| Male and Female | |
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Still of Gloria Swanson in the film
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| Directed by | Cecil B. DeMille |
| Written by | Jeanie MacPherson |
| Based on | The Admirable Crichton byJ. M. Barrie |
| Produced by | Cecil B. DeMille Jesse L. Lasky |
| Starring | Gloria Swanson Thomas Meighan |
| Cinematography | Alvin Wyckoff |
| Edited by | Anne Bauchens |
| Music by | Sydney Jill Lehman (1997 version) |
Production | Famous Players–Lasky/Artcraft |
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release date |
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Running time | 116 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | Silent (English intertitles) |
| Budget | $168,619.28[1] |
| Box office | $1,256,226.59[1] |
Male and Female is a 1919 American silent adventure/drama film directed by Cecil B. DeMille and starring Gloria Swanson and Thomas Meighan.[2] Its main themes are gender relations and social class. The film is based on the 1902 J. M. Barrie play The Admirable Crichton.[1][3]
A previous version was filmed the year before in England as The Admirable Crichton.
The film centers on the relationship between Lady Mary Loam (Swanson), a British aristocrat, and her butler, Crichton (Meighan). Crichton fancies a romance with Mary, but she disdains him because of his lower social class. When the two and some others are shipwrecked on a deserted island, they are left to fend for themselves in a state of nature.
The aristocrats' abilities to survive are far worse than those of Crichton, and a role reversal ensues, with the butler becoming a king among the stranded group. Crichton and Mary are about to wed on the island when the group is rescued. Upon returning to Britain, Crichton chooses not to marry Mary; instead, he asks a maid, Tweeny (who was attracted to Crichton throughout the film), to marry him, and the two move to the United States.
The film contains two famous scenes, indicative of de Mille's predilections as a filmmaker.
Kenneth Macgowan stated in his 1965 history of film Behind the Screen that the title was changed because Paramount was concerned that audiences would confuse the words "admirable" and "admiral" and "stay away because 'sea pictures weren't very popular'".[4]
Prints of Male and Female are held by:
Male and Female was released on Region 0 DVD-RbyAlpha Video on January 28, 2014.[6]
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