Foolish Wives (1922) was Erich von Stroheim’s third feature for Universal, serving as both film director and star in a classic silent drama comprised of seduction and extortion. Upon its release in 1922, the film was advertised as the “first million-dollar movie” and promised a legendary performance by von Stroheim, drawing fixated attention from American news outlets and audiences alike. Flicker Alley is honored to present this newly restored edition of the film, thanks to the dedicated efforts of the San Francisco Silent Film Festival and The Museum of Modern Art, New York (MoMA), in a deluxe 2-disc Blu-ray/DVD edition.

This new 4K restoration of Foolish Wives­ reconstructs the original continuity by combining the surviving original film elements, meticulous image restoration, and recreation of the original stunning color effects, to offer audiences the closest look possible at the original version of the film.

Foolish Wives features a newly commissioned orchestral score composed and conducted by maestro Timothy Brock and performed by Real Filharmonía de Galicia and recorded in Santiago de Compostela, Galicia.

• Filming “Foolish Wives” (1922) - An excerpt from Pathe’s popular Screen Snapshots series, featuring rare behind-the-scenes and on-set footage from Foolish Wives, restored by the San Francisco Silent Film Festival
• The Waves and the Merry-Go-Round: On Location with Erich von Stroheim - A documentary about the historical and thematic importance of the locations in Foolish Wives as well as within Erich von Stroheim’s work overall, presented by cultural historian Brad Rosenstein
• Erich von Stroheim and Hollywood’s First Million-Dollar Picture - An in-depth documentary on the making of Foolish Wives, presented by MoMA film curator Dave Kehr
• Restoring Foolish Wives - A detailed look into the research, reconstruction, and restoration of the film, featuring a study on the tinting, toning, and newly revived hand-coloring process, with film restorer Robert Byrne
• Source Comparison Demo - A side-by-side examination of the elements consulted and used in the film’s restoration
• Restoration Demo - A before/after clip comparing original film elements to the newly restored version
• Photo Galleries - Over 100 rare on-location stills, publicity and trade press material, and photo excerpts from a French novelization of the film
• Souvenir Booklet - Featuring a new essay by James Layton “Searching for Foolish Wives: The Decades-Long Effort to Reconstruct Erich von Stroheim’s Masterpiece,” excerpts from an examination of Foolish Wives by film critic and author David Thompson, an introduction to the newly commissioned score by Timothy Brock, as well as additional production stills and promotional materials
• Subtitle Tracks - Spanish, French, Italian, German, and Galician
• Reversible Cover Artwork