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The Prophetess of Thebes
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Wikipedia article
'The Prophetess of Thebes' was a 1908 French short silent film by Georges Mlis. The film, set in Ancient Egypt, followed the adventure of a king seeing his future foretold by means of a mysterious priestess and a magical telescope. A fragment of the film has been recovered; the rest is presumed lost.
Plot
In ancient Thebes, the king visits an astrologer to discover his future. The astrologer vehemently refuses, even when threatened with execution, but finally arranges to satisfy the king's demand without delivering the prophecy himself. He assembles sculpted pieces into a statue of a priestess, and the statue comes to life.
The prophetess of Thebes has the king look through a magic telescope, which reveals to him that he will be assassinated while on his throne. The king flies into a rage and tries to stab the prophetess, but she disappears into thin air. The astrologer too proves impervious to damage; blades and assailants simply bounce off him. Finally the king is told that he can lift the curse by paying the astrologer a heavy bag of gold. He does and leaves. The astrologer, the prophetess, and their assistant gather together and laugh over the bag of gold.
Production
Mlis appeared in the film as the astrologer. The film's set is, in Mlis's work, a rare example of scenery built so that the camera is looking directly at an angle. The unusual design may indicate Mlis trying to keep up with the visual innovations of other filmmakers, while maintaining his own style and process.
Release
'The Prophetess of Thebes' was sold by Mlis's Star Film Company and is numbered 10961101 in its catalogues.
The film was presumed lost in a 2008 filmography, though a short fragment was rediscovered in time to be included in a DVD collection of some of Mlis's films the same year.
References
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