Saturday, June 29, 2013

Train Wreck #1 (From Eric Beheim)


The recently-posted photo showing some of the miniature railroad cars used in the train wreck sequence from DeMille’s TGSOE inspired me to scan in some frame enlargements showing these miniatures as they appear in the film. Now-a-days, a wreck like this would probably be done using computer-generated trains. But then again, the train wreck in the Harrison Ford film THE FUGITIVE was done using a real train, which, surprisingly, was cheaper than using a computer-generated train. 

4 comments:

Eric said...

Using a shot of a real engine here might have been more effective since this one looks quite toy-like. But then again, it was intended to be seen on a big screen where it would be enlarged to the size of a real engine or even larger. Adding smoke, steam and sound effects also helps to put over the illusion.

JACKIE said...

Weird seeing these stop photos of the wreck. No matter how many times you have seen the GROE, you never can catch the detail like these photos. I am quit excited about them.

JACKIE said...

Come to think of it, looking at the crash photos, in real life, I don't think they would have had many alive to do the down town circus parade in Cedar City. They touch very lightly in the film on the exact toll of this tragic train wreck.

Ole Whitey said...

This looks like a Sante Fe Hudson type 4-6-4, more of a passenger engine than freight.