The Kiss (1896)

Perhaps the most famous of the short, experimental moving pictures of the late 1890s, The Kiss depicts an older, seemingly aristocratic (and let's face it, unattractive) couple kissing. It lasts a mere 20 seconds and was produced by Thomas Edison in 1896.

May Irwin and John C. Rice play the famous couple. This film is actually a reenactment of the final scene of the stage musical, The Widow Jones, in which the actors appeared.

History maintains that this brief image caused an outrage for its 'indecency', prompting an early demand for film censorship. What an impact for what, when compared to 21st century standards, appears to be a slight achievement.

Early Cinema

The whole of my adventure consists of feature-length films (with one notable exception) released after 1900. It is worth noting, however, that there are a number of great short films released before the 20th century that I'd still like to discuss, having seen them since I began 'adventuring'.

Mavericks of technology like Thomas Edison, The Lumiere Brothers, and Louis Le Prince are credited as the most famous early filmmakers. Known for inventing the art of motion pictures, Edison developed the Kinetoscope, which was an early film projector. Edison went on to produce a number of experimental short films in the late 1890s, including The Kiss (1896). His film Blacksmith Scene (1893) is said to be the first Edison company film made for commercial distribution. It is currently the oldest film on the National Film Registry and is given credit as the starting point in the American motion picture industry. Edison followed it with an experimental film called Edison Kinetoscopic Record of a Sneeze (1894), also known as Fred Ott's Sneeze. It is said to be the first film with a close-up.

The Lumiere Brothers (Auguste and Louis) did a lot with the advancement camera processes, later abandoning motion pictures for photography. One of their major contributions to film is Arrival of a Train at La Ciotat (1896). This film features a train coming towards the camera, which is said to have frightened moviegoers in its day due to its realistic cinematography.

Le Prince (who is said to have mysteriously vanished!) actually preceded them all in filmmaking by using a single-lens camera and paper film to make Traffic Crossing Leeds Bridge (1888) and Roundhay Garden Scene (1888). The latter (pictured below) is considered to be the earliest surviving film!

These films, each clocking in at less than a minute, can be seen on YouTube and are fascinating examples of the early days of cinema.