The Great Train Robbery (1903)

Save your money for something good and enjoyable

Absolutely Fantastic

By the time the dramatic fireworks start popping off, each one feels earned.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

When people talk about very early silent film masterpieces, this is usually one of the first mentions apart from Méliès' "Voyage to the Moon" and some of his other works. And there is the famous story about "The Great train robbery" that people were leaving theaters with fear when that final cowboys bandit appears as they thought he would shoot them. Film really was a very new medium back then and most weren't getting it yet. Edwin S. Porter was one of the most prolific filmmakers of all time and this is probably his most known work. I personally believe it's worth a watch for its historic relevance, but not really for the movie itself. Neither the drama, nor the action, nor the thriller aspects and nor the western elements managed to convince. It's 10 minutes for film historians and silent film lovers, but not really for anybody else. Also, lets not forget that when you see this with some wonderful soundtrack coming with it, this music was not a part of this film very early in the 20th century, but it was added later. That's also why people mistake this for being a classic. If you want to see what it really was, you need to turn the volume silent. And a lot of its impact is lost, so you will realize this is nothing more than an okay movie at best. Also the film's story is definitely not easy to understand, so maybe you won't even be able to get the very basic action unless you read a summary beforehand, but no film should rely on you having to do that in order to understand it. Not recommended.

A lot of the time with oldies you have to acknowledge the film with have more than a few outdated characteristics and probably isn't a good watch in today's age. In fact, you can't come away from a pre- 1930's film and say it's anything other than a classic lest you be out casted from the ranks of cinephiles and film buffs. If truth be told, there are a number of silent films that cannot really be enjoyed today. So you can imagine my surprise when I sat down to watch The Great Train Robbery to I found it to be quite the experience.It's truly amazing to think that the film is over a hundred years old. Imagine being a member of the audience who first saw it! What must have they though when the obvious dummy was thrown off the train? That would have been very innovative for the time.You can see why this was such a sensation back then, and why the picture is considered an icon in cinema history. As one of the first movies ever to employ a narrative technique, The Great Train Robbery earns its right as a historical landmark. Even then, you can still enjoy it purely on a story level. I was well engaged with the films plot, as we (unusually) stayed with the bandit for most of the time and watched them succeed in robbing the train but then fall victim to the wrath of the law. A variety of effective techniques that of course did not include sound or colour or anything else we take for granted in films the movie, the birthplace of the western genre, is able to increase the excitement and suspense levels. From the motion effect inside the train to the scenes filmed in the outdoors, The Great Train Robbery holds up very well. There is even a panning shot and some cross cutting.Not to mention the classic closing shot of George Barnes emptying his six shooter at the audience at the end of the film. It's possibly the most iconic scene in movie history. You can only imagine how that affected startled audiences in 1903. As referenced in the closing shot of Martin Scorsese's Goodfellas, it is one of the best examples of breaking the fourth wall that I have seen…and it's a hundred and eleven years old.My Rating: 7.5/10

The Great Train Robbery is an interesting little film made in 1903, who's historical impact on film has transcended time launching an entire gene of films (The Western) The Great Train Robbery is only 10-15minutes long and while by todays standards is a little rushed and lacks Character Development , the film is still a fascinating film to watch possibly because of the huge impact its had and the mentality that was going through my head that this film is over 100 years old . While the films simple plot does hold it back, it is easily forgivable . The Great Train Robbery is a Historical piece of cinema for a reason and is well worth the effort for film buffs and silent movie fans. a decent 5 + Historical impact=6

This is a fun, silent film. I feel it is a very complete and compelling story of its time which brings to life the concept of train robbers & legions of the time. As far as the technical side of things, I really enjoyed the use of camera-work. The use of the different camera angles and locations of the film really makes it interesting. I also enjoyed the use of additive coloring. I did feel that it was a tad slow for my taste but I shouldn't be too critical because it came in out 1903. For silent films that I've seen, I felt The General & Nosferatu are a little smoother but considering that those both came out 20 plus years later that would be an unfair judgment. All in all, though it is a good film and I give it a 6 out of 10.