A charming and highly
impressive relic of cinema's
formative years.
The Great Train Robbery is one of the most significant films in early American cinema. It formed the early DNA of what would become both the Western and Crime genres and signaled film's growing influence outside of France, where the Lumiere brothers and Georges Melies had already left a vital mark. Aside from it's indescribable historical significance, The Great Train Robbery remains a highly entertaining little window into the years before The Birth of a Nation revolutionized film into what we know today.
The thing that surprised me the most about this film was how exciting and violent it was. I am quite shocked that such violence and daring threat was accepted by people in 1903, however I am very glad because these primitive scenes of violence and action set a tradition with American cinema. I was also greatly surprised by some of the film's shot compositions, as they showed a greater degree of visual literacy than I was expecting from this period. The final shot in particular is extremely memorable, and has become almost as iconic as Melies's 'moon shot'.
Overall, although I do not feel the same level of raw enchantment and majesty from this film as I do with A Trip to the Moon, it remains a significant and entertaining relic from cinema's primordial ooze.
By Jack D. Phillips
A Zoom Film Review
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