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Voidsville Follies

Works by Louis J. Gasnier (8)

Joined Lips (Lèvres Collées)

Max Linder (lead/writer)
Louis J. Gasnier (director)
Pathé (production)

Language: Silent, released in Nov 1906
Minutes: 3

When man kisses maid, whose mouth is used for affixing postage stamps, their lips become glued. Only interesting as a benchmark for Alice Guy-Blaché's superior version, 'A Sticky Woman (La femme collante)', which elevates this silly gag to a grim social satire.

Featured elements:

: abuse; comedy; emblematic shot; servitude

Attempted Suicide (Le Pendu)

Louis J. Gasnier (director/writer)
Max Linder (lead)
Pathé (production)

Language: Silent, released in Dec 1906
Minutes: 6

A spurned lover hangs himself. Fortunately his still-flailing body is discovered, but rescuing him is not easy, as cutting him down is an official matter. This is not Max, the dapper and loveable upper-class twit.

Featured elements:

: comedy; comedy of manners; dark comedy; forbidden love; rescue; social commentary; suicide

The Unskillful Skater/The Skater's Debut/Max Learns To Skate (Début d'un Patineur)

Louis J. Gasnier (director/writer)
Max Linder (lead)
Pathé (production)

Language: Silent, released in Mar 1907
Minutes: 5

Max causes havoc when he joins other skaters on a frozen lake.

Featured elements:

: comedy; emblematic shot; slapstick; sports

His First Cigar (Premier Cigare d'un Collegien)

Louis J. Gasnier (director)
Max Linder (lead)
Pathé (production)

Language: Silent, released in Jan 1908
Minutes: 5

This is not Max, the dapper and loveable upper-class twit, but appears to be the same schoolboy in 'In Love With The Bearded Woman' (same uniform and still living with parents), who takes a crack at cigar-smoking. Closeup shots showcase Linder's remarkable expressive abilities, as he demonstrates how to choke with finesse.

Featured elements:

: boozy-woozy; comedy

Max Linder's Big Family (Je voudrais un enfant)

Louis J. Gasnier (director)
Lucien Boyer (writer)
Max Linder (lead/writer)
Pathé (production)

Language: Silent, French titles, English subtitles, released in Feb 1910
Minutes: 6

Max feels his marital bliss is incomplete. Somewhat similar to the 1904 The Strenuous Life, Or, Anti-Race Suicide, with absurd comedy replacing social satire. A bit unnerving to watch Max do his manic antics near real infants.

Featured elements:

: birthing; comedy; fantasy

Max Makes A Touch (L' ingénieux attentat)

Louis J. Gasnier (director)
Max Linder (lead/writer)
André Urban (lead)
Pathé (production)

Language: Silent, English titles, released in Apr 1910
Minutes: 5

Impoverished brothers try to put the touch on their father, to raise money for a night on the town.

Featured elements:

: comedy; dance

Max Has Trouble With His Eyes (Le duel de monsieur Myope)

Louis J. Gasnier (director)
Max Linder (lead/writer)
Pathé (production)

Language: Silent, French titles, English subtitles, released in May 1910
Minutes: 5

Max's bad eyes lands him in a duel. Kind of a silent Mr. Magoo. But poor print, strangely lacking the closeups that have been in Linder's films from the beginning, leaves the viewer with trouble with the eyes.

Featured elements:

: comedy; identity mix-up

Max's First Job (Les débuts de Max au cinématographe)

Max Linder (director/lead/writer)
Louis J. Gasnier (director/lead)
Charles Pathé (lead)
Pathé (production)

Language: Silent, released in Oct 1910
Minutes: 7

Max applies for a job as an actor, and perfectly captures that mix of jitters and groveling that marks any job-seeker.

Featured elements:

: comedy

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