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Tom Gunning's The Great Train Robbery

687 Words3 Pages

What attracts you to watch a film? Generally, most of the people will answer either the story plot or the casting. However, the early films are different from the modern ones since they focus more on the techniques and attraction to spectators, which basically refers to what the machine can show. The Great Train Robbery (1903), as one of the examples of early films, is an American silent short film produced by Edwin S. Porter. It talks about two masked bandits hijacking a train and robbing the passengers on it for their property. This film is around 12 minutes long but is definitely a milestone in the cinematic history. It is not only the first Western film ever made, but is also a pioneer in using innovative techniques in filmmaking. Furthermore, …show more content…

Since the early stage of filmmaking was about exploring the functions of machines and the early audiences “went to exhibitions to see machines demonstrated rather than to view films” (Gunning, 1990), the early films were based on “the ability to show something” but rarely spent time creating characters’ psychological development or personality traits. The most well-known examples of this kind of films is Workers Leaving the Lumière Factory (1895) by The Lumière Brothers and A Trip to the Moon (1902) by Georges Méliès. These early films are mostly plotless, merely aiming to present an attraction to the spectators. As moving on, Edwin S. Porter’s Life of an American Fireman and The Great Train Robbery developed a sense of narration, but still remaining the component of “cinema of …show more content…

Instead of depicting the story development gradually like most modern films do, it only captures the most essential plots, making the pace much faster and more intense, thus successfully catches the spectators’ attention and arouses their emotions. Additionally, this film applied innovative techniques including on-site shooting and frequent camera movements, rather than fixed position shooting, thus breaking the traditional stage drama restrictions. The style of the whole film style is compact, and montage editing techniques also contribute to the construction of atmosphere. This film is a great success in the cinematic history and an great example explaining the concept of “cinema of

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