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The Great Train Robbery (1903) More at IMDbPro »


Overview

User Rating:
7.5/10   3,327 votes
MOVIEmeter: ?
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Writers:
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Contact:
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Release Date:
1 December 1903 (USA) more
Genre:
Short | Crime | Western more
Plot:
A group of bandits stage a brazen train hold-up, only to find a determined posse hot on their heels. full summary | full synopsis
Plot Keywords:
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Awards:
1 win more
NewsDesk:
[DVD Review] Come Hell or High Water
 (From JustPressPlay. 7 April 2009, 4:50 PM, PDT)

User Comments:
Porter's innovative early film more (52 total)

Cast

  (Cast)
A.C. Abadie ... Sheriff (uncredited)
Gilbert M. 'Broncho Billy' Anderson ... Bandit / Shot Passenger / Tenderfoot Dancer (uncredited)
George Barnes ... (uncredited)
Justus D. Barnes ... Bandit Who Fires at Camera (uncredited)
Walter Cameron ... Sheriff (uncredited)
John Manus Dougherty Sr. ... Fourth Bandit (uncredited)

Donald Gallaher ... Little Boy (uncredited)
Frank Hanaway ... Bandit (uncredited)
Adam Charles Hayman ... Bandit (uncredited)
Morgan Jones ... (uncredited)
Tom London ... Extra (uncredited)
Marie Murray ... Dance-Hall Dancer (uncredited)
Mary Snow ... Little Girl (uncredited)
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Additional Details

Runtime:
11 min (18 fps) (TCM print)
Country:
USA
Language:
English
Color:
Black and White (hand-colored)
Aspect Ratio:
1.33 : 1 more
Sound Mix:
Silent
Certification:
USA:TV-G (TV rating)
Filming Locations:
Dover, New Jersey, USA more

Fun Stuff

Trivia:
The film uses simple editing techniques (each scene is a single shot) and the story is mostly linear (with only a few "meanwhile" moments) but it represents a significant step in movie making, being one of the first "narrative" movies. more
Goofs:
Continuity: When the bandits rob the train and drive away with the engine it is on the right rail-track. When they stop to proceed on horseback the train is on the left. more
Movie Connections:
Referenced in "The Flying Nun: The Great Casino Robbery: Part 1 (#2.16)" (1969) more

FAQ

This FAQ is empty. Add the first question.
12 out of 12 people found the following comment useful.
Porter's innovative early film, 8 May 2004
Author: didi-5 from United Kingdom

This film, often lauded as one of the first movies to include a linear narrative within its running time, came out of the Edison company over a hundred years ago, following their experiments in the previous decades with shorter topical pieces such as cockfighting, dancers, and other limited scenarios.

'The Great Train Robbery' is a simple enough story - a train is robbed, there is a shoot-out. The interesting scenes for me were the ones where the passengers are held at gunpoint while their valuables are collected, the shoot-out with its hand-coloured bursts of gunfire, and the famous final shot where a gun is fired directly at the audience. Not too frightening now, but back in those days this was quite an innovation.

Historically important and with a basic plot still in use today, this film holds significant interest for a wide audience (and will take less than a quarter of an hour of your time to view).

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