The Great Train Robbery

I just saw this at an NRHS meeting and its a hoot to see Reading camelbacks in a western set movie. Overall its a real fun movie and its great to see early views of eastern Pennsylvania. Lubin is the original Philadelphia based director who went to great lengths to not cop out and move west. To make westerns he filmed in quarries and covered fields in lime. More people should give this region a chance.

This 1904 remake of the 1903 classic is nearly identical, though just not as good. It was made by the Pennsylvania-based Sigmund Lubin company. Maybe it could have used Broncho Billy Anderson as the lead, like the original did!

This rip-off of Porter's THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY -- you could not actually copyright a movie at this time, so there was no real protection for producers against plagiarism -- is generally supposed to be a scene-for-scene remake, but there are differences: the robbery itself is more violent, as the thieves knock out the guard on the train, then beat his body and throw him off the moving train. Don't worry.... to the modern eye, it is clearly a dummy. Also, the backgrounds are much more clearly stylized backdrops.

It is interesting to note that even at this stage, Lubin's cameraman was playing with framing technique: the brief dance scene uses some false arches to constrict the scene.