaim anything as "the first", because it is so difficult to know for sure. But, this film does claim a number of firsts.

Apparently, this is the earliest known instance of film comedy. That's astonishing. It's also the first known use of film depicting a fictional scene. That might be more astonishing. This movie also featured the first movie poster ever made to depict an individual film. This is crazy, because this early film has to be considered one of the most influential. It blew open many doors and showed the world the potential of this newfound invention. It showcased what film could be, what it could portray- not just bringing movement to our eyes, but depicting actual stories.

The film is pretty funny to watch. The boy uses the old step-on-a-garden hose trick to fool a gardener into spraying himself with a hose. What's funny is that the blast from the hose is enough to knock off the gardener's hat. That is pretty funny. The gardener isn't very pleased, so he leads the boy by the ear (out) to the front of the camera to beat him in front of an audience (you gotta love the 1890s!).

For such a short film, this is an ambitious game-changing film. I love that this film showed audiences what could be depicted in film, and influenced so many filmmakers to push the boundaries of what the cinema could be. I really, really enjoyed watching this early, important movie.

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



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