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Ben-Hur (1925) was the most expensive film of the silent era, possibly holding the record for over twenty years. Due to the secretive nature of Hollywood accounting, it is not clear which film is the most expensive film ever made.
- 10 The Ten Commandments
- 9 The Hunchback of Notre Dame
- 8 The Covered Wagon
- 7 The Circus
- 6 The Four Horsemen of The Apocalypse
- 5 The Gold Rush
- 4 Way Down East
- 3 Ben-Hur
- 2 The Big Parade
- 1 The Birth of A Nation
Due to the relevance of Christianity in the development of the United States, stories such as The Ten Commandmentswould resonate with audiences. The premise centers around commonly known Christian concepts and figures, juxtaposing their experiences with the fundamental understanding of the Ten Commandments by most Americans during the early 20th ce...
Inspired by Victor Hugo's 1831 novel of the same name, The Hunchback of Notre Damehas been adapted multiple times throughout the years. The 1923 adaptation places the narrative within a silent film, following the adventures of Quasimodo. Set in Paris in 1492, Quasimodo is a bell-ringer who is deaf, half-blind, and also lives with kyphosis. Manipula...
The Covered Wagon, a silent Western film, finds J. Warren Kerrigan, Lois Wilson, and Alan Hale starring in a story that finds its characters traveling from Kansas to Oregon, a trip littered with crimes, secrets, and romance. The troubled hero Will Banion joins a caravan of travelers seeking new opportunities on the West Coast. Designated as a scout...
Directed, written, produced, and starring iconic performer Charlie Chaplin, The Circus is a silent film that follows the mishaps and miracles of a struggling circus. Tramp (Chaplin), a poor and starving man, finds himself at the center of the latest spectacle. After a misunderstanding with, and subsequent escape from, the police, Tramp stumbles upo...
Billed as one of the first anti-war films to debut in the United States, The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse doubles as a silent film and an epic war film. Directed by Rex Ingram, the film follows famous Argentine landowner Madriaga (Pomeroy Cannon), colloquially known as the centaur, and his multicultural family. Despite his various feelings for h...
Charlie Chaplin returns to the list with another successful comedy. The Gold Rush finds the familiar Tramp (Chaplin) trapped in a blizzard with another gold prospector and a criminal on the run. Whether it be in the confines of a tiny cabin or surrounded by the excitement contained in a gold boom town, the trio embark on a pursuit of gold that prom...
D.W. Griffith's romantic drama, Way Down East, stars Lillian Gish as the unfortunate yet admirable Anna Moore. Swindled by a lover and struck with a horrifying loss, Anna is left to fend for herself. As viewers watch her journey from loneliness to stumbling upon a job and a greater community, themes of ostracization, betrayal, and gossip start to f...
Based on General Lew Wallace'sBen Hur: A Tale Of The Christ, the film of the same name, is a silent epic produced by MGM. The film finds Roman Navarro starring as the titular Ben-Hur, a Jewish prince. The prince is introduced in the context of his friendship with the influential Roman tribune Messala, portrayed by Francis X. Bushman. Their connecti...
Written by Lawrence Stallings and directed by King Vidor, The Big Parade centers around the journey of Jim Apperson (John Gilbert), a son of a wealthy American business executive in 1917. Marked by his indolence, Jim initially refrains from enlisting however, a run-in with his friends inspires him to enlist alongside them. During his training, Appe...
Quite possibly the most infamous film in American history, The Birth of a Nation, is a silent film that centers around America during the Civil War and Reconstruction. Starring Lillian Gish, the follows two families, the Stonemans of the North and the Camerons of the South, and their continued bond beyond the Civil War. Incorrectly framing Reconstr...
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Apr 2, 2018 · At almost four million dollars, the 1925 version of Lew Wallace’s Ben-Hur is widely considered the most expensive silent movie ever made. Expenses for the movie began in 1919 with the initial negotiations with Henry Wallace and with Abraham Erlanger, producer of the successful stage play.
- The Circus. Charles Chaplin, 1928. Why choose the one film its maker didn’t even mention in his autobiography? Chaplin had enjoyed immense success with The Gold Rush in 1925, confounding expectations by sending his Little Tramp to the frozen North, and creating some of his most famous sight gags (the dance of the bread rolls).
- Big Business. James Horne, Leo McCarey, 1929. Laurel and Hardy are the odd couple of film history. Lacking the high-culture admirers of Chaplin or Keaton, their case rests on the simple test of whether you find them funny.
- 7th Heaven. Frank Borzage, 1927. Based on a schmaltzy Broadway hit, written by the step-grandson of Robert Louis Stevenson, this is high Hollywood melodrama that’s almost guaranteed to reduce any audience to joyous tears.
- Sunrise. F.W. Murnau, 1927. No sooner had the German film industry made its spectacular post-war recovery than it began to haemorrhage talent to the Hollywood studio bosses competing for big names.
Apr 30, 2011 · At almost four million dollars, the 1925 silent film of Lew Wallace’s Ben-Hur is the most expensive silent movie ever made. Expenses for the movie began in 1919, with MGM’s initial negotiations with Henry Wallace.
The entire production cost $923,886.45, making The Gold Rush the most expensive comedy of the silent-film era. More than 230,000 feet of film were exposed (on one camera).
Mar 28, 2022 · Have you ever wondered what the silent movie era was actually like? Are there any masterpiece silent films that would still be considered great if they came out today? Well, you'd be surprised how many silent films are still considered among the industry's most beloved classics.
