Well, lots of thoughts - mainly agreeing with you! As a keen film fan, I enjoy seeing the "early" growth of cinema and a lot of the groundwork was laid in these movies for the later ones. But, having said that I find early B&W movies hard to watch precisely because they've been pastiched! Intellectually, I understand that these 'were first' but emotionally, you're sitting there wondering why they don't react in 21st century ways.
Still cool seeing the "birth of cinema", though.
