The film's exposition is given in an opening five-minutes-long static long-shot scene where a prince finds the location of a damsel-in-distress being held prisoner by tricking a witch into accepting as payment a bag of sand disguised as a bag of gold. After this, however, the pacing of "The Witch" moves briskly enough and follows the formula of a chase, as the witch tries to catch up with the prince, who is on a mission to save the damsel. According to John Frazer ("Artificially Arranged Scenes"), Georges Méliès himself, the maker of this film, delights in the role of the witch.
Of course, this being a Méliès production, the chase is theatrical, with characters entering and exiting from the sides of the frame, and dissolves, rather than direct cuts, are used as transitions between scenes. Additionally, the witch spends part of the chase running with a broomstick in between her (his) legs, which looks silly. Near the end, however, Méliès does take the witch on the broomstick to the skies in one of his trademark moving backdrop tableaux.
The print made available from Flicker Alley is wonderfully hand colored. As a result, the scene where the prince encounters a giant frog, an owl, a dragon and other creatures, really comes to life. Despite the film's age, the reds, blues and yellows remain vibrant. Had I seen this scene in simply black and white, I'm sure it would've seemed quite dull and childish. Also of interest is Méliès's adoption of the technique of medium shots with titles atop the characters in two scenes at the bookends of "The Witch".
Of course, this being a Méliès production, the chase is theatrical, with characters entering and exiting from the sides of the frame, and dissolves, rather than direct cuts, are used as transitions between scenes. Additionally, the witch spends part of the chase running with a broomstick in between her (his) legs, which looks silly. Near the end, however, Méliès does take the witch on the broomstick to the skies in one of his trademark moving backdrop tableaux.
The print made available from Flicker Alley is wonderfully hand colored. As a result, the scene where the prince encounters a giant frog, an owl, a dragon and other creatures, really comes to life. Despite the film's age, the reds, blues and yellows remain vibrant. Had I seen this scene in simply black and white, I'm sure it would've seemed quite dull and childish. Also of interest is Méliès's adoption of the technique of medium shots with titles atop the characters in two scenes at the bookends of "The Witch".