First-Ever Horror Movie Shocks Viewers – 129 Years Old and Still Terrifying!

Exploring the origins of cinema is always fascinating, as it reveals incredible feats of creativity by the pioneering figures of the seventh art. One such marvel is the piece titled “A Scene at Roundhay Garden.” Filmed at 12 frames per second and lasting just 2.11 seconds, it is the oldest surviving film, officially recognized by the Guinness Book of Records. This “film” is 136 years old, predating the famous Lumière brothers’ factory exit scene by seven years, in 1888.

It also marks, quite by chance, the very first instance of special effects in movie history, created by Georges Méliès using the “stop trick” technique in 1895 while he was at the Place de l’Opéra Garnier in Paris.

While Méliès was filming, his camera jammed. It took a minute before the film could be restarted, during which time the passersby and vehicles had naturally moved. Later, when projecting the spliced film where the break had occurred, he saw a Madeleine-Bastille omnibus suddenly turn into a hearse, and men transformed into women. Thus, the “stop trick” special effect was born.

Using this technique, in the same year, the first horror film in the history of cinema was created, titled “The Execution of Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots.”

Here it is…

This short film, only 18 seconds long, was produced by Thomas Edison and directed by Alfred Clark. It depicted the infamous queen, blindfolded, being led to the execution block. In reality, she was portrayed by a male actor, Robert Thomae. At that time, it was common for male actors to play female roles, following Shakespearean tradition.

The director abruptly stopped his kinetograph just as the actor placed his head on the block. A dummy, rented four days earlier from a supplier, was then substituted. The camera was restarted, capturing the axe falling on the queen’s neck. The effect was shocking. One can only imagine how the viewers, easily impressionable by the novelty of the cinematograph, were horrified by watching this short film.