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History of Motion Pictures: Early Films by Thomas Alva Edison 1891-98

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Thomas Alva Edison used his genius to make many inventions; and he certainly made fine contributions to the embryonic start of motion pictures. This two DVD set features over 130 short films by Edison and the people who worked for him.

Amazon correctly notes that many of these films are very short--and they are right. Many of the earliest films on the first DVD last no longer than 23 seconds. There is a longer film, though, that lasts over a minute so we get some proof that Edison could indeed make longer pictures than just 23 seconds or so. The first DVD contains the earliest motion pictures with the very first one shot in 1891; this was of a young man swinging his clubs. Edison wanted the man to swing his clubs to prove that motion would be the focus of motion pictures; and although the film is in poor shape you can see that Edison accomplished this goal from the word go.

Other memorable shorts throughout the two DVD set would include the film that depicts the execution of Mary, Queen of Scots. I notice that another reviewer knew that this was the first film ever to use actors--good input from that reviewer! I also liked the earlier films of schoolgirls having pillow fights in a seminary and the short films of parades with their floats were extremely interesting. We see Chinese parades, military parades and more.

The second DVD sports another large number of short films, some of which are well over one minute long. We see ships being launched and there is a good amount of footage shot in 1898 in or near Cuba during what must have been The Spanish-American War. It's interesting to see the men "initiate" a new recruit by subjecting him to a "blanket throw;" many men gather around in a circle and with their brute force turn a blanket into a type of trampoline while the new recruit must bounce around in it to survive the ride and become initiated into their fold. The men have a great time and you can see many of them laughing with pleasure!

There are other short films of ladies dancing; and I liked one short that had three Japanese women doing a traditional dance. On the first DVD there are at least two short films of Native Americans doing dances, too. Very impressive!

You may notice that the camera was stationary; therefore the only way Edison and his coworkers were able to capture things from more than one angle was to mount the camera in front of moving trains. These shorts are very nicely done.

The two DVDs lack any commentary and there are no extras; this disappoints me. I have to take off one star for that to make this a four star review. Sigh.

Overall, this two DVD set gives us the best possible look at the earliest films made by Edison and his coworkers. History buffs will love this and film buffs will cherish this as well for its obvious historical value. I highly recommend this two DVD set for people who want to get a look at what life was like at the last turn of the century, too.

Enjoy!

After Thomas Edison invented the movie projector he needed to make movies in order to show the world that the thing worked and that people would want to pay money to see moving images projected onto the wall.

Since no one had ever seen movies before Edison had no idea what people would want to see, so he and his cameraman filmed everything they could.

The results are the clips on this disk. Some are just people standing around. Some are events and others try to tell simple stories.

The films themselves are primitive, but it is interesting to see what Edison thought his invention should be used for.

History of Motion Pictures: Early Films by Thomas Alva Edison. I REALLY ENJOYED WATCHING THIS FILM. IT IS VERY INFORMATIVE & INTERESTING.

This DVD set is a delightful journey back in time to the late 1800's. Edison's production company shot over 500 films that are known of during the 1891-1898 period, and 132 of the best from this period are included in this 2 DVD collection. Almost all of them are under a minute in length, and most were made either as technical experiments or novelties. The idea of the "feature film" had not yet emerged. These vintage clips are priceless - both for their historic content and the testimony they bear to the untiring efforts of Thomas Edison and his team of devoted scientists. This is a wonderful mix of early Edison films. Particularly riveting are the clips about the Spanish American War. The visuals are pretty clear given the passage of over a century and I felt rewarded by the visual account of the Spanish American War - the first major conflict to be recorded on film. I was also impressed with the comedies included here. Despite the lack of sound tracks, the comedic clips are hilarious and immensely entertaining. The following is a sampling of what is contained on the two DVD set:

Newark Athlete - (1891) This short clip shows an athlete performing some exercises in Newark, New Jersey. This was an experimental picture to test new equipment and new techniques more than anything else. The film is a small fragment of a boy swinging his clubs. Part 1 is the original and part 2 is the looped version.

Sandow (1894) - Shot by K.L. Dickson, this fascinating clip features the famous muscleman Eugen Sandow, who claimed to be the strongest man in the world at the time, flexing his muscles and showing what made him an unbeatable champion at the turn of the 20th century.

The Boxing cats (1894) - Henry Welton presents two of the trained cats that appear in his vaudeville performances. The cats appear in a miniature boxing ring, and they are wearing miniature boxing gloves on their front paws. As Professor Welton looks on, they spar in a manner similar to that of human boxers.

Leonard-Cushing Fight (1894) - Filmed in Edison's Black Maria Studio on the 14th of June 1894, this clip features the much talked about boxing bout between Leonard and Cushing. It is one of the first proper boxing footage, and what a match it was. Shot at a time when the rules in boxing were kept to a minimum, the fight between the two is very intense. The referee can hardly interfere, and it is a good thing that he does not. It is interesting to watch even if you are not a boxing fan.

The Execution of Mary, Queen of Scots (1895) - This is a reenactment of the execution of Queen Mary. This clip was filmed in Edison's studio on August 28, 1895. Mary is brought to the execution block and made to kneel down with her neck over it. The executioner lifts his axe ready to bring it down. After that frame Mary has been replaced by a dummy. The axe comes down and severs the head of the dummy from the body. The executioner picks up the head and shows it around for everyone else to see. One of the first 'camera tricks' to be used in a movie. It shocked audiences in its day, but for obvious reasons it today looks quite fake. This is also one of the first if not the first film reproducing a historical scene going for the best possible realism, a description that later became a definition for a genre. This was the first film in history to use trained actors.

The Burning Stable (1896) - In less than half a minute, this incredible clip highlights the panic and despair caused by a burning stable. This live shot was filmed on October 31, 1896. A stable is on fire, and several horses are trapped inside. Firefighters and stable hands have entered the burning structure, and are bringing out the horses one or two at a time. After several horses have come out, another man emerges from the stable, pulling a cart. There's interesting detail shown, in that one man seems as concerned about some material implements as the others are about the horses. The Edison camera crew got pretty close to the action, and this makes quite a difference in establishing the situation.

Fisherman's Luck (1897) - This hilarious short features the saga of two luckless fishermen who find themselves in some real deep waters. One gets a bite, and pulls in a length of stovepipe. The other is so astonished that he falls overboard.

U.S. Troops Landing at Daiquiri, Cuba (1898) - Filmed during the Spanish American War, this clip captures memorable scenes of American troops landing on Cuban soil after the Spanish sank the U.S.S. Maine. Columns of men move slowly towards the camera, while the stern of a large ship can be seen in the background. Meanwhile, a number of small boats are also involved in transporting the soldiers.

Burial of the Maine Victims (1898) - This historic clip records the funeral procession of the American seamen who were killed when the Spanish sank the USS Maine in Havana on February 15, 1898. Taken at Key West, Fla., March 27, 1898.

Wash Day in Mexico (1898) - This clip shows women in Mexico washing clothes in a canal.

Ella Lola, a la Trilby (1898) - This short features a dance sequence performed by Ella Lola. Ella Lola was a stage star of note before the turn of the century, and was given this opportunity to show her ability as a dancer.

Freight Train (1898) - This clip captures the thrill of watching a steam-locomotive driven freight train coming out of a tunnel. As the freight cars pass the camera it is possible to read the advertisements on the car sides. In that day and age, advertising on the side of freight cars was great for companies that could afford to own or rent the cars.

The images are, for the most part, well preserved. I highly recommend this set for the film history buff and also for someone interested in the work of Edison. If you are neither of these, you probably won't appreciate these DVD's that much.