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OPEN CLASSIC CINEMA · 1566

Greed

1924140 minUnited States
Drama
Video edition
Internet Archive
Original language
No spoken dialogue. Intertitles: English.
This copy runs
130:16
Subtitles
No subtitle track in this language

Languages and subtitles

No subtitle track in this language

Internet Archive · Erich von Stroheim · Internet Archive source edition

Synopsis

In San Francisco, the unlicensed dentist McTeague marries Trina after she wins a lottery prize. The money that seems to promise security instead deepens suspicion, resentment and obsession. A friendship with Marcus turns poisonous as the household's shrinking prospects drive the characters toward increasingly destructive choices.

Cast

DirectorsErich von Stroheim

Historical context

Erich von Stroheim places material desire within cramped rooms, working lives and harsh landscapes. The film's attention to poverty and bodily detail connects it to literary naturalism, where social conditions press heavily on individual behavior.

Inspirations

The film adapts Frank Norris's 1899 novel McTeague. Its tragedy is fictional, rooted in a sharply observed social world rather than presented as a record of a particular real crime.

Behind the scenes

Location work included San Francisco and Death Valley. The extensive original assembly was drastically reduced before theatrical release. Surviving release versions and later reconstructions should not be confused with that lost assembly.

Reception and legacy

The dispute over the editing became a celebrated example of conflict between a director's ambitions and studio control. The surviving film was added to the United States National Film Registry in 1991.

Sources and availability

General references identify the work and its copy. A reference beside an editorial section is linked to the claims checked in that section.

Wikipedia — film referenceWikidata — film identity and creditsMoMA — Greed exhibition notesWikipedia — Brazilian release titleLibrary of Congress — National Film RegistryImage: Frame from Greed (1924), directed by Erich von Stroheim / Wikimedia Commons — Public domain

Work catalogued as public domain in the United States.

The public-domain references concern the original films in the United States. Rights can differ for other countries, editions, restorations, music or translations. Sources are listed on each film page.

Availability checked on September 18, 2026.

Photograph credit

Photographs cropped, resized and optimized as WebP, displayed in monochrome.

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