Cecil B. DeMille recognized the themes in his previous movie, "The Whispering Chorus," a dark subject film, although profitable, wasn't quite the direction he wanted to extend. He suddenly pivoted to romantic comedies, a brand of film uncannily anticipating the new morality of The Jazz Age. His comedy of manners threw out the aging Victorian values for a fresher, yet more individualized centrist view of personal responsibilities.
In May 1918's "Old Wives For New," DeMille and his screenwriter Macpherson took up the age-old dilemma of one's loyalty to a marriage to a partner who abuses the body, in this case gaining tremendous weight, while the other is upholding a fitness regiment. The effect of such a marriage, where a spouse's sloven behavior influences the personality, is examined from all angles .
Movies during this time largely began with an introduction of all the major characters. Instead of showing an individual profile of each actor, DeMille does something novel: he films a close-up of the hands of each of the five women involved in the story. Each hand reveals their personality, e.g. The fattening wife is handling a large assortment of chocolates before selecting her pieces.
The movie public, changed by the events of the Great War and distrustful of the old ways, took delight in this new outlook on marriage. It showed an ability of extricate oneself of a life of misery without morally questioning the guilt of such actions. DeMille continued to direct romantic comedies, with the exception of a remake of his earlier "The Squaw Man' in 1918, throughout his next five years.
In May 1918's "Old Wives For New," DeMille and his screenwriter Macpherson took up the age-old dilemma of one's loyalty to a marriage to a partner who abuses the body, in this case gaining tremendous weight, while the other is upholding a fitness regiment. The effect of such a marriage, where a spouse's sloven behavior influences the personality, is examined from all angles .
Movies during this time largely began with an introduction of all the major characters. Instead of showing an individual profile of each actor, DeMille does something novel: he films a close-up of the hands of each of the five women involved in the story. Each hand reveals their personality, e.g. The fattening wife is handling a large assortment of chocolates before selecting her pieces.
The movie public, changed by the events of the Great War and distrustful of the old ways, took delight in this new outlook on marriage. It showed an ability of extricate oneself of a life of misery without morally questioning the guilt of such actions. DeMille continued to direct romantic comedies, with the exception of a remake of his earlier "The Squaw Man' in 1918, throughout his next five years.