The Marriage Circle

The Marriage Circle
Theatrical poster
Directed by	Ernst Lubitsch
Written by	Paul Bern (scenario) Victor Vance (intertitles)
Based on	Only a Dream by Lothar Schmidt
Produced by	Ernst Lubitsch
Starring	Adolphe Menjou Florence Vidor Monte Blue Marie Prevost
Cinematography	Charles Van Enger
Production company	Warner Bros.
Distributed by	Warner Bros. (US) UFA (Germany)
Release date	February 3, 1924 (1924-02-03) (New York)^[1]
Running time	85 minutes
Country	United States
Language	Silent (English intertitles)
Budget	$212,000^[2]
Box office	$427,000 (worldwide rentals)^[2]

The Marriage Circle is a 1924 American silent comedy film produced and directed by Ernst Lubitsch and distributed by Warner Bros. Based on the play Only a Dream by Lothar Schmidt, the screenplay was written by Paul Bern.^[3] The "circle" of the title refers to the ring of infidelities (suspected and otherwise) central to the plot.

The film was remade in 1932 by Lubitsch and George Cukor as One Hour with You.^[3]

Plot

In 1923 Vienna, when Mizzi threatens to leave her husband, Prof. Josef Stock, for "cruelty" for being indifferent to an invitation from her friend Charlotte to introduce them to her husband, he smiles at the suggestion, which infuriates her; she changes her mind and refuses to accommodate him. She goes alone. When Prof. Stock sees his wife get into a taxi with a man, he cheers up. (He later hires a private detective to obtain proof of her misconduct for a divorce.) As it turns out, they are strangers, merely sharing the taxi.

Charlotte greets Mizzi warmly and tells her how happy her marriage is, Mizzi warns her it will not last. Charlotte's husband, Franz Braun, returns home; it is the man she flirted with in the taxi. Mizzi later tries to seduce him. Franz loves his wife and, despite Mizzi's wiles, he never succumbs to her blandishments, even though she cleverly diverts his wife's jealousy to another woman, leaving the road clear for herself.

The situation is complicated by the fact that Franz's wife is greatly admired by his medical partner, Dr. Gustav Mueller, who, though not encouraged, loses no opportunity to press his suit. Out of this entanglement, Franz finally comes clean and regains his wife's confidence, while Mizzi and Dr. Mueller turn their attention to each other, with Prof. Stock left without his divorce.

Cast

Monte Blue as Doctor Braun
Florence Vidor as Charlotte, his wife
Creighton Hale as Doctor Mueller
Adolphe Menjou as Professor Josef Stock
Marie Prevost as Mizzie, his wife
Harry Myers as A Detective
Dale Fuller as A Nervous Woman
Esther Ralston as Miss Hofer
Alan George (uncredited)

Box office

According to Warner Bros. records, the film earned $373,000 domestically and $54,000 in foreign markets.^[4]

Preservation

This film is extant, preserved in a variety of formats at a number of archives. U.S. archives holding this film include the Museum of Modern Art and the UCLA Film and Television Archive.^[5]

References

^ "The Marriage Circle". Catalog of Feature Films. American Film Institute. Retrieved October 13, 2015.
^ ^a ^b Glancy, H Mark (1995). "Warner Bros Film Grosses, 1921–51: the William Schaefer ledger". Historical Journal of Film Radio and Television. 15: 55–73. doi:10.1080/01439689500260031.
^ ^a ^b Carl Bennett, ed. (June 24, 2009). "The Marriage Circle". Progressive Silent Film List. Retrieved October 13, 2015 – via silentera.com.
^ Warner Bros. financial information in The William Shaefer Ledger. See Appendix 1, Historical Journal of Film, Radio and Television, (1995) 15:sup1, 1-31 p 2 DOI: 10.1080/01439689508604551
^ David Pierce (October 8, 2015). "The Marriage Circle". American Silent Feature Film Survival Database. Library of Congress. Retrieved October 13, 2015.