http://www.brevestoriadelcinema.org/storia-del-cinema/02-il-cinema-delle-origini/02-5-nascita-e-sviluppo-della-cinematografia-americana/
Made by Edwin Porter for the Edison Company this chase film doesn't really have much of a plot to speak of. A stereotypical lunatic - dressed as Napoleon to let the audience know he is completely bonkers - escapes from his cell after receiving a beating from three of his warders. The film, once the prisoner has escaped, consists of a number of scenes which, for the most part, show him being chased through woodland by the warders. The first chase scene is quite good. The positioning of the camera has been chosen with care so that it can show Napoleon chased along a path before running down a river bank to the left of the screen. The camera pans left, following the pursuit over a log bridge across the river and then up the other side and off into the distance. After this scene, it all grows increasingly dull so that the 10 minute running time starts to become something of an ordeal.
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0235568/
