Film Review Techniques And Assesment Report

Running head: FILM REVIEW
FILM REVIEW
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1FILM REVIEW
A. Admiral Cigarette (1897)
1. Rothery, Jason. "for scotch (Dewar’s—It’s Scotch!, 1897), cigarettes
(Admiral Cigarette, 1897), clean-burning coal (A Romance of the Rail, 1903),
and his own products (Streetcar Chivalry (1905) displayed posters plugging
the phonograph). Edison produced fifty-two films featuring trains, the
railway, and the purchase of train tickets,“providing promotional services for
customers of his industrial business,” and reducing production costs in the
bargain. These “efforts to influence audience." (2011).
2. Summary:
This is an ad film. This film was the first commercial film to promote a brand
producing cigarettes-“Admiral Cigarettes”. According to Rothery, This film generates a
specific propaganda that smoking cigarette is the habit of several classes of the society.
Rothery considered that the ad film fulfilled its purpose adequately to portray the
growing popularity of cigarette among the broad cross section of 18th century America.
This reflected in the beginning of the film, as the film starts with the animated
conversation among four men representing four distinct classes or the broad cross section
of America in the 18th century. According to Rothery the costumes used in this ad film
provides evidences that the characters were from distinct classes. One of them is dressed
up like Red Indian. Again, one of them has been dressed in trousers with Stars-and-
Stripes printing. Another two have worn suit and long army coats respectively.
3. Criticism:

2FILM REVIEW
Rothery consider that, the involvement into a discussion, in front of a
billboard-“Admiral Cigarettes”, again, explosion of the giant box containing ‘Admiral
Cigarettes’ reflected monotony created, in order to fulfill the purpose of promoting the
brand of cigarettes. This scene is followed by the scene of cigarettes distribution by a
lady emerged through the explosion and logicless hanging of the banner “We all smoke”,
as it can be observed through the actions of the characters that they all smoke. This film
was also criticized for not highlighting why people would choose to smoke.
B. The Great Train Robbery (1903)
1. Porter, Edwin S., et al. "The Great Train Robbery (1903 film)."
2. Summary:
It is a silent short film. The proficiency of the director as well as photographer
Edwin S. Porter reflected vividly as the film depicted a train robbery beautifully, within
the short span of 12 minutes, by effectively utilizing camera angles, medium as well as
long shots. This film introduced a new type of editing concept which was popularized as
‘dialectical montage’. In other words, with the use of some discrete yet logically
sequenced scenes Edwin S. Porter demonstrated how a group of bandits committed the
crime of robbing a passenger train.
3. Criticism:
First silent movie where action scenes are beautifully picturized. This movie was
successful to generate the thrill of the crime scenes to the viewers and kept viewers eager as well
as engrossed to watch ‘what happened further’. This was the reason to consider the movie, one of
the best thriller movie of silent era. It can be concluded that, "The Great Train Robbery (1903) took