| Public Domain Work | Original Author | Notable Film Adaptation(s) | | :--- | :--- | :--- | | | Bram Stoker | Dracula (1931), Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992), countless others | | Frankenstein | Mary Shelley | Frankenstein (1931), The Curse of Frankenstein (1957) | | Alice in Wonderland | Lewis Carroll | Alice in Wonderland (1951), Alice in Wonderland (2010) | | Sherlock Holmes | Sir Arthur Conan Doyle | The long-running film and TV franchise (Basil Rathbone, Robert Downey Jr., etc.) | | Robin Hood | English Folklore | The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938), Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991) | | Peter Pan | J. M. Barrie | Peter Pan (1953), Hook (1991), Peter Pan (2003) | | The Wizard of Oz | L. Frank Baum | The Wizard of Oz (1939), The Wiz (1978) | | The Three Musketeers | Alexandre Dumas | Numerous adaptations, from silent films to the 2011 3D version | | Treasure Island | Robert Louis Stevenson | Multiple adaptations, including classic film versions | | The Scarlet Pimpernel | Baroness Orczy | The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934), a classic swashbuckler | | Tarzan of the Apes | Edgar Rice Burroughs | The long-running film franchise, from Johnny Weissmuller to animated versions | | Quo Vadis | Henryk Sienkiewicz | Quo Vadis (1951), a Roman epic spectacle | | The Maltese Falcon | Dashiell Hammett | The Maltese Falcon (1941), a cornerstone of film noir | | As I Lay Dying | William Faulkner | As I Lay Dying (2013), directed by James Franco | | The Murder at the Vicarage | Agatha Christie | An adaptation introducing Miss Marple, a staple of mystery films and TV | | All Quiet on the Western Front (film) | Erich Maria Remarque | The 1930 film adaptation of the classic anti-war novel, now entering the public domain | | Romeo and Juliet | William Shakespeare | The 1936 MGM adaptation starring Leslie Howard and Norma Shearer |
Project Gutenberg holds thousands of pre-1924 books, including early film scripts, adaptations, stage plays adapted into films, film theory texts, and early nonfiction about cinema. This feature helps researchers, students, and film buffs locate, compare, and analyze these materials.
: There is a notable high-octane shootout in a military camp that feels like a nostalgic throwback to John Woo’s classic gun-fu style.
: Much of the film is told through Lee's perspective as he recounts his recruitment and the technical evolution of their operation—specifically the forging of the 1996 edition U.S. $100 bill. film project gutenberg
Project Gutenberg has served as the world’s premier repository of free digital books for over fifty years. Founded by Michael S. Hart in 1971, the archive holds over 70,000 unrestricted public domain texts. While students, researchers, and voracious readers utilize the database daily, a new wave of creatives is mining this digital library: independent filmmaker and Hollywood screenwriters.
The 2018 action thriller is a masterful addition to Hong Kong’s storied history of crime cinema, blending high-stakes counterfeiting with complex psychological drama. Directed by Felix Chong (co-writer of the iconic Infernal Affairs ), the film garnered critical acclaim, sweeping the 38th Hong Kong Film Awards with seven wins, including Best Film , Best Director , and Best Screenplay . Plot & Mastermind "Painter"
The success of Project Gutenberg relies heavily on the electric chemistry between its two leads: | Public Domain Work | Original Author |
When the calendar flipped to 2020, films from 1924 joined them. In 2024? Films from 1928. This rolling tide of liberation is creating an accidental "Film Project Gutenberg"—a growing, legal, unrestricted library of early cinema.
"As of 2026, qualifying Works published in 1930 or earlier do not have copyright restrictions in the U.S. ... the maximum term of copyright restriction is 95 years from the date of first publication."
: They meticulously replicate the hidden watermark using specific printing layers to ensure it is visible only when held up to light. Frank Baum | The Wizard of Oz (1939),
As of 2025, the "Film Project Gutenberg" is expanding rapidly. Thanks to the 1998 Sonny Bono Act, no new films entered the US public domain for 20 years. That logjam finally broke in 2019.
The 2018 Hong Kong-Chinese action crime thriller Project Gutenberg (无双) stands as a masterclass in modern cinematic deception. Written and directed by Felix Chong—the brilliant mind behind the legendary Infernal Affairs trilogy—the film revitalized the classic Hong Kong crime genre. By blending the intricate mechanics of art counterfeiting with a mind-bending narrative structure, Project Gutenberg delivers an unforgettable exploration of identity, authenticity, and the desperation of the creative mind.