More head play from Georges Melies, the man widely considered to be the master of cinema. This time, the early film director has a ball with a music-inspired sketch that employs greater variation and complexity to the likes of his head-swapping shorts from five years before. There's a larger cast, plenty of singing musical heads and decapitation and the auteur's use of surreal humour that makes it so unique. The alternate title is THE MUSIC LOVER and the story sees a music teacher becoming increasingly frustrated with his female students, to which end he decides to remove his head and utilise it in a unique musical display. Great stuff indeed.

This is a tip that you can give basically everybody who works in a creative profession, but the composer that Georges Méliès plays in this 3-minute, black-and-white silent short film takes it as literally as it gets. "Le mélomane" or "The Melomaniac" or "The Music Lovers" was made by Méliès shortly after his 40th birthday, pretty much in the middle of his career. In my opinion, there are better and worse short films from the early 20th century out there. Still, I have to say I was not too impressed by this movie here. The comedy quickly disappears after the heads are on top and everything afterward is fairly forgettable. Still, it's one of the more known Méliès works, so I thought why not give it a chance. Slightly disappointing and I won't recommend it.

Le mélomane is another of Georges Méliès trick films. In it he plays a musical instructor who teaches a group of female musicians in his own eccentric manner. In this case by using several Méliès heads to illustrate the notes. It's typically insane stuff from the master of innovation.It recalls some of the ideas he invented in previous films. It's almost like a collision of L'homme orchestre and Un homme de têtes. It has the musical theme of the former and the multiple Méliès heads of the latter. So it doesn't really bring anything especially new to the table but it is well crafted nevertheless. Perhaps the oddest aspect about this production is that it appears to be a silent movie with a musical theme. Not exactly the most obvious combination it has to be said. The result is another charming oddity from this cinematic pioneer.

You've just got to see the films of Méliès, as they are the cleverest and best made films of his era--period. Unlike the relatively plot less, setless and pointless films of Edison and Lumiere, Méliès' films were pure genius and inspired--with a strong dose of fantasy. His Le Voyage Dans le Lune is a landmark film due to its amazing special effects, camera tricks and watchability.This film carries on in this same tradition--with the absolutely wildest and strangest trickery I've seen from the era. The film begins with a conductor explaining to his musicians how to write music. So, the conductor begins throwing notes up into the air where they magically stick. And, the notes?! Yep, they are his head--he pulls off his head and throws it upwards--and a new one appears in its place! You just gotta see it to believe it!If you want to see this film online, go to Google and type in "Méliès" and then click the video button for a long list of his films that are viewable without special software.