L'iris fantastique (1912) User Reviews

I wonder if all of this was seen as rather dated by 1912...

[planktonrules · 3/10 · 14 February 2014]

This film from Segundo de Chomón looks very old fashioned today and I wonder if this is what audiences also thought in 1912 when it debuted. While this sort of fantasy film would have worked very well in the previous decade, by 1912 more and more films were being made outside in the real world and stagey sets were becoming less and less popular. So, when you see that Segundo has all of the film take place on a stage, it seems like a nod to the past--and the same can be said for most of his film tricks (though the use of water was good for a change of pace).

There isn't a lot of story to this one--just pretty girls by 1912's standards moving about with arched backs in various tableaux with a theme of flowers. Not particularly enjoyable when seen today--I do wonder what folks in the day thought of this one.

L'iris fantastique review

[JoeytheBrit · 3/10 · 25 June 2020]

A throwaway proscenium piece from Segundo De Chomon that suggests he was either reluctant (or struggling) to adapt to the new cinematic style, or he found a film he'd forgotten he made in 1905 on a dusty shelf and decided he might as well release it.

Good Backdrops and Costumes

[Tornado_Sam · 13 February 2018]

Plantonrules is absolutely right, this film would've certainly been dated by 1912. I mean, come on, trick films were already losing their popularity by 1906. I don't know what Segundo de Chomón was thinking. There is no real plot to this film, and the best thing about it are the great costumes and sets put into it. France Mathieu's garb is beautiful. As for the film, it's pretty much just a bunch of sets linked together on a stage through dissolves, and a pretty girl gesturing. No plot at all, it's meant, I guess, to be a stage routine because the pretty girl opening and closing the curtain at the end and beginning seems to imply so. There's no reason to recommend this today, so I won't. Sure, I kinda liked it, but what people today will be interested in girls moving around in elaborate costumes in front of flower-like backdrops? Not the majority.