Release CalendarTop 250 MoviesMost Popular MoviesBrowse Movies by GenreTop Box OfficeShowtimes & TicketsMovie NewsIndia Movie Spotlight
    What's on TV & StreamingTop 250 TV ShowsMost Popular TV ShowsBrowse TV Shows by GenreTV NewsIndia TV Spotlight
    What to WatchLatest TrailersIMDb OriginalsIMDb PicksIMDb Podcasts
    OscarsBest Picture WinnersBest Picture WinnersEmmysSTARmeter AwardsSan Diego Comic-ConNew York Comic-ConSundance Film FestivalToronto Int'l Film FestivalAwards CentralFestival CentralAll Events
    Born TodayMost Popular CelebsMost Popular CelebsCelebrity News
    Help CenterContributor ZonePolls
For Industry Professionals
  • All
  • Titles
  • TV Episodes
  • Celebs
  • Companies
  • Keywords
  • Advanced Search
Watchlist
Sign In
  • Fully supported
  • English (United States)
    Partially supported
  • Français (Canada)
  • Français (France)
  • Deutsch (Deutschland)
  • हिंदी (भारत)
  • Italiano (Italia)
  • Português (Brasil)
  • Español (España)
  • Español (México)
  • Cast & crew
  • User reviews
  • Trivia
IMDbPro

Foolish Wives

  • 19221922
  • Not RatedNot Rated
  • 1h 57m
IMDb RATING
7.0/10
3.6K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
29,372
2,800
Foolish Wives (1922)
DramaThriller
A con artist masquerades a Russian nobility and attempts to seduce the wife of an American diplomat.A con artist masquerades a Russian nobility and attempts to seduce the wife of an American diplomat.A con artist masquerades a Russian nobility and attempts to seduce the wife of an American diplomat.
IMDb RATING
7.0/10
3.6K
YOUR RATING
POPULARITY
29,372
2,800
  • See more at IMDbPro
    • Director
      • Erich von Stroheim
    • Writers
      • Erich von Stroheim(story and scenario)
      • Marian Ainslee(titles)
      • Walter Anthony(titles)
    • Stars
      • Rudolph Christians
      • Miss DuPont
      • Maude George
    Top credits
    • Director
      • Erich von Stroheim
    • Writers
      • Erich von Stroheim(story and scenario)
      • Marian Ainslee(titles)
      • Walter Anthony(titles)
    • Stars
      • Rudolph Christians
      • Miss DuPont
      • Maude George
  • See production, box office & company info
    • 34User reviews
    • 36Critic reviews
  • See production, box office & company info
    • Awards
      • 1 win

    Photos32

    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(story and scenario) (titles)
      • Marian Ainslee(titles)
      • Walter Anthony(titles)
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    More like this

    Orphans of the Storm
    7.3
    Orphans of the Storm
    Greed
    8.1
    Greed
    The Wheel
    7.5
    The Wheel
    Blind Husbands
    6.9
    Blind Husbands
    La souriante Madame Beudet
    6.6
    La souriante Madame Beudet
    Way Down East
    7.4
    Way Down East
    The Wedding March
    7.4
    The Wedding March
    Nanook of the North
    7.6
    Nanook of the North
    Stachka
    7.6
    Stachka
    Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler
    7.8
    Dr. Mabuse, the Gambler
    Storm Over Asia
    7.0
    Storm Over Asia
    Broken Blossoms
    7.3
    Broken Blossoms

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      Erich von Stroheim's attention to detail was such that he ordered an engraver to print copies of French money as props for the movie (he was playing the role of a counterfeiter). Unfortunately, the money printed was realistic enough that, shortly before shooting began, von Stroheim was arrested and hauled into court on counterfeiting charges. He escaped punishment by arguing to the judge that "the money was for use in pictures only."
    • 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 reviews34

    Review
    Top review
    7/10
    A new attempt to piece back together the most complete version of "Foolish Wives".
    Erich Von Stroheim is a very, very odd character in the history of cinema. He made several films which nearly bankrupted the studios due to his insane insistence of complete realism--to the point of absurdity. In the cases of "Greed" and "Foolish Wives" he also delivered films which were impossibly long--so long that audiences of the day never would have sat through movies of six or more hours in length! According to many, he delighted in bankrupting the studios and had perhaps the most adversarial relationship with the studios of any filmmaker in history. As a result, the studios severely cut his films to the point where they were barely Von Stroheim projects...and for years people have been saying that his ORIGINAL films, uncut, were works of genius...though without having seen the original films (as only a tiny number of studio execs did), who's to say that he was right and the studios wrong?! It's one of those mysteries we'll never solve, as the films only exist in truncated versions...though the folks who restored "Foolish Wives" tried their best to restore the missing 2/3 of the film. The prologue admits that it was not entirely successful as too much of the movie simply no longer exists. So, they pieced together what they had and tried to re-assemble the missing portions as best they could. Keep this in mind when you're seeing the movie...it's not Von Stroheim's film but it's also not the general release either.

    The film begins just after WWI and is set in Monte Carlo. Three worthless Russian nobles live there and they are thieves who live through stealing from others. But they maintain a very solid image...that of noble and virtuous folk. Sergius (Von Stroheim) is a cad and plans on using the American Ambassador's wife to make a fortune and a false sense of respectability...all in order to help his poor cousins, the Princesses, to live in luxury. How? Well, by hanging out with respectable folks, the assumption is that the forged money he and his cousins gamble with will be assumed to be real...and readily accepted by the casinos. Plus, Sergius plans on hitting up this woman for money...money that she will gladly give him after he seduces her. Is this all there is to his infamy...nope. Along the way, he seduces several women!

    Overall, this is a very watchable film and generally didn't seem disjoint...at least until the ending. At this point, the film jumped about a bit and seemed to be pieced together. As a result, I'd give the film a 7--a very good film but one that suffered, a bit, from being too melodramatic at times as well as being a bit weak at the end.
    helpful•3
    0
    • planktonrules
    • May 18, 2016

    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
    • 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

    Related news

    Contribute to this page

    Suggest an edit or add missing content
    Foolish Wives (1922)
    Top Gap
    By what name was Foolish Wives (1922) officially released in Canada in English?
    Answer
    • See more gaps
    • Learn more about contributing
    Edit page

    More to explore

    View list
    List
    The Best Movies and Shows to Watch in August
    See the full list
    View list
    List
    Fall TV Guide: The Best Shows Coming This Year
    See the full list
    View image
    Photos
    These Stars Are on the Rise
    See the gallery

    Recently viewed

    Please enable browser cookies to use this feature. Learn more.
    Back to top
    Get the IMDb App
    Sign in for more access
    Sign in for more access
    • Get the IMDb App
    • Help
    • Site Index
    • IMDbPro
    • Box Office Mojo
    • IMDb Developer
    • Press Room
    • Advertising
    • Jobs
    • Conditions of Use
    • Privacy Policy
    • Interest-Based Ads
    IMDb, an Amazon company

    © 1990-2022 by IMDb.com, Inc.