1916: The Highest Grossing Movies Of The Year (Classic Edition)

Описание: Reflecting back on the earliest days of cinema when the movies were still something radically new and experimental!

1916 was a year in which cinema attempted to redefine itself. The six biggest box office attractions reflected a medium stretching toward spectacle, celebrity, and technical innovation. But at the heart of the year — artistically, structurally, and historically — stood "Intolerance", a film that remains one of the most audacious achievements of the silent era.

Released in September 1916, "Intolerance" was D.W. Griffith’s answer to the national controversy surrounding "The Birth of a Nation" from the year before. But rather than simply defending himself, Griffith escalated. He conceived a film that would span human history — arguing that persecution and moral rigidity had plagued civilization across the ages.

Financially, "Intolerance" was among the year’s top grossers due to its roadshow strategy and prestige pricing. Yet its enormous production cost prevented it from being as profitable as Griffith hoped. Ironically, its ambition limited its commercial success. But in artistic terms, it permanently expanded the boundaries of cinema.

Comprehensive, fully accurate worldwide grosses do not exist for this era, and most figures are from North American rentals/estimates rather than modern reported box office totals. This video is based on those domestic rentals and gross estimates for films upon their initial release in 1916, with boxoffice numbers reported in "Cecil B. DeMille's Hollywood" written by Robert S. Birchard.

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