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OPEN CLASSIC CINEMA · 753

The Great Train Robbery

190312 minUnited States
CrimeWesternAdventure
Video edition
Wikimedia Commons
Original language
No spoken dialogue. Intertitles: English.
This copy runs
13:27
Subtitles
No subtitle track in this language

Languages and subtitles

No subtitle track in this language

Wikimedia Commons · Edwin Stanton Porter · Public domain

Synopsis

Bandits seize a railway office, stop a train and rob the passengers before escaping with their loot. A rescued telegraph operator raises the alarm, bringing local men together in pursuit. The action moves between interiors, the railway and outdoor terrain, building a compact crime story from separate scenes of attack, escape and response.

Cast

DirectorsEdwin S. Porter

Behind the scenes

Porter's Edison film combined staged interiors with location work and an unusually forceful close view of a gunman firing toward the camera. Exhibitors could place that separate shot at the beginning or end of the presentation.

Sources and availability

General references identify the work and its copy. A reference beside an editorial section is linked to the claims checked in that section.

Wikipedia — film referenceWikidata — film identity and credits

Work catalogued as public domain in the United States.

The public-domain references concern the original films in the United States. Rights can differ for other countries, editions, restorations, music or translations. Sources are listed on each film page.

Availability checked on September 12, 2026.

Photograph credit

Photographs cropped, resized and optimized as WebP, displayed in monochrome.

  • Justus D. Barnes — Edwin Stanton Porter; The Kobal Collection · Public domain
  • G. M. Anderson — George G. Fraser Studio, San Francisco.; This image is available from the United States Library of Congress 's Prints and Photographs division under the digital ID cph.3c27541 . This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing . · Public domain

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