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

From The Lost Media Wiki
Jump to: navigation, search
No edit summary
No edit summary
Line 15: Line 15:


==Controversy==
==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> and Sacramento, Florida<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", Myrtle Stedman was often mistaken for the role since her's was simply titled "The Woman".  
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", Myrtle Stedman was often mistaken for the role since her's was simply titled "The Woman".  


==Availability==
==Availability==

Revision as of 21:46, 17 October 2018

Lmwtan cleanup.png


This article has been tagged as Needing work due to its clarity issues, and outdated writing.


Nsfw.png


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: 20 Aug '16

Found by: The Library Of Congress

(The) Hypocrites is a 1915 silent film directed by female director Lois Weber. The film is best known for it's 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 films 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 "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. When the monk dies, the statue disappears, and he awakes once again to see "Naked Truth" guide's 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", Myrtle Stedman was often mistaken for the role since her's was simply titled "The Woman".

Availability

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.

Gallery

Hypocrites

References