Male and Female (1919)

Director:

Cecil B. DeMille

Writers:

Jeanie Macpherson (written by)
J.M. Barrie (play)

Release Date:

23 November 1919 (USA)

Genre:

Adventure | Drama

Plot:

Gloria Swanson plays a spoiled maiden who always gets her way until shipwrecked with her butler, then learns which qualities are really admirable in a person.

Plot Keywords:

Butler | Maid | Yacht | Class Distinction | Romantic Rivalry

Cast

Thomas Meighan	...	William Crichton - The butler
Theodore Roberts	...	Lord Loam
Raymond Hatton	...	Honorable Ernest 'Ernie' Wolley
Robert Cain	...	Lord Brockelhurst
Gloria Swanson	...	Lady Mary Lasenby
Lila Lee	...	Tweeny - the scullery maid
Bebe Daniels	...	The king's favorite
Julia Faye	...	Susan - maid #2
Rhy Darby	...	Lady Eileen Duncraigie
Mildred Reardon	...	Lady Agatha 'Aggie' Lasenby
Mayme Kelso	...	Lady Brockelhurst
Edmund Burns	...	Treherne
Henry Woodward	...	McGuire - Lady Eileen's chauffeur
Sydney Deane	...	Thomas
Wesley Barry	...	Buttons - the boy

Runtime:

116 min (1997 alternate version)

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Black and White

Aspect Ratio:

1.33 : 1

Sound Mix:

Silent

Certification:

Portugal:17 | USA:Passed

Filming Locations:

Channel Islands National Park, Channel Islands, California, USA

Company:

Paramount Pictures

Trivia:

The original Broadway production of the play the screen play was based on, "The Admirable Crichton", was written by J.M. Barrie (author of "Peter Pan"), opened at the Lyceum Theater on November 17, 1903 and ran for 144 performances. The play starred William Gillette, noted play author and first actor to portray the fictional detective Sherlock Holmes.

Movie Connections:

Featured in Indie Sex: Censored (2007) (TV)

Thomas Meighan's an Admirable Crichton

Thomas Meighan (as the admirable Crichton) is head butler for an aristocratic British family; he is obviously quite taken with luscious Gloria Swanson (as Lady Mary Lasenby), but unable to cross class barriers. The household's scullery maid Lila Lee (as Tweeny) is in love with Crichton. The threesome, and some others, go out yachting; when cross currents hit, the ensemble is shipwrecked! Turns out, the servant class has far more advanced survival skills. Who knew?

Ms. Swanson is the film's main attraction; her bathing and showering scenes, near the beginning of the film, helped clean-up at the box office. Note that whenever there is nakedness afoot, DeMille has an object cover-up Swanson's figure, however. Though not as famed, Swanson's later wet spot, when she is nearly drowned in the bowel of the sideswiped yacht, is far superior. Swanson and Ms. Lee perform well, actually, with the material given. Loved the "upper crust" lady complaining about limp toast!

Mr. Meighan delivers the movie's finest performance; the other players have moments, but Meighan is outstanding in the pivotal role of Butler Crichton. From the moment he checks the mansion for dust, he is delightful; the actor makes the movie even more interesting when the suppressed desire for Swanson begins registering on his face. A couple of smaller roles are noteworthy: Wesley Barry is great as the peeping Buttons, indicating what Cecil B. DeMille's "Male and Female" is really all about (more or less). You should also keep an eye on Bebe Daniels during the "King of Babylon" imaginary sequence; she is terrific as Meighan's right-hand lady. Silent film veterans Guy Oliver and Clarence Burton inexplicably disappear, after the shipwreck. Theodore Roberts and Raymond Hatton are around much longer, thankfully.

The film is recommended, and DeMille obviously expert - but it's one of the more ludicrously-themed silent era classics preserved for modern scrutiny. Apparently, in adapting "The Admirable Crichton" for DeMilledom, the director substituted sex for satire. AND, he gets his titillating re-title "Male and Female" from no less than God Himself! quoting, "So God created Man in His own image, in the image of God created He him: Male and Female created He them." There is also a oddly placed bow to the good ol' U.S.A. With all its oddities, it's still a fun film.

******** Male and Female (11/23/19) Cecil B. DeMille ~ Thomas Meighan, Gloria Swanson, Lila Lee