DECLINE
Georges continued his career as the film industry was turned into an empire. Money had become a larger topic of discussion as several business decisions that would inevitably lead to the decline of Star Films, such as the decision to accept a large amount of money to produce films and in exchange Pathe Freres, a film production company, would distribute and reserve the right to edit these films. Pathe Freres would also retain the rights to the original Star Films Studio in Montreuil and even Georges's home. Up until that business decision, Georges had been rather quiet amongst the film scene. He only made a few films between 1909 and 1911. But, he began producing elaborate films again starting with two new fréeres. Both films turned out to be gigantic commercial failures.
Despite this, Melies took another shot at the fréeres genre with The Conquest of the Poles which was a slight adaptation of Robert Peary's real life book about his journey to the north pole and Jules Vernes's The Adventures of Captain Hatteras. While the film received good feedback from reviewers, it was an even larger commercial flop. Melies's boundary-pushing and creative style that made him big initially had turned stale and become unpopular. Flim critic George Sadoul decribed him as "The man who, in 1898, was the creator of the art of cinema was, in 1912, behind the times."
Despite this, Melies took another shot at the fréeres genre with The Conquest of the Poles which was a slight adaptation of Robert Peary's real life book about his journey to the north pole and Jules Vernes's The Adventures of Captain Hatteras. While the film received good feedback from reviewers, it was an even larger commercial flop. Melies's boundary-pushing and creative style that made him big initially had turned stale and become unpopular. Flim critic George Sadoul decribed him as "The man who, in 1898, was the creator of the art of cinema was, in 1912, behind the times."
Even after such a flop, Georges began work on one of his last fréeres, Cinderella or the Glass Slipper, which was a retelling of the classic Cinderella story. The film initially lasted 58 minutes but it was chopped up and edited by Pathe Freres to a point when it was only a half an hour and deviated radically from Georges traditional style. This happened with Gorges's next two films until Pathe Freres contract finally broke in 1912. At this point though, Melies was flat broke and had no more money to make films.
The misfortune kept stacking as WWI came around and the French army had to clear out Melies's studio in order to make way for a place to heal injured soldiers. Over 200 of his films were melted down to use their supplies for weapons and boots. As this happened Melies retreated from France with his family. Soon after, Melies's first wife, Eugénie Génin, passed away leaving Geaorges to raise his two kids alone. In 1923, Melies's beloved theater, Theatre Robert-Houdin, had been torn down and Pathe Freres was finally able to takeove Star Films and the studio in Montreuil. This was the final straw for Melies and, in a fit of rage, burned all the negatives of his old films archived in Montreuil. Thus, only about 200 still exist today, leaving the rest of his filmography lost.
The misfortune kept stacking as WWI came around and the French army had to clear out Melies's studio in order to make way for a place to heal injured soldiers. Over 200 of his films were melted down to use their supplies for weapons and boots. As this happened Melies retreated from France with his family. Soon after, Melies's first wife, Eugénie Génin, passed away leaving Geaorges to raise his two kids alone. In 1923, Melies's beloved theater, Theatre Robert-Houdin, had been torn down and Pathe Freres was finally able to takeove Star Films and the studio in Montreuil. This was the final straw for Melies and, in a fit of rage, burned all the negatives of his old films archived in Montreuil. Thus, only about 200 still exist today, leaving the rest of his filmography lost.