Greed

IMDb RATING

8.0/10

11K

YOUR RATING

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Classical Western Desert Adventure Epic Psychological Drama Psychological Thriller Tragedy Western Epic Drama Thriller Western

The sudden fortune won from a lottery fans such destructive greed that it ruins the lives of the three people involved.The sudden fortune won from a lottery fans such destructive greed that it ruins the lives of the three people involved.The sudden fortune won from a lottery fans such destructive greed that it ruins the lives of the three people involved.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

8.0/10

11K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 3 wins total

'Mommer' Sieppe
(as Silvia Ashton)

Chester Conklin

'Popper' Sieppe

Joan Standing

Selina

William Barlow

The Minister
(uncredited)

Lita Chevrier

Extra
(uncredited)

Jack Curtis

McTeague Sr.
(uncredited)

Gwendolynne D'Amour

Undetermined Secondary Role
(uncredited)

James F. Fulton

Cribbens - Prospector
(uncredited)

Edward Gaffney

Extra
(uncredited)

Florence Gibson

Hag
(uncredited)

James Gibson

Deputy
(uncredited)

Oscar Gottell

Sieppe Twin
(uncredited)

Otto Gottell

Sieppe Twin
(uncredited)

Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
While filming the final confrontation in the desert, Erich von Stroheim allegedly shouted several times at actors Gibson Gowland and Jean Hersholt "Hate each other! Hate each other as much as you hate me!"

Goofs
After Marcus breaks McTeague's pipe and throws a knife at him, men pull McTeague's tie off as they hold him back. The tie is back in place a moment later as McTeague rushes out of the saloon.

Quotes
Title card: GOLD - GOLD - GOLD - GOLD. Bright and Yellow, Hard and Cold, Molten, Graven, Hammered, Rolled, Hard to Get and Light to Hold; Stolen, Borrowed, Squandered - Doled.

Alternate versions
Version 5, 16 reels (4,800 meters), edited by June Mathis - According to Jean Mitry who saw it in Paris ("Le romantisme de Stroheim", article in L'Avant-Scène du Cinéma, no. 83-84, July 1968), this version had exactly 4 hours running time. It cut off all derivative stories about supporting characters, concentrating the story on the character McTeague, and adding a number of inter-titles to explain what happened in the deleted scenes. This version was shown in the theatre Studio des Ursulines, Paris, and then the French distributor cut it to a 2 hour film. Cinémathèque Française has a copy of the Mathis' cut - but versions 1 to 4 of the film are considered lost films (1999).

Connections
Edited into Histoire(s) du cinéma: Une histoire seule (1989)

User reviews117

Review

Featured review

10/10

Mutilated masterpiece

Heavily edited MGM release version of Stroheim's 8 hour epic satisfies at 2 and a half hours -- you have to wonder if any extra length would have made it a little better or a little worse. To be sure, Stroheim probably ran the thing pretty slow when he projected it. Authentic detail in locations adds another level of interest, as we get to see parts of San Francisco, Oakland, and Placer County in the early 20s. The story is dark and involved, detailing the love of two people destroyed by their compulsive greed and neuroses. There is no moment in its story where the viewpoint is not pessimistic, except the image of dual humanity presented in McTeague's birds. Exceptional.