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7.6/10
Archivist John
Senior Editor
A definitive 7.6/10 rating for a film that redefined the boundaries of cult cinema. L'horloge magique ou La petite fille qui voulait être princesse remains a cornerstone of transgressive art.
You should definitely watch The Magic Clock if you have a soft spot for things that look like they were found in a dusty attic. It is a silent film from 1928, so if you can't stand black-and-white or things without talking, you will probably hate it.
But for anyone else, it is a total trip.
The story is about a girl named Yolande whose dad, Bombastus, builds this giant clock. The clock is full of these little knights who are all obsessed with a princess.
Wladyslaw Starewicz, the director, was a genius with puppets. He used to use real dead beetles in his movies, which is gross but also kind of cool in a goth way.
The puppets here feel very alive. Their faces move in ways that feel almost too real for 1928.
There is a Black Knight who is a real jerk. He ruins the happy ending in the clock's little play, and it’s actually pretty sad to watch.
Yolande is played by Nina Star, who was the director's daughter. She has this very wide-eyed, intense way of acting that fits the dream vibe perfectly.
The movie is split into two halves. The first half is the "real" world, and the second half is a weird dream world where everything is underwater or in the clouds.
It is nothing like the CGI stuff we see in Avatar. You can tell a person actually touched every single frame of this movie.
I noticed one scene where a knight's cape flutters just a bit too much. It’s a tiny mistake, but it makes the whole thing feel more human.
The dream world has these characters called Sylph and Ondin. They look like they belong on a very old, very expensive greeting card.
There is a man of her dreams who shows up later. He looks a bit stiff, but maybe that is just how dream men were in the 20s.
The pacing is a little bit wonky. Some scenes of the clock turning go on for a long time, and you might find yourself checking your phone for a second.
But then something weird happens, like a puppet doing a backflip, and you're sucked back in.
I love how the father’s name is Bombastus. It’s such a great, loud name for a guy who spends his life making tiny toys.
The ending isn't quite what I expected. It feels more like a sigh than a big finish 🧚.
It’s a surprizing little film that doesn't try to explain itself too much. It just exists, like a strange dream you had after eating too much cheese.
If you liked Mannequin because of the "toys coming to life" thing, this is like the great-great-grandfather of that, but much more depressing.
Give it a shot on a rainy afternoon. It’s only about an hour long, so you won't lose much time if you think it's too creepy.
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