The Great Train Robbery - 1903

The Great Train Robbery, directed by Edwin S. Porter is widely regarded as the first Western, initiating a genre that, in a few short and eventful years, became the most popular in American cinema. This could have been largely due to the extreme success and imaginative storyline of this film. There are many different scenes that propel the storyline towards its ultimate heart-pumping climax, demonstrating a degree of sophistication, given the early release date. 

The Great Train Robbery tells the story of a group of bandits attempting to hijack a train, running into multiple problems along the way, eventually leading to the death of the robbers. The most famous shot of this movie is when one of the bandits points a gun directly at the audience, firing multiple shots. This effectively places the audience amidst the action, a revolutionary concept of the time. 

Overall this movie was quite engaging, and is able to tell a complete narrative in the space of ten minutes. I was entertained, mostly due to the interesting ways the director managed to capture certain feelings with so little technology.