1 rich Libsyn https://www.libsyn.com 90 600 Ep. 3 traces humanity’s long fascination with horror and spectacle—from ancient theatre, folklore, and public executions to phantasmagoria and magic lantern shows—and argues that these pre-cinematic forms directly shaped early horror film, culminating in Georges Méliès’ 1896 short Le Manoir du Diable (The House of the Devil), often cited as the first horror film. Rooted in Méliès’ background as a stage magician and illusionist, the film draws on Faustian literature and theatrical trickery, using bats, demons, witches, skeletons, transformations, and magical effects to frighten audiences in a safe, entertaining context, much like earlier spectacles. While some scholars have interpreted the character of Mephistopheles as the first cinematic vampire due to bat imagery, hypnotic power, and defeat by a crucifix, the episode contends that the character is clearly a demon—an agent of the devil—consistent with Goethe and Marlowe’s Faust and with the film’s title, which explicitly references the devil. Nevertheless, because associations between bats and vampires already existed in popular culture before Bram Stoker’s Dracula (1897), and because Méliès’ film was screened in London while Stoker was active in theatre there, the episode suggests that The House of the Devil may have influenced Stoker’s vampire mythology, even if it is not itself a vampire film, illustrating how early cinematic horror helped solidify tropes that later became central to the genre. Check out our website at https://www.rhapsodyin35mmpodcast.com/ and subscribe so you don’t miss a new posting. Please make sure to follow us on the social media platform of your choice (or all of them!) Rate and comment so more people can find us. See the blog post for credits: https://www.rhapsodyin35mmpodcast.com/post/ep-3-remixed-sunday-in-the-dark-with-georges-melies-the-house-of-the-devil Until next time! Rhapsody in 35MM http://rhapsodyin35mmpodcast.com/ <iframe title="Libsyn Player" style="border: none" src="//html5-player.libsyn.com/embed/episode/id/39971065/height/90/theme/custom/thumbnail/yes/direction/forward/render-playlist/no/custom-color/2b12f3/" height="90" width="600" scrolling="no" allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen></iframe> https://assets.libsyn.com/secure/content/198161615