Foolish Wives (1922)

"Count" Karanzim, a Don Juan is with his cousins in Monte Carlo, living from faked money and the money he gets from rich ladies, who are attracted by his charmes and his title or his ... See full summary »

Director:

Erich von Stroheim

Writers:

Erich von Stroheim (story), Marian Ainslee (titles),

Stars:

Rudolph Christians, Miss DuPont, Maude George

1 win.

Cast

Complete credited cast:
Rudolph Christians	...	Andrew J. Hughes - U.S. Special-Envoy to Monaco
Miss DuPont	...	Helen - His Wife (as Miss Dupont)
Maude George	...	Her Highness - Princess Olga Petchnikoff
Mae Busch	...	Her Cousin - Princess Vera Petchnikoff
Erich von Stroheim	...	Their Cousin - Count Wladislaw Sergius Karamzin - Capt. 3rd Hussars Imper. Russian Army (as Erich Von Stroheim)
Dale Fuller	...	Maruschka - a Maid
Al Edmundsen	...	Pavel Pavlich - a Butler
Cesare Gravina	...	Cesare Ventucci - a Counterfeiter
Malvina Polo	...	Marietta - His Half-witted Daughter (as Malvine Polo)
C.J. Allen	...	Albert 1 - Prince of Monaco

Storyline

"Count" Karanzim, a Don Juan is with his cousins in Monte Carlo, living from faked money and the money he gets from rich ladies, who are attracted by his charmes and his title or his militaristic and aristocratic behaviour. He tries to have success with Mrs Hughes, the wife of the new US ambassador.

---

Plot Keywords:

melodrama | society | partially lost film

---

Taglines:

The first real MILLION DOLLAR PICTURE

---

Genres:

Drama

---

Details

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

11 January 1922 (USA)

Also Known As:

Esposas Ingênuas

Filming Locations:

Backlot, Universal Studios - 100 Universal City Plaza, Universal City, California, USA

Box Office

Budget:

$1,100,000 (estimated)

Company Credits

Production Co:

Universal Film Manufacturing Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

384 min 140 min (Ontario) 107 min (TCM print) 117 min (1999) 107 min (1989 TCM print)

Sound Mix:

Silent

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

The most expensive part of the movie were the lavish sets, built at Universal Studios. The sets featured a full exterior replica of Monte Carlo, complete with an artificial lake. The total cost of the sets was $421,000. Erich von Stroheim said in an interview that he ought to know what Monte Carlo looked like, for he had been "busted there twice."

---

Goofs

When the Count seats Mrs. Hughes at the roulette table, she is wearing a different gown than the one in the rest of the scene.

---

Connections

Featured in Lon Chaney: A Thousand Faces (2000)

User Reviews

Prince of eccentrics

Lots has been written on the subject and like many others I highly enjoyed the beautiful cinematography, the reconstitution ( both impressive and accurate to the minutest details ), the wit of the titles. However, what actually carried me away is the recurrence of weird finds. In what other movie indeed can you find details like these : - a countess pinching the arm of her maid - a man drinking a calf's blood cocktail first thing in the morning - a US special envoy having trouble in taking off his gloves in front of a prince - a disaster-movie summer storm preventing two would-be sinners from going beyond the point of no return - a wicked hypocrite shedding tears of...TEA ?

Stroheim is really the prince of eccentrics ( and not a bogus one ! ) and we love him for that