THE DRAWING LESSON (1903)
aka La statue animee
Article 4074 by Dave Sindelar
Date: 11-20-2012
Directed by Georges Melies
Cast unknown
Country: France
What it is: Melies comic trick short

After an artist finds the ideal place to hold his drawing lesson, a magical practical joker creates a booby-trapped statue on the spot. Hilarity ensues.

Okay, the magical practical joker doesn’t seem to be wearing clown makeup, but I know a clown when I see one, and if there’s anything scarier than a tumbling imp, it’s a clown able to wield magic. I’d say the piece-by-piece creation of the statue is the most entertaining part of this short, though the statue is once again someone standing really still until it’s time for her to move. Though it’s played for comedy, it’s not particularly amusing, and is one of Melies’s weaker shorts.