The world's archives

337–384 of 1,846 films, free to watch, from the world's open archives.

Where these films come from, and who sees what

Every film here plays from the archive that keeps it: the Internet Archive, Wikimedia Commons, the NASA Image and Video Library, the Library of Congress and Open Images (the Netherlands Institute for Sound and Vision). Nothing is copied to this site. Each film's page names its archive, links to its page there, and states its licence or status as the archive does.

Archive films carry no age ratings, so each is placed from the collections it sits in and the subjects the archive gives it, cautiously. Sexual content and nudity are left out altogether.

Little OnesFilms for young children by name: nursery rhymes, lullabies, preschool.
KidsCartoons and animation, children's and family films, and educational films, unless they deal with war, propaganda, crime, horror or drugs, or carry racial caricature.
TweensDocumentaries, science, nature and space, classic comedies, newsreels, commercials and lectures.
TeensEverything else, including anything we cannot tell about; war, crime, horror and westerns go no lower.
AdultSexual themes (such as the old "sex hygiene" films), gore, surgery, slaughter, atrocity footage.
Internet Archive Alice In Wonderland (1903) Directed By Cecil M. Hepworth, Percy Stow 1903 · Feature Alice in Wonderland (1903) Directed by Cecil M. Hepworth, Percy Stow Director: Cecil M. Hepworth, Percy Stow Alice in Wonderland is a 1903 British silent… Internet Archive Panorama of New York in 1905: Spectacularly enhanced and colorized using the latest A.I. technology! 1905 · Feature Following our recent, very successful restoration work about French refugees at the end of World War 1 in 1918 ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_Ku5S0uifQ)… Internet Archive Par le trou de serrure AKA What Happened to the Inquisitive Janitor AKA Peeping Tom 1901 · Feature Internet Archive Cyrano De Bergerac (1900) Directed By Clément Maurice 1900 · Feature Cyrano de Bergerac (1900) Director: Clément Maurice Cyrano de Bergerac is a 1900 French short drama film directed by Clément Maurice, featuring Benoit… Internet Archive Beautiful Venice in 1900 in color! [A.I enhanced & colorized] 1900 · Feature Take a trip in our time machine to Venice to see how beautiful this city was more than 120 years ago. The film shows most of the famous tourist spots like The… Internet Archive The Scheming Gamblers’ Paradise 1905 · Short · 3 min The original French title is Le Tripot clandestin . IMDb Page Internet Archive The Dancing Pig 1907 · Feature Internet Archive Les rsultats du fminisme AKA The Consequences of Feminism 1906 · Feature Internet Archive Par Le Trou De La Serrure ( 1901) Directed By Ferdinand Zecca 1901 · Feature What Is Seen Through a Keyhole (1901) 'Par le trou de la serrure' Director: Ferdinand Zecca Par le trou de la serrure is a 1901 French silent short comedy… Internet Archive Alcohol And Its Victims (1902) Directed By Ferdinand Zecca 1902 · Feature Alcohol and Its Victims (1902) 'Les victimes de l'alcoolisme' Director: Ferdinand Zecca Les victimes de l'alcoolisme (English: Alcohol and its victims) is a… Internet Archive Beautiful Vienna in 1906 in color! Schönes Wien im Jahr 1906 in Farbe! [AI enhanced & colorized] 1906 · Feature Wonderful film footage of Vienna, the capital of Austria, well before both World Wars! The original B&W film has been motion-stabilized, slightly speed… Internet Archive The Night Before Christmas (1905) Directed By Edwin S. Porter 1905 · Feature The Night Before Christmas (1905) Director: Edwin S. Porter The Night Before Christmas is a 1905 American silent short film directed by Edwin S. Porter for… Internet Archive Uncle Josh At The Moving Picture Show (1902) Directed By Edwin S. Porter 1902 · Feature Uncle Josh at the Moving Picture Show (1902) Director: Edwin S. Porter Uncle Josh at the Moving Picture Show is a 1902 American short silent comedy film… Internet Archive LA GLU [1907] 1907 · Short · 4 min Alice Guy-Blache [1873-1968] is not as well-known as Georges Melies but just as prolific and influential. Here is a short film called "La Glu" [1907]… Internet Archive The Dog Factory 1904 · Short · 4 min Short comedy that involves a contraption that makes and unmakes dogs. Restored from the Library of Congress' Paper Prints Collection. Internet Archive The Prince Of Magicians (1901) Directed By Georges Méliès 1901 · Feature The Prince of Magicians (1901) 'Excelsior!' Director: Georges Méliès Excelsior!, released in the United Kingdom as The Prince of Magicians, is a 1901 French… Internet Archive The One Man Band (1900) Directed By Georges Méliès 1900 · Feature The One-Man Band 1900 'L'homme orchestre' Director: Georges Méliès The One Man Band (French: L'Homme-Orchestre) is a 1900 French silent trick film directed by… Internet Archive Teddy Roosevelt in SF 1903 · Film Difficult to discern, but President Teddy Roosevelt is in a procession heading up Van Ness in this short clip. Internet Archive Jack And The Beanstalk (1902) Directed By Edwin S. Porter, George S. Fleming 1902 · Feature Jack and the Beanstalk (1902) Director: Edwin S. Porter, George S. Fleming Jack and the Beanstalk is a 1902 American silent trick film directed by George S.… Internet Archive Explosion Of A Motor Car (1900) Directed By Cecil M. Hepworth 1900 · Feature Explosion of a Motor Car (1900) Director: Cecil M. Hepworth Explosion of a Motor Car (AKA: The Delights of Automobiling) is a 1900 British silent comic trick… Internet Archive Brussels in all its splendor in 1908 in color! Brussel in 1908 in kleur! [AI enhanced & colorized] 1908 · Feature This film shows the Belgian capital Brussels in color as it was more than a century ago in 1908. At the time Leopold II was still King of Belgium. He died one… Internet Archive Demolishing and Building Up Star Theatre 1901 · Short · 1 min Time lapse shot of the demolition of the Star Theatre in New York City. Produced by American Mutoscope and Biograph Company and preserved by the Library of… Internet Archive Uncle Tom's Cabin 1903 · Feature Internet Archive Union Square 1903 · Film Dedication of Dewey Monument in Union Square, c. 1903. St. Francis Hotel visible behind scene. Internet Archive Spanish Bullfight (1900) Directed By Louis Lumière 1900 · Feature Spanish Bullfight (1900) Director: Louis Lumière Plot: With a crowded arena in the background, a stationary camera records a bull charging a picador astride… Internet Archive The Inventor Crazybrains And His Wonderful Airship (1905) Directed By Georges Méliès 1905 · Feature The Inventor Crazybrains and His Wonderful Airship (1905) 'Le dirigeable fantastique' Director: Georges Méliès Le Dirigeable fantastique ou le Cauchemar d'un… Internet Archive Undressing Extraordinary 1901 · Feature Internet Archive The Black Imp (1905) Directed By Georges Méliès 1905 · Feature The Black Imp (1905) 'Le diable noir' Directed by Georges Méliès The Black Imp (French: Le Diable noir) is a 1905 French silent trick film by Georges Méliès.… Internet Archive New York City Ghetto Fish Market 1903 · Short · 2 min A bustling market of mainly Eastern European Jewish immigrants on the Lower East Side of NYC on Friday morning, May 1st, 1903 . Copied at 20fps from a 35mm… Internet Archive The Rajah’s Dream (1900) Directed By Georges Méliès 1900 · Feature The Rajah’s Dream (1900) 'Le rêve du radjah ou La forêt enchantée' Director: Georges Méliès The Rajah's Dream (French: Le rêve du radjah ou La forêt… Internet Archive The Fat And Lean Wrestling Match (1900) Directed By Georges Méliès 1900 · Feature The Fat and Lean Wrestling Match (1900) ' Nouvelles luttes extravagantes' Director: Georges Méliès A series of fantastical wrestling matches. Internet Archive The Mermaid (1904) Directed By Georges Méliès 1904 · Feature The Mermaid (1904) 'La sirène' Director: Georges Méliès The Mermaid (French: La Sirène) is a 1904 French silent trick film by Georges Méliès. It was sold by… Internet Archive Rescued By Rover (1905) Directed By Cecil M. Hepworth, Lewin Fitzhamon 1905 · Feature Rescued by Rover (1905) Director: Cecil M. Hepworth, Lewin Fitzhamon Rescued by Rover is a 1905 British short silent drama film, directed by Lewin Fitzhamon,… Internet Archive La neuropatologia 1908 · Feature Internet Archive The Dainaid's Barrel (1900) Directed By Georges Méliès 1900 · Feature The Dainaid's Barrel (1900) 'Le Tonneau des Danaïdes' Director: by Georges Méliès Internet Archive Panorama of Eiffel Tower 1900 · Feature Internet Archive The Capture of Roma 1905 · Feature Internet Archive Le duel d’Hamlet (1900) Directed by Clément Maurice 1900 · Feature Le duel d’Hamlet (1900) Director: Clément Maurice Hamlet, also known as Le Duel d'Hamlet, is a 1900 French film adaptation of an excerpt from the William… Internet Archive Explosion of a Motor Car 1900 · Feature Internet Archive Danse des saisons 1900 · Feature Internet Archive Life Of An American Fireman (1903) Directed By Edwin S. Porter 1903 · Feature Life of an American Fireman (1903) Director: Edwin S. Porter Life of an American Fireman is a short, silent film Edwin S. Porter made for the Edison… Internet Archive A Railway Collision (1900) Directed By Walter R. Booth 1900 · Feature A Railway Collision (1900) Director: Walter R. Booth Railway Collision (also known as A Railroad Wreck) is a 1900 British short silent drama film, directed by… Internet Archive La vie du Christ AKA The Birth, the Life and the Death of Christ 1906 · Feature Internet Archive The Devil And The Statue (1901) Directed By Georges Méliès 1901 · Feature The Devil and the Statue (1901) 'Le diable géant ou Le miracle de la madonne' Director: Georges Méliès Internet Archive A Slave's Love 1907 · Feature Internet Archive The House of Ghosts 1908 · Feature Internet Archive A Nigger in the Woodpile 1904 · Feature Internet Archive New York Subway 1905 · Feature