Romance / Drama / History
In 1850, on the isolated French island of Saint-Pierre, a murder shocks the natives. Two fishermen are arrested. One of them, Louis Ollivier, dies in custody. The other, Neel Auguste, is sentenced to death by the guillotine. The island is so small that it has neither a…


Jean, le capitaine

Joseph Auguste Néel

Pauline, l'épouse du capitaine

le gouverneur

le président Venot

le commissaire de la Marine

le chef douanier

Louis Ollivier

Monsieur Chevassus, le bourreau

le soldat Loïc

le contre-amiral

le père du gouverneur

A group of people are standing along the platform of a railway station in La Ciotat, waiting for a train. One is seen coming, at some distance, and eventually stops at the platform. Doors of the railway-cars open and attendants help passengers off and on. Popular legend has it that, when this film was shown, the first-night audience fled the café in terror, fearing being run over by the "approaching" train. This legend has since been identified as promotional embellishment, though there is evidence to suggest that people were astounded at the capabilities of the Lumières' cinématographe.