Director: Leopoldo Fregoli

Cast: Leopoldo Fregoli

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of this early short movie is the fact that it was hand stencilled, perhaps to distinguish it from the 1896 George Melies film by which it was clearly inspired. Partie de cartes shows three men playing cards in a garden while a seated woman and a man standing to the right of the table look on. From the house in the background of the screen a woman emerges carrying what appears to be a carafe of wine, which the seated woman distributes to the men around the table. What is noticeable about this movie is the high spirits of all involved; they look like they’re having a right old time, so perhaps that wasn’t the first carafe they’d imbibed by the time the camera began filming. It all looks quite natural apart from the chap standing to the right who glances at the camera on a couple of occasions.

(Reviewed 16th August 2014)