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Black Diamond Express
This picture was taken at one of the curves on the Lehigh Valley Railroad, along the beautiful Susquehanna River. The train is seen rapidly approaching in the distance, clearly outlined against the grey mountains. Smoke can be seen pouring in volumes from the stack of the locomotive, and as the train approaches closely, she sounds a whistle, warning some section men, who are working on the tracks in the foreground. As she rushes by the camera, the swing motion of the train gives a vivid idea of the lightning speed at which she is traveling. (Edison film catalog)
| Release : | 1896 |
| Rating : | 5.4 |
| Studio : | Edison Studios, |
| Crew : | Director of Photography, Director of Photography, |
| Cast : | |
| Genre : | Documentary |
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Reviews
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good back-story, and good acting
It's not great by any means, but it's a pretty good movie that didn't leave me filled with regret for investing time in it.
This film is so real. It treats its characters with so much care and sensitivity.
Black Diamond Express (1896)This Edison short lasts less than thirty seconds and basically shows some men working on a railroad track. The title refers to an actual train but that isn't really seen anywhere in the film. As you'd expect from a movie of this era, there's really not any story or plot but instead it just shows us a part of life as it was in this period. I've always enjoyed watching these older films just because they can show you the land as it was back in the day or how things were done. Obviously with such a short running time there's nothing with great detail but you at least get to see how work on the railroad was done.
William Heise, the veteran cinematographer from the Edison Film Company's earliest years, and James H. White, the relative newcomer to Edison, both worked on this short. It was Edison's first attempt at the burgeoning train genre in silent film.It starts with several men working on the track. In the distance you can see a train making its way towards the camera. As it approaches, the men step off of the track. You can feel the speed of the train as it takes the bend. On-lookers and the riders on the train wave flags towards each other. Though not as good as Lumiere's 'Arrivee d'un train', it is still one of Edison's better early shorts.
Unfortunately I did not hear this one coming as it's still from the silent era. But the people standing roadside did and they're euphorically waving their hats as it moves closer and closer. The amount of steam in the air increases rapidly and we see it has to be almost there. And there it is. Shooshhhhhhhh. And there it's gone again. It disappeared as quickly as it came, but there's no pleasure like anticipation right? Nice name for a train BTW. Sounds majestic. Unfortunately it was gone so quickly I can't say if the train does its name justice. The people inside the train were waving with their hats too though, so I guess they must have had a good time. Okay short-film all in all. A good watch for people who love silent films, especially documentaries.
Just watched this very brief depiction of a train coming as railroad workers striking on tracks start to leave as the locomotive comes nearer. At only 26 seconds, at least that was the length on Internet Archive, this was another fascinating document from the nineteenth century as captured on film from The Edison Company. Supposedly, many in the audience that were watching a moving picture for the first time also ran away as the train on the screen went toward them as had happened in France when a similar image was depicted earlier on screen as filmed diagonally by the Lumiere brothers. Well worth a look for anyone interested in early cinema.
