Sa majesté la femme

Probably inspired by Cecil De Mille's "the ten commandments" (1923),but in a much more modest way, ,Howard Hawks begins his movie with a prologue showing Adam and Eve after the Fall : they live is some kind of prehistoric world ,in which Eve is looking forward to going to the fig leaves sale.Anachronisms abound and the subtitles are very witty,which is very rare in a silent movie.

Hawks' theory was : "the snake was none other than another woman in disguise".Thus edified,we go straight from the Iron age (?)into the twentieth century ...when woman's main concern is the clothes she is going to wear to impress her best (female ) friend .In 1926,a man would not want her wife to work ,so she 's got to expend a lot of energy when she's got nothing left to wear.The pawnshop gag may have inspired Roald Dahl for "Mrs Bixby and the colonel's coat" which was first published in 1959 (and would become a short in the "Hitchcock presents" series).

"Fig Leaves" is sometimes much fun to watch and is to be recommended ,even to these who dislike silent flicks.

The silent era of cinema was a remarkable period. Some of the greatest films ever made hail from these early years of the medium; alternatively, no few other titles epitomize the notion of "simpler entertainment for a simpler time," and are especially difficult for modern viewers to engage with. I think it's safe to say that this is one of the latter. In its bookend portions , set in the "Garden of Eden," the humor rides a fine line between mildly clever and inventive and hopelessly tacky in its anachronisms recalling 'The Flintstones.' Fabricated creatures are humble even by the standards of the 1920s; intertitles play fast and loose with notions of Christian mythology in a way that would surely both inflame the religious and annoy the irreligious. (To the latter point, at least, I can confirm - yes.) In both the prehistoric and contemporary settings the writing also tries to be smart and cheeky about gender dynamics, though I think it's much less successful in this regard. With or without taking up the prejudice in the foundational mythology that specifically lowers and demonizes women, and elevates and lionizes men, too many jokes and gags just come off now as patronizing, mocking, and casually or pointedly sexist instead of lighthearted. Whoops.

'Fig leaves' isn't bad, but it hasn't entirely aged well. To whatever extent other features of the time dallied with norms and values well removed from those of several decades later, this is all but completely awash in it. The storytelling and comedy is thusly less relatable, and less universal, and just doesn't meet with the same success in 2023 that it must have in 1926. This isn't to say that there's no enjoyment to be had here, but the best quality in retrospect lies in those instances when a bit is witty or silly in its own right - even, yes, those many scenes playing off relationships between men and women - and not tied to distinct beliefs, mores, or attitudes. Needless to say, for all the worth that the writing can thusly claim, there's just less of it than there would be otherwise, to say nothing of the question of how funny an inclusion is in the first place. One way or another, this is a mixed bag.

Mind you, in other ways 'Fig leaves' is quite well done. The costume design is marvelous and possibly one of the actual chief highlights, with the sets only half a step behind. Some of the hair and makeup is a tad overdone, but mostly these are splendid. Howard Hawks' direction, Joseph H. August's cinematography, and arguably more so Rose Smith's editing, are altogether pretty terrific. The cast give excellent performances leaning into the ridiculousness, not least Olive Borden and George O'Brien who by far have the most time on-screen. This is true even though, sure enough, the acting falls into the same category as much of the silent era of emphatically exaggerated expressions and body language that follow from the stage and compensate for lack of sound and verbal dialogue. And I'll even say that despite weaknesses in the details that are at least on par with the commensurate intelligence, in the broad strokes the writing is characterized by some swell ideas. There is, in fact, plenty of strength here; it's unfortunate that filmmaker Hawks and screenwriters Louis D. Lighton and Hope Loring wove so much of it around discrete standards, ideals, principles, or stances that restrict the lasting power of the title.

When all is said and done, this is surely a piece that's best suggested only for those who are already enamored of the silent era and all its idiosyncrasies. Even with that in mind I think the humor is much too "hit or miss" to earn a particularly strong recommendation. This is something for those who have a major interest in some regard, who are just downright curious, or who are such avid cinephiles that abject quality doesn't necessarily into consideration. 'Fig leaves' is fun to an extent, but whereas the best of comedy never grows old (see Buster Keaton, Harold Lloyd, Ernst Lubitsch), almost 100 years later this doesn't hold up as well as one would hope based on some of its kin.

This is not one of the more well known silents, or indeed one of Howard Hawks' more famous movies, but, that doesn't mean it is not a very good and entertaining movie. Set in two different ages, stone age at the start and the end and at the present time (the 1920's)in between, which is the major part of it, it deals with the battle of the sexes, in this case a married couple, Adam and Eve. The start is very very funny and very imaginative. The inter titles and the headlines in the newspapers had me laughing out loud, which believe me, is not something I do often. Then it dissolves into the modern day very nicely with Adam now a plumber and Eve, a discontented stay at home wife, the snake in the modern day being trouble making neighbour Alice. Out in the city Eve is knocked over by a car who's passenger's is hoity toity dress designer, Andre. This part of the story is the only sticking point as it seems to come across as a showcase for designer Adrian's gowns and slows the story down somewhat. That aside this is a terrific little film with super performances all around. A favourite, and slightly odd moment, is muscular he-man George O'Brien mincing as a woman ( not in drag, mind you), but, he always came across as an actor with no vanity and is all the more endearing for that. Heinie Conklin also shines as his sidekick and the female lead, Olive Borden does a great job as Eve. This is a neatly observed comedy that for the most part is excellent. If you have the chance I suggest that you see it and I wonder if you will be reminded, by the early sequences of a 1960's cartoon starring Fred and Wilma.

Fig Leaves is a delightful silent comedy directed by Howard Hawks. The movie stars the Olive Borden and George O'Brien as a married couple named Adam and Eve and Phyllis Haver as their neighbor. In the opening sequence we meet the original Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. This scene will probably remind you of an episode The Flintstones. Then we move into modern day (the 1920s) where Eve is a bored housewife married to Adam the plumber. Her main complaint is she never has anything to wear. Although she knows Adam will be mad she gets a job as a model. Meanwhile her sexy neighbor takes the opportunity to try to seduce Adam.

Olive Borden gives a wonderful performance as Eve - it's one of the best of her career. She and George O'Brien were a real-life couple (they met making the Western 3 Bad Men) and they have amazing onscreen chemistry. Olive was one of the most beautiful and promising actresses of the silent era. Sadly her film career didn't survive the talkies and she died penniless in 1947. Another "star" of Fig Leaves are the amazing gowns designed by Gilbert Adrian. They reportedly cost more than $50,000 to make. The movie originally had a color fashion show sequence but this scene is now considered lost.

Overall this is a fabulous silent comedy with great fashions. Ten Stars **********

Hawks' second film as director and his oldest survivor has gorgeous housewife Olive Borden married to gorgeous plumber George O'Brien. She wants lots of new clothes, the fig leaves of the title, and designer Georges Beranger offers to make her a model -- and hopes to make her, too.

It's a completely undistinguished journeyman comedy, eked out with a Flintstones-like prologue and epilogue, a fashion show (originally presented in two-strip Technicolor, although only black-and-white elements have survived) and Heinie Conklin as O'Brien's comic assistant who is not in the least funny. Phyllis Haver has some funny bits as a trouble-making neighbor, but despite the leads putting a lot of energy into their performance, the film is flat, predictable and rarely funny. Its only interest is that it is a Hawks film, which, unless you're a complete believer that everything an auteur does is brilliant and you'll figure out how after you've thought about it long enough, is no recommendation.