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IMDbPro

Foolish Wives

  • 1922
  • Not Rated
  • 1h 57m
IMDb RATING
7.0/10
3.9K
YOUR RATING
Foolish Wives (1922)
DramaThriller

A con artist masquerades as Russian nobility and attempts to seduce the wife of an American diplomat.A con artist masquerades as Russian nobility and attempts to seduce the wife of an American diplomat.A con artist masquerades as Russian nobility and attempts to seduce the wife of an American diplomat.

  • Director
    • Erich von Stroheim
  • Writers
    • Erich von Stroheim
    • Marian Ainslee
    • Walter Anthony
  • Stars
    • Rudolph Christians
    • Miss DuPont
    • Maude George
  • See production, box office & company info
  • IMDb RATING
    7.0/10
    3.9K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Erich von Stroheim
    • Writers
      • Erich von Stroheim
      • Marian Ainslee
      • Walter Anthony
    • Stars
      • Rudolph Christians
      • Miss DuPont
      • Maude George
    • 38User reviews
    • 37Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Awards
      • 1 win

    Photos37

    Erich Von Stroheim, Miss DuPont, FOOLISH WIVES, Universal, 1922, **I.V.
    Erich von Stroheim in Foolish Wives (1922)
    Erich von Stroheim in Foolish Wives (1922)
    "Foolish Wives" Erich Von Stroheim 1922 Universal **I.V.
    "Foolish Wives" Erich Von Stroheim 1922 Universal **I.V.
    "Foolish Wives" Erich Von Stroheim 1922 Universal **I.V.
    Foolish Wives (1922)
    Erich von Stroheim and Miss DuPont in Foolish Wives (1922)
    Erich von Stroheim and Miss DuPont in Foolish Wives (1922)
    Erich von Stroheim and Miss DuPont in Foolish Wives (1922)
    Foolish Wives (1922)
    Erich von Stroheim, Mae Busch, Miss DuPont, and Dale Fuller in Foolish Wives (1922)

    Top cast

    Edit
    Rudolph Christians
    • Andrew J. Hughes - U.S. Special-Envoy to Monaco
    Miss DuPont
    Miss DuPont
    • Helen Hughes
    • (as Miss Dupont)
    Maude George
    Maude George
    • Princess Olga Petchnikoff
    Mae Busch
    Mae Busch
    • Princess Vera Petchnikoff
    Erich von Stroheim
    Erich von Stroheim
    • Count Sergius Karamzin - Capt. 3rd Hussars Imper. Russian Army
    • (as Erich Von Stroheim)
    Dale Fuller
    Dale Fuller
    • Maruschka
    Albert Edmondson
    • Pavel Pavlich
    • (as Al Edmondson)
    Cesare Gravina
    • Cesare Ventucci
    Malvina Polo
    • Marietta Ventucci
    • (as Malvine Polo)
    C.J. Allen
    • Albert 1 - Prince of Monaco
    Nigel De Brulier
    Nigel De Brulier
    • Monk
    • (uncredited)
    Robert Edeson
    Robert Edeson
    • Andrew J. Hughes
    • (uncredited)
    Agnes Emerson
    • Bit Role
    • (uncredited)
    Louise Emmons
    Louise Emmons
    • Mother Garoupe
    • (uncredited)
    Harrison Ford
    Harrison Ford
    • Rude Soldier
    • (uncredited)
    • …
    Valerie Germonprez
    • Extra
    • (uncredited)
    Mrs. Kent
    • Dr. Judd's Wife
    • (uncredited)
    Mme. Kopetzky
    • Actress
    • (uncredited)
    • Director
      • Erich von Stroheim
    • Writers
      • Erich von Stroheim(uncredited)
      • Marian Ainslee
      • Walter Anthony
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Erich von Stroheim's excesses on the film also included ordering lavish evening gowns from Paris, silk stockings, and monogrammed silk underwear for his actors to wear so they could "feel more like aristocrats." He decorated his sets with real porcelain, tapestries and crystal chandeliers. At banquet scenes he insisted on using real champagne and caviar. When asked by a studio executive why he couldn't substitute ginger ale and blackberry jam as props for the champagne and caviar, von Stroheim replied, "Because my actors will know the difference, I will know the difference, and the camera will know the difference."
    • Goofs
      When the original actor playing Mr. Hughes died in the middle of filming, he was replaced by a double, who completed his scenes with his back mostly to the camera. Apparently, however, nobody noticed that the original actor had significantly darker hair than his replacement. Therefore, Mr. Hughes's hair turns white in several scenes, including the sequence where his wife says goodbye to him in the casino, and his confrontation with the count at the villa.
    • Quotes

      Count Sergius Karamzin - Capt. 3rd Hussars Imper. Russian Army: Yes-husbands are stupid; with them a woman won is a woman secure...

    • Alternate versions
      The Kino Video edition released in 2003 is 143 minutes.
    • Connections
      Edited into The Moving Picture Boys in the Great War (1975)

    User reviews38

    Review
    Review
    Featured review
    9/10
    Seldom Seen Silent Classic
    Today Erich Von Stroheim is best recalled by the general public for his appearances in such films as the 1950 SUNSET BLVD--but fans of silent film know him as one of early cinema's great directors, creator of such films as BLIND HUSBANDS, FOOLISH WIVES, and the legendary masterwork GREED. The film is available in several VHS and DVD releases; perhaps the best, however, is offered by Kino Video, which also includes a profile of Von Stroheim as well.

    FOOLISH WIVES is generally believed to be the first film made that cost one million dollars. In the modern era, when film budgets often run into many millions of dollars, this may seem slight--but in 1922 Universal Studios was staggered not only by the costs, but by Von Stroheim's seemingly endless shooting schedule; at a time when most movies were made in six weeks or less, FOOLISH WIVES took a year or more to complete and threatened to bankrupt the studio.

    The circumstances brought Von Stroheim into direct conflict with production manager Irving Thalberg, who threatened to replace him with another director. By most accounts, Von Stroheim laughed in Thalberg's face: not only was he director, he was the star as well, and if he were fired the film would never be completed. Thalberg and Universal had little choice but grin and bear it... but it was something Thalberg would recall several years later, much to Von Stroheim's chagrin.

    Set in post-World War I Monaco, FOOLISH WIVES presents the story of the ultra-amoral Count Wladislaw Sergius (Von Stroheim) and his two supposed cousins Olga (Maude George) and Vera (Mae Busch) who present themselves as wealthy Russian nobility--but who are in fact a trio of vicious con-artists who generate cash flow by passing counterfeit bills through Monaco's legendary casinos. Eager to deflect suspicion, they scrape acquaintance with an American diplomat and his wife (Rudolph Christians and Helen Hughes)--and in time at all the naive wife is so much putty in the Count's diabolical hands.

    Von Stroheim recreated a fairly large chunk of Monaco on the Universal back lot, and the sets, costumes, and crowds of extras still put most modern productions to shame. But the film's real fascination are the deadly trio of Maude George, Mae Busch, and most particularly Von Stroheim himself. Within the first few minutes of the film he contemplates advances upon an attractive but mentally deficient young woman--and as the plot unfolds we discover that he has seduced the maid with a promise of marriage he does not intend to keep. This, of course, does not prevent him from taking her life savings for a little gambling money when the need arises! The overall cast is quite good, with Miss DuPont a stand out as the diplomat's wife, and the cast plays without recourse to the broad mannerisms often seen in many silent films. But what drives the film is our curiosity at how far Von Stroheim will take both the film and his own performance. The answer? Plenty far indeed. It's all fascinating stuff, and truly this is the film that gave Von Stroheim the title of "The Man You Love To Hate." FOOLISH WIVES was soundly condemned by the moral authorities of the day, and Universal lost a bundle on the project. In an effort to recoup some of the loss, the studio cut and then recut the film to a more reasonable length for distribution; as a result, great chunks of the film were lost. While a "complete" version is an impossibility, the Kino version seems to restore the film as completely as possible.

    FOOLISH WIVES inevitably pales in comparison to Stroheim's later GREED, but it is a remarkably fine, remarkably watchable silent--and the two films would have a circular effect. For when Von Stroheim went to Metro to film GREED, he eventually found himself face to face once more with Irving Thalberg... and this time Thalberg, who well recalled the financial disaster of FOOLISH WIVES, would have the upper hand. Strongly recommended, not only for the film itself, but for the backstory involved.

    GFT, Reviewer
    helpful•40
    2
    • gftbiloxi
    • Mar 21, 2005

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • January 11, 1922 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United States
    • Languages
      • English
      • Latin
      • French
    • Also known as
      • Luckaste zene
    • Filming locations
      • Point Lobos State Natural Reserve, California, USA(at Point Lobos)
    • Production company
      • Universal Film Manufacturing Company
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

    Edit
    • Budget
      • $1,100,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Technical specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      1 hour 57 minutes
    • Sound mix
      • Silent
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.33 : 1

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