In truth, there is barely enough story here to make a film.

It's an amazing and heartbreaking story.

It's the kind of movie you'll want to see a second time with someone who hasn't seen it yet, to remember what it was like to watch it for the first time.

Strong acting helps the film overcome an uncertain premise and create characters that hold our attention absolutely.

Bird's-Eye View of San Francisco, Cal., from a Balloon (1902) ** 1/2 (out of 4) A fairly interesting short from Edison shows San Francisco before the great quake, which would happen a few years later. The "gimmick" of this film is that it was shot from a hot air balloon and I'm sure this thing made people line up to see. Considering when it was shot the movie remains fairly interesting but you can't help but wish the cinematography was a little better. Some of the shots, due to the lighting, are extremely dark and this isn't helped by the rather poor shape of the print I saw. There are some interesting things to see here including various houses and building but the quality needed to be a little better.

By the time this was shot, the public was losing interest in simple vistas. This picture is also rendered almost unviewable by the poor, irregular lighting it was shot in. If you look at this hoping to see what the San Francisco landscape looked like before the Great Quake, this won't help you.