This ultra-short feature has historical significance in addition to its novelty value. As one of a number of surviving features that the Edison Company made not for exhibiting commercially, but as experiments or for other purposes, it is part of the interesting historical record of the very earliest stages of motion picture development.Made just a couple of months before Edison's Kinetoscopes were opened for public viewing, this feature was originally filmed for a magazine article, in which the individual frames could illustrate the way that the Kinetoscope would produce the effect of motion. Naturally, for such a purpose they did not need or want more than a few seconds of film.One thing that is interesting about the earliest movies is their choice of material. A good many of the Edison Company's movie subjects, whether commercial or experimental, are either offbeat or provocative. This contrasts with, for example, the early Lumière movies, which featured so many aesthetically pleasing and even lyrical sights. This subject is one of the offbeat ones, recording Edison employee Fred Ott in the act of sneezing.For its original purpose this was a suitable subject, since the action would all be contained within a narrow camera field, and it would last only a very short time. Now, so many years later, it is useful in a different way, as a record of one of the many steps on the way to commercially-made movies. It should also be noted that the footage, very short and simple though it is, succeeds in recording motion clearly and smoothly.

This film might have been the greatest movie ever made but it is full of mysteries. I will quote some of the questions you should ask yourself while watching this movie numbering them.1 - Is the sneeze real?How do we know the sneeze is a real sneeze or a wonderful piece of acting by the great Ott? 2 - If the sneeze was real, what caused it?As we know it, Ott might have been allergic to something waved in front of him by Edison himself. In this case we should feel sorry for Ott and what he went through to create this masterpiece.3 - What does he say during the sneeze?We don't know whether he made rude sound or a more polite sound.4 - Did Edison even bother to say "Bless you"?Because the sneeze is silent, I wonder did Edison at least say "Bless you" or not? Mysteries that will never have an answer. Bet you didn't think a sneeze hid so many mysteries.

All action, no plot. Still important in the terms of film history. It was the first film made by Thomas Edison on his motion picture camera. I can think of worse ways for kill 2 seconds.

Best known as Fred Ott's Sneeze, W.K.L. Dickson's short Kinetoscope should most likely be classified as some sort of documentary, although Mr. Ott's exaggerated wind-up and release come off as a little less than authentic. The novelty of moving images stunned and amazed those who saw these early subjects following their creation at Thomas Edison's famous Black Maria studio. And even though it is not the oldest film listed in the database, it was the first film to have a copyright filed on its behalf. Lasting only a few seconds, the movie itself holds a kind of rare and inexplicable fascination for lovers of film. Difficult to put into words (you could have watched the complete work a number of times in the span it takes to read this), I always feel like I am seeing the cinema's equvalent of Eve biting into the apple.