In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

It’s not bad or unwatchable but despite the amplitude of the spectacle, the end result is underwhelming.

A clunky actioner with a handful of cool moments.

The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

I would say watch this movie with the intention in mind that film had only really existed for about 15 years maximum considering I've seen footage from the 1880's. I will say that back then there was no story to speak of with any movie at the time and I don't think many people saw the potential for what it could do. So this gave birth to film editing. I will say the plot is really nothing special but being that this is the first go at editing in history I thought I should talk about the technical elements. I was impressed by how much this felt like it was The Wild West and I also liked how many people they took in to get this made when at this point, film was just a cheap amusement to the public eye. But there are some weaknesses with it, To say the number of robbers in the robbery is inconsistent is an understatement. First there's 2, then 4, then 3 it's a mess. That and I don't know what the significance of the last shot is. It's one of a guy in a stationary location that has nothing to do with what has been seen looking directly at you and firing a gun. I guess because back then editing was a new concept that they could get some of the cheap amusement side of it that it was at the time at the ending but I don't think it ages well. All in all, I would say watch it if you're a fan of westerns or want to know about film history.

'The Great Train Robbery' considered to be the first western and action film as it was first film that laid out the recognizable genre form. Milestone film that used on-location shooting and frequent camera movements.Story is very simplistic, but it was the time when directors and writers seriously started to develop film as a story telling devise, rather than simply showing factory workers walking home. Despite it's simplistic story 'The Great Train Robbery' cemented the themes that became generally popular in western genre - outlaws, bandits, robberies and lawmen. And of course small comic relief in the dance hall where local men shooting at the feet of a dancing stranger.

The Great Train Robbery (1903) is an early and important film that still manages to be entertaining. It's great stuff and feels less dated than most other movies made in the 1900s, though its achievements would be quickly surpassed in the next few years.It's only twelve minutes long, but it tells its simple story well. The characters and situations are funny in the most basic way, even in this age of one-liners and 'dumb' humor ala Zoolander.Yes, the whole thing is crude compared to the much more sophisticated film-making which would emerge in the mid-1910s, but one cannot deny its immense importance in narrative storytelling in cinema.

This is to many the first western film and one of the best movies of the early 1900's. No film before 1903 had action like this, this movie was definitely ahead of it's time. It's a short film, about 10 minutes and i'm pretty sure it's copyright has expired so you can watch it freely on the internet. It's also the first film Broncho Billy Anderson was in(Who was a famous actor that played in western films in the early 1900's). The plot is about a gang of outlaws that rob a train. Really nothing else to it but for many films back then their was no plot. It is considered to be a great milestone in film making, with many new filming techniques used. Some of those are on location shooting and camera movement. I recommend everyone to go watch this movie now if they are at all interested in the history of film or western movies.