Intolerance is a spectacular silent film epic directed by the great American director D. W. Griffith. The motion picture was released in 1916 after two years of filming. Intolerance displayed film techniques that influenced generations of filmmakers throughout the world. Some film historians have called it the greatest motion picture ever made, but it was a box-office failure and caused deep financial problems for Griffith that lasted several years.
Intolerance is an anthology of four stories that dramatize intolerance and bigotry throughout human history. Griffith shot several hours of film, but the exhibited version runs a little over two and a half hours. The earliest story takes place in ancient Babylon. The next story takes place in the Holy Land during the time of Jesus Christ. Another story takes place during the Middle Ages in France. The fourth story occurs in modern times.
All the stories are told in parallel style, the film moving from narrative to narrative to demonstrate injustice in each era of human history. The cutting from story to story remains a masterful example of film technique. The film became famous for its massive sets. The re-creation of ancient Babylon ranks as perhaps the most impressive set in movie history.
The film failed commercially because audiences found its complex plots and vast number of characters too difficult to follow. Many viewers were also confused by the film’s message of social criticism. However, many people who were associated with the film went on to important careers in motion pictures. They included actors Lillian Gish, Elmo Lincoln, Mae Marsh, Wallace Reid, and Constance Talmadge, and associate directors Erich von Stroheim and W. S. Van Dyke.
See also Gish, Lillian ; Griffith, D. W. ; Motion picture (D. W. Griffith) .
