The Train Wreckers is a 1905 American silent drama film, directed by Edwin S. Porter.

In the film, the daughter of a railway switchman and lover of a locomotive engineer defeats outlaws trying to derail a train.

[1] The daughter of a switchman, after having wished good morning to her lover, a locomotive engineer, and brought her father his lunch, overhears a group of outlaws planning to derail her lover's train.

She manages to escape with the help of her dog and successfully warns the locomotive engineer.

The locomotive is then uncoupled from the train and the railroad personnel chases and overpower the desperados who had fled on a handcar.

[3] Charles Musser considers that this film "effectively demonstrates the need for social cohesion in a way that could serve as a prototype for future good-guy-versus-bad-guy conflicts".

Cross-cutting and continuity editing are used to show actions developing over several shots in different locations.

A woman comes out and greets her approaching lover, a locomotive engineer, who pats the dog and continues his walk while she waves at him.

A clearing in the woods with a group of men sitting on the ground, discussing.

She takes off her petticoat and waves it as a flag to an incoming train, which allows the engineer to stop just before the obstruction.

The woman walks towards the camera on the train track, not noticing a man who comes out of the woods behind her and knocks her unconscious.

The engineer crouching on the locomotive's cowcatcher manages to catch her just before she is run over (reverse motion trick).

Other view of a train track with the engineer holding the woman in front of the locomotive.

The bandits are riding on the handcar, closely followed by the locomotive with a man in front shooting at them.