Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #26929 in DVD
• Released on: 2004-09-01
• Rating: Unrated
• Aspect ratio: 1.33:1
• Formats: Box set, NTSC
• Original language: English
• Running time: 379 minutes

From Amazon.com
The home-video revolution has yielded a wealth of valuable compilations, but few are as miraculously definitive as The Movies Begin. Equally suited to home or classroom viewing, this authoritative five-volume set is a vital document of film history, providing a one-stop destination for anyone wishing to witness the first two decades of motion pictures. That period--from 1894 to 1913--saw movies develop at a breakneck pace, from the earliest "actualities" of the Lumière brothers in France to D.W. Griffith's audacious development of dramatic action in the Biograph shorts of the early 1910s. Sensibly organized into pivotal stages of technical and creative progress, each of these volumes represents the priceless value of film preservation; all 133 films in the set are presented in the finest condition available, from archival prints to complete restorations, and accompanied by music that perfectly captures the spirit of each film and the time of their creation.

Under the expert guidance of film historian David Shepard, this collection is uniquely comprehensive, with fact, fiction, and fantasy represented in equal measure. All major figures are included; it's fitting that one volume is devoted to astonishing shorts by movie magician Georges Méliès, while other volumes serve as "greatest hits" compilations of movie innovations by Edwin S. Porter, Cecil Hepworth, Max Linder, Alice Guy Blanche, and many others. The breathtaking growth of movies is fully apparent by volume 5 ("Comedy, Spectacle, and New Horizons"); most viewers will find this the most entertaining, but each volume is a revelation, offering films that haven't been widely seen since they were first produced. To understand and appreciate the foundation upon which modern filmmaking is built, The Movies Begin is truly essential. --Jeff Shannon

Additional Features
Each DVD of The Movies Begin includes concise, authoritative onscreen program notes by film historian Charles Musser, offering illuminating details about nearly every film in the set. Volumes 2 and 3 are further enhanced by Barry Salt's historical commentary, defining the cultural contexts and creative advances of the films under discussion. Together, these valuable supplements serve as further proof that The Movies Begin was produced with the utmost concern for serious students of motion-picture history. --Jeff Shannon

DVD Menu

• Side #1 -- Vol. 1: The Great Train Robbery and Other Primary Works
  • Play All
  • Select Film
    • Series Photography, 1880s
    • Edison Shorts, 1894-97
      • Play All
      • The Kiss
      • Serpentine Dances
      • Sandow
      • Glenroy Brothers
      • Cockfight
      • The Barber Shop
      • Feeding the Doves
      • Seminary Girls
    • Auguste & Louis Lumi�re, 1895-96
      • Play All Lumi�re Films
      • Swimming in the Sea
      • Children Digging for Clams
      • Loading a Boiler
      • Dragoons Crossing the S�one
      • Promenade of Ostriches
      • Childish Quarrel
      • Lion, London Zoo
      • Photograph
      • Transformation by Hats
      • Carmaux: Drawing Out Coke
      • Poultry-Yard
      • Arab Cortege, Geneva
      • New York: Brooklyn Bridge
      • New York: Broadway
      • Policeman's Parade: Chicago
    • A Trip to the Moon, 1902
    • Actualities
      • Play All Actualities
      • McKinley at Home
      • Pack Train on Chilkoot Pass
      • Skyscrapers of New York
      • The Georgetown Loop
      • San Francisco: Aftermath
      • The Dog and His Various Merits
      • Moscow Clad in Snow
      • Airplane Flight and Wreck
    • The Dog & His Various Merits, 1908
    • Moscow Clad in Snow, 1908
    • Airplane Flight & Wreck, 1910
    • Biograph "Blue" Films, 1903-05
      • Play All "Blue" Movies
      • A Fire in a Burlesque Theatre
      • Airy Fairy Lillian Tries on Her New Corsets
      • From Show Girl to Burlesque Queen
      • Troubles of a Manager of a Burlesque Show
    • The Great Train Robbery, 1903
    • The Whole Dam Family, 1905
    • The Golden Beetle, 1907
  • Text
    • Program Notes by Film Historian Charles Musser
      • Series Photography
      • The Edison Mfg. Co.
      • Auguste and Louis Lumi�re
      • A Trip to the Moon
      • Actualities
      • Biograph "Blue" Movies
      • The Great Train Robbery
      • The Whole Dam Family...
      • The Golden Beetle
    • DVD Production Credits
• Side #2 -- Vol. 2: The European Pioneers
  • Play All
  • Select Film
    • Auguste and Louis Lumi�re
      • Play All Lumi�re Films
      • Leaving the Factory
      • The Baby's Meal
      • Demolition of a Wall
      • The Sprinkler Sprinkled
      • Arrival of Congress
      • Arrival of a Train
      • Card Party
      • Boat Leaving the Port
      • Leaving Jerusalem
      • Snowball Fight
      • A Fire Run (Lyons)
      • Niagara Falls
      • Spanish Bullfight
    • Birt Acres
    • R. W. Paul
      • Play All R. W. Paul Films
      • Come Along Do!
      • The Derby
      • The Countryman and the Cinematograph
      • A Chess Dispute
      • Extraordinary Cab Accident
      • Buy Your Own Cherries
      • The (?) Motorist
    • George Albert Smith
      • Play All G. A. Smith Films
      • The Miller and the Sweep
      • The Kiss in the Tunnel
      • Let Me Dream Again
      • Grandma's Reading Glass
      • As Seen Through a Telescope
      • Sick Kitten
      • Mary Jane's Mishap
    • Sheffield Photo Co.
    • Haggar and Sons
    • Bamforth and Co.
      • Play All Bamforth Films
      • The Kiss in the Tunnel
      • Ladies' Skirts Nailed to a Fence
      • The Biter Bit
      • Rough Sea
    • James Williamson
      • Play All Williamson Films
      • Attack on a China Mission
      • The Big Swallow
      • Stop Thief!
      • Fire!
      • An Interesting Story
  • Text
    • Program Notes by Film Historian Charles Musser
      • Begin Essays
      • August and Louis Lumi�re
      • Birt Acres
      • R. W. Paul
      • George Albert Smith
      • Sheffield Photographic Co.
      • Haggar and Sons
      • Bamforth & Co.
      • Williamson's Kinematography Co.
    • DVD Production Credits
• Side #3 -- Vol. 3: Experimentation and Discovery
  • Play All
  • Select Film
    • Hepworth Mfg. Co.
      • Play All Hepworth Films
      • How It Feels to Be Run Over
      • Explosion of a Motor Car
      • Rescued by Rover
      • The Other Side of the Hedge
      • That Fatal Sneeze
    • Cricks and Martin
    • Kineto Prod. Co.
    • Path� Fr�res
      • Play All Path� Films
      • Par le Trou de Serrue
      • Histoire d'un Crime
      • Ali Baba et les Quarante Voleurs
      • Reve et R�alit�
      • La R�volution en Russe
      • Aladin ou la Lampe Merveilleuse
      • Le Cheval Emball�
      • A Narrow Escape
      • Magic Bricks
    • Story of a Crime, 1901
    • Ali Baba & the Forty Thieves, 1902
    • Edison Mfg. Co.
      • Play All Edison Films
      • Dewar's - It's Scotch
      • The Gay Shoe Clerk
      • Dream of a Rarebit Fiend
    • Dream of a Rarebit Fiend, 1906
  • Text
    • Program Notes by Film Historian Charles Musser
      • Begin Essay
      • Hepworth Mfg. Co.
      • Cricks and Martin
      • Kineto Prod. Co.
      • Path� Fr�res
      • International Film Co.
      • Edison Mfg. Co.
    • DVD Production Credits
• Side #4 -- Vol. 4: The Magic of M�li�s
  • Play All
  • Select Film
    • The Untamable Whiskers, 1904
    • The Cook in Trouble, 1904
    • Tchin-Chao, the Chinese Conjurer, 1904
    • The Wonderful Living Fan, 1904
    • The Mermaid, 1904
    • The Living Playing Cards, 1905
    • The Black Imp, 1905
    • The Enchanted Sedan Chair, 1905
    • The Scheming Gamblers Paradise, 1906
    • The Hilarious Posters, 1907
    • The Mysterious Retort, 1906
    • The Eclipse, 1907
    • Good Glue Sticks, 1907
    • Long Distance Wireless Photography, 1908
    • The Impossible Voyage, 1904
    • Georges M�li�s: Cinema Magician, 1978
  • Text
    • Program Notes by Film Historian Charles Musser
      • Begin Essays
      • The Untamable Whiskers
      • The Cook in Trouble
      • Tchin-Chao
      • The Wonderful Living Fan
      • The Mermaid
      • The Living Playing Cards
      • The Black Imp
      • The Enchanted Sedan Chair
      • The Scheming Gamblers...
      • The Hilarious Posters
      • The Mysterious Retort
      • The Eclipse
      • Good Glue Sticks
      • Long Distance Wireless...
      • Impossible Voyage
    • DVD Production Credits
• Side #5 -- Vol. 5: Comedy, Spectacle and New Horizons
  • Play All
  • Select Film
    • The Policemen's Little Run, 1907
    • Troubles of a Grass Widower, 1908
    • Nero, or the Fall of Rome, 1909
    • On�sime, Clock-Maker, 1912
    • Winsor McCay, 1911
    • Making an American Citizen, 1912
    • The Girl and Her Trust, 1912
    • The Bangville Police, 1913
  • Text
    • Program Notes by Film Historian Charles Musser
      • Begin Essay
      • The Policemen's Little Run
      • Troubles of a Grass Widower
      • Nero, or the Fall of Rome
      • On�sime, Clock-Maker
      • Winsor McCay and His Animated Pictures
      • Making an American Citizen
      • The Girl and Her Trust
      • The Bangville Police
    • DVD Production Credits

Customer Reviews

The Movies Begin
... I'd reccomend this for anyone(except the first part)So here's my review and description of each Volume.
Volume one produced by D. Shepard, starts with Animated Muybridge photos. I was hoping that it'd be of galloping horses, but it's not and that's why I skip it. Then there's Edison's Kinetoscope films, AT THE WRONG SPEED! These were possibly "overcranked" so at 24 fps, it appears very slow. Same with the Lumiere films, only this time these were cranked at a higher speed so instead of being super-slow, they're plain jerky.(But some aren't that bad, and these are more rare, least Known ones.) Now there's "A trip to the Moon", Melies most famous film.(Note the cover, that picture used to give me the creeps!) Followed by a Pathe film on Moscow, and "Aeroplane, flight and wreck." We are given some Mutoscope films after this(I was hoping the rare, 1894 animated pictures!" After that the main film of this Volume is given "The Great Train Robbery" Which uses Modern Editing and this print is said to be Mint Condition and is a Rare part colourised version. After "The Dam Family and The Dam Dog" "The Golden Beetle" is next.
Volume 2 produced by Heather Stewart, has a nice commentary by Barry Salt, nice Piano accompiant, and starts with Lumiere actualities. The well known ones like "Men playing cards" and at the right speed! Some Robert Paul films are after Acres' "Rough Sea". Paul had action being carried out of the frame, and stop motion and Model effects("The (?) Motorist") G.A. Smith Originated breaking a scene down in shots("Mary Jane's Mishap") and Point-of-view shots("As seen through a telescope") Shffield Photo and W. Haggar contain early chase films. J. Bamforth is variations on previous films, An J. Williamson is Chase and action being carried over from scene to scene.
The Same People as Vol.2 Made this volume(my favorite!). Cecil Hepworth begins, who "tried to inject a little novelty in his films" has nice ones like "How it feels to be run over". G.H. Cricks brings "A Visit to Peek Freans" and Kineto has "A day in the Life of a Coal Miner. The Pathe films are the main part and are the best. They vary from Melies and Smith inspired films, to rare stencil coloured ones. We end with Edison Films, which are also good.
Volume 4 is Melies films. Some like "The Impossible Voyage" and "The Eclipse" are not to missed. In fact, this volume is one of the best ones. Produced by Davied Shepard has nice music, and nice ending documentary.
Volume 5 is the last one. With some Pathe films, A forerunner of the Keystone C(K)ops, A D.W. Griffith film and more show main begginings of "proper" cinema. Title cards, edtiting, andwell made plots is what I mean. Note: The Winsor Mckay Film is not complete. "Winsor Mckay:Animation Legend" contains more of Mckay drawing and talking with his friends, and even more to the cartoon(which is hand coloured version, not on here) Both are editied differently.
I hope my review told you enough of this set. I didn't want to give spoilers. This is not to be missed(sorry for copying antoher review's title that was here in May 10 2003 that may later be gone)

Awesome...
This was a magnificent look back into history. My one set of grandparents were born respectively in 1927 and 1930. They never thought that movies were older than the 1920's. It shocked them that movies in kinetiscope were appearing in 1894. I love pulling out this collection and shocking people. I tell them I watch movies form the 1800's and they get huffy and self-important and tell me there were no movies form the 1800's. This always amazes them.

Plus, unlike most of Hollywood's movies, these are real people. Even if the stories are false, these people aren't beautiful. They have missing teeth and nappy hair. They don't all have model figures either. It's a look at real history moving right in front of you. If you look carefully you can notice all the little things that we take for granted now. I wondered about cars and traffic regualtions. Those are in the background here.

If you love old movies or love history, then this is definitely the collection for you. Be warned though. These are early times and the special effects are very simple. Usually a stop-motion technique. If that upsets you, then don't watch. Though to me, it's just another part of history. Here you see the development of the film industry.

Not to be missed
To the casual movie viewer, the history of cinema begins in the 1930s, when silents were totally replaced with the new talkie medium. Beyond an occasional showing of The Phantom of the Opera or a few Keaton or Chaplin movies, silents- and especially early silents- are a part of the murky past. This collection is a real eye opener to either a movie fan who wants to broaden their knowledge or someone who, like me, is a silent movie fan who wants to see how it all began.

This collection offers a broad variety. From early melodramas and comedies to newsreel footage and special effects vehicles. The two most famous early silents- The Great Train Robbery and A Trip to the Moon- are shown here but other, more unusual films such as the Golden Beetle and the Grass Widower are also allowed to shine. The picture quality is excellant especially considering the age of these films.

The music by Robert Israel is wonderful, always appropriate and quite a bit less sober than most silent movie music. Even my mother, who likes silents but dislikes silent movie music enjoyed it. It should please both purists and casual fans.

One fault I found with this collection is that some movies have narration whether you want it or not. It surely would not have been difficult to include an on/off function for the commentary track. Also, at points the sound is badly mixed so that the music drowns out the narrator. However, this fairly minor flaw did not ruin my enjoyment of the collection.

I particularly enjoyed the pre-WWI French films, it is easy to see why the French imports could outshine much of the American output. They are beautifully produced, make no bones about their staginess and have an element of playful fantasy. The last disc has a film of the wonderful French comedian Max Linder, it's a shame that he never regained his pre-war popularity because his comedy is spurisingly modern and he has obvious charisma.

The newsreels are also a highlight, Russia in the winter, various "working dogs", an english biscuit factory... all are valuable historically as well as very amusing.

This set is cheap at the price and while not all of the films can be called masterpieces, they are all important in reconstructing a period of cinema history that is too often ignored. If you have any interest in the story of earlky cinema, I recommend this set without reservation.