It's almost impossible to review a twelve minute western made in 1903 from a modern standpoint and a knowledge of all the western classics that would follow. But since director Porter had to work with primitive technology, his little film still impresses today.
A touch that seems inspired is having the gunsmoke and occasional spurts of dust tinted red, as well as the final shot aimed at the screen (something Alfred Hitchcock may have borrowed for one of his films).
Briefly told, it's the simple story of a train robbery that is almost successful until the four men are hunted by a posse. A stationmaster is shot and tied up, while outside his window we see a train moving into the station--a wobbly special effect ahead of its time. The little girl who eventually removes his binds is amusing in the way she uses silent screen technique to indicate panic by looking upward with outstretched arms.
Considering when it was made, it's astonishing that the director/cameraman/writer was able to do what he did here.
A touch that seems inspired is having the gunsmoke and occasional spurts of dust tinted red, as well as the final shot aimed at the screen (something Alfred Hitchcock may have borrowed for one of his films).
Briefly told, it's the simple story of a train robbery that is almost successful until the four men are hunted by a posse. A stationmaster is shot and tied up, while outside his window we see a train moving into the station--a wobbly special effect ahead of its time. The little girl who eventually removes his binds is amusing in the way she uses silent screen technique to indicate panic by looking upward with outstretched arms.
Considering when it was made, it's astonishing that the director/cameraman/writer was able to do what he did here.