Hypocrites (found drama film; 1915): Difference between revisions

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{{NeedingWork|lack of references, clarity issues, and outdated writing}}
{{NSFW|scenes of nudity}}
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{{InfoboxFound
{{InfoboxFound
|title=<center>Hypocrites</center>
|title=<center>Hypocrites</center>
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|imagecaption=Still from a scene of the film.
|imagecaption=Still from a scene of the film.
|status=<span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>
|status=<span style="color:green;">'''Found'''</span>
|datefound=20 Aug '16
|datefound=22 Apr 2008
|foundby=The Library Of Congress
|foundby=Kino International
}}
}}
'''''Hypocrites''''' is a 1915 silent film directed by the legendary female director Lois Weber. The film is notable for its use of religious imagery and innovative special effects.
'''''(The) Hypocrites''''' is a 1915 silent film directed by female director Lois Weber, and produced by Bosworth Inc. The film is best known for its religious nature, special effects, and inclusion of the first scene of full-frontal female nudity in film, and the controversy surrounding it at the time.<ref>[https://www.tiff.net/the-review/lois-weber-anna-pavlova/ A page indicating the first scene of female nudity in film.] Retrieved 17 Oct '18</ref>


The film proved to be quite controversial due to its inclusion of nude scenes of actress Margaret Edwards (as the character The Naked Truth). The nudity was barely visible due to the film's double exposure, which gave her a ghostly appearance. This technique was revolutionary for its time, wowing many audience members.
==Plot==
The film follows a preacher in Paris who gives a sermon concerning hypocrisy in his church. The crowd listening to his sermon becomes bored with the message with the exception of one woman who takes in everything he states. After the crowd disbands after the sermon, the preacher sits down to read the newspaper, and ultimately falls asleep. When the preacher awakes, he discovers he is a medieval monk who is working on his statue, called "Truth." When he reveals the statue to the King and Queen, the audience becomes enraged that the statue is of a nude woman and execute the monk. He thus dies in real life. In his dream, the statue disappears. He awakes to see "Naked Truth" guide him through all of humanity's hypocrisies to the "Gate of Truth," as the parish comes to learn of the preacher's death<ref>[http://digitalsilents.com/Digital_Silents/Hypocrites.html A review of the film on a silent film marketing website] Retrieved 16 Oct '18</ref>.


While the film survives in a print held by The Library Of Congress, a few scenes from the beginning of the film suffered greatly from silver nitrate decomposition. About two to three minutes worth of material is now considered non-restorable, albeit still watchable. The Library Of Congress has been putting forth a search for a better looking copy, but for now, their slightly damaged version is all that has survived.
==Controversy==
Due to Weber's depiction of "Naked Truth" as a nude woman, the film was barred from screening in multiple theatres in the United States, most notably in Ohio,<ref>[https://www.newspapers.com/clip/93559/myrtle_stedman_wild_olive_atricle/ A newspaper segment mentioning Ohio's barring of the film and mistaking Myrtle Stedman's role.] Retrieved 17 Oct '18</ref> New York, Boston,<ref>[https://traumundexzess.com/2014/08/18/hypocrites-the-film-follows-the-parallel-stories-of-early-christian-19169182/ A blog post detailing the riots in New York and mayor;'s demands in Boston] Retrieved 17 Oct '18</ref>, and Sacramento.<ref>[https://cdnc.ucr.edu/cgi-bin/cdnc?a=d&d=SU19150425.2.220&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1 A newspaper segment detailing the barring and following court case.] Retrieved 17 Oct '18</ref> The barring issue in Sacramento, however, was settled in court when a judge ruled that the film was to air despite the demands of the censors. Since Margaret Edwards was uncredited in the film as the role for "Naked Truth",<ref>[https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/13800?sid=015f8d18-d5c0-4596-95c1-e8fdd22e77bd&sr=0.8563489&cp=1&pos=1 The American Film Institute confirming Margaret Edward's role in the film.] Retrieved 17 Oct '18</ref> Myrtle Stedman was often mistaken for the role since her's was simply titled "The Woman".  


==Gallery==
==Availability==
{{Video|perrow  =1
The film was inaccessible to the general public up until April 22nd, 2008, when Kino International released a remastered version on DVD with Cleo Madison's ''Eleanor's Catch''.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20080328032237/http://www.kino.com:80/video/item.php?film_id=913 The pre-order page for the DVD set to release for April of 2008.] Retrieved 17 Oct '18</ref> The DVD video has since been uploaded to YouTube for online viewing.
  |service1    =youtube
 
  |id1          =AGwfAitRdPw
 
  |description1 =''Hypocrites''
==References==
}}
{{reflist}}


[[Category:Found media]]
[[Category:Found media]]
[[Category:Pre-LMW]]
[[Category:Historic]]

Revision as of 14:23, 17 February 2020

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This article has been tagged as NSFW due to its scenes of nudity.



Hypocrites1915still.png

Still from a scene of the film.

Status: Found

Date found: 22 Apr 2008

Found by: Kino International

(The) Hypocrites is a 1915 silent film directed by female director Lois Weber, and produced by Bosworth Inc. The film is best known for its religious nature, special effects, and inclusion of the first scene of full-frontal female nudity in film, and the controversy surrounding it at the time.[1]

Plot

The film follows a preacher in Paris who gives a sermon concerning hypocrisy in his church. The crowd listening to his sermon becomes bored with the message with the exception of one woman who takes in everything he states. After the crowd disbands after the sermon, the preacher sits down to read the newspaper, and ultimately falls asleep. When the preacher awakes, he discovers he is a medieval monk who is working on his statue, called "Truth." When he reveals the statue to the King and Queen, the audience becomes enraged that the statue is of a nude woman and execute the monk. He thus dies in real life. In his dream, the statue disappears. He awakes to see "Naked Truth" guide him through all of humanity's hypocrisies to the "Gate of Truth," as the parish comes to learn of the preacher's death[2].

Controversy

Due to Weber's depiction of "Naked Truth" as a nude woman, the film was barred from screening in multiple theatres in the United States, most notably in Ohio,[3] New York, Boston,[4], and Sacramento.[5] The barring issue in Sacramento, however, was settled in court when a judge ruled that the film was to air despite the demands of the censors. Since Margaret Edwards was uncredited in the film as the role for "Naked Truth",[6] Myrtle Stedman was often mistaken for the role since her's was simply titled "The Woman".

Availability

The film was inaccessible to the general public up until April 22nd, 2008, when Kino International released a remastered version on DVD with Cleo Madison's Eleanor's Catch.[7] The DVD video has since been uploaded to YouTube for online viewing.


References