Stop Thief! 1905

Directed by Gaston Méliès

In order to photograph this film, the cameraman placed his equipment on a broad sidewalk in the business district of a large city, probably New York. As the action begins, a woman dressed in the fashion of the time is seen approaching the camera position. She stops in front of the window of a mercantile store. While she is scrutinizing the merchandise, a purse snatcher comes from the rear, grabs her handbag, turns, and makes off with it in the opposite direction. The woman causes quite a commotion, waves her arms and yells attracting a large crowd, including some policemen. The cameraman changed his position and the last scene shows the woman, escorted by two policemen and followed by a group of people, walking down the sidewalk into a building that might be a police station.