Civilization (film)
| Civilization | |
|---|---|
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| Directed by |
Reginald Barker Thomas H. Ince Raymond B. West |
| Produced by | Thomas H. Ince |
| Written by | C. Gardner Sullivan |
| Starring |
Howard C. Hickman Enid Markey George Fisher Herschel Mayall |
| Music by |
Hugo Riesenfeld Victor Schertzinger |
| Cinematography |
Joseph H. August Dal Clawson Clyde De Vinna Otis M. Gove Devereaux Jennings Charles E. Kaufman Robert Newhard Irvin Willat |
| Edited by |
Thomas H. Ince Hal C. Kern LeRoy Stone Irvin Willat |
| Distributed by | Triangle Film Corporation |
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Release date
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Running time
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88 min. |
| Country | United States |
| Language |
Silent film English intertitles |
Civilization is a 1916 American pacifist allegorical drama film produced by Thomas H. Ince, written by C. Gardner Sullivan, and directed by Ince, Reginald Barker and Raymond B. West. The story involves a submarine commander who refuses to fire at a civilian ocean liner supposedly carrying ammunition for his country's enemies. The film was a big-budget spectacle that was compared to both Birth of a Nation and the paintings of Jean-François Millet. The film was a popular success and was credited by the Democratic National Committee with helping to re-elect Woodrow Wilson as the U.S. President in 1916. The film was also one of the first to depict Jesus Christ as a character in a motion picture, leading some to criticize the depiction as in "poor taste."
Civilization is sometimes viewed as one of the first anti-war films. In 1999, it was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
The film opened with a lengthy prologue. In some theaters, the prologue was performed by live actors and an orchestra. It included music composed by Victor Schertzinger and depicted a peaceful country home, with hills in the distance, a stream and clouds floating peacefully through the sky. Suddenly, the boom of a cannon is heard, artillery guns belch fire, and a Zeppelin flies over the city dropping bombs. In the smoke, "Civilization" is depicted kneeling pleadingly at the feet of a menacing "God of War." Soldiers are seen retreating before deadly gas. Against these scenes, the film's title cards express the film's anti-war message, concluding with the following comments:
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