The Mysterious Cafe (1901)
*** (out of 4)
This here is one of many films from Edison that were trying to rip-off the work of Georges Melies but this one here at least manages to be entertaining. An elderly man and his wife enter a restaurant where things go terribly wrong as various items begin to disappear as they try to use them. This includes their chairs and of course the table. If you've seen the work of Melies then you're not going to be blown away by anything here but the film is certainly worth watching. It manages to be quite funny and especially the first trick shot where the woman goes to sit down only to have her chair disappear. Things turn pretty wicked during the final act when the man and woman grow so tired of what's happening that they decide to beat the heck out of the waiter for no apparent reason. This isn't just a couple slapstick punches as they really beat him, kick him and just do whatever they can to beat this poor guy.