The Temple of Dusk

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The Temple of Dusk
The Temple of Dusk.jpg
Poster for film
Directed by James Young
Screenplay by Frances Marion
Story byFrances Marion
Starring
Cinematography Dal Clawson
Production
company
Distributed by Mutual Film
Release date
  • October 20, 1918 (1918-10-20)(USA)
Running time
50 min.
CountryUnited States
LanguageSilent (English intertitles)

The Temple of Dusk is a lost [1] 1918 American silent drama film directed by James Young. It was produced by Sessue Hayakawa's Haworth Pictures Corporation. [2]

Contents

Plot

As described in a film magazine, [3] Akira (Hayakawa), a Japanese poet who lives in Tokyo, falls in love with an American, Ruth Vale (Novak), who has grown to womanhood under his father's care. He is much saddened, however, when she marries an American. Three years elapse and Ruth dies of an illness, leaving a baby in the poet's care. Akira agrees to accompany the child and father to America, and when the American is accused of the murder of a man who entered his home, Akira assumes the guilt. He escapes from prison to visit the child and is shot by a guard. An allegorical scene shows Akira and Ruth entering the Temple of Dusk together.

Cast

Reception

Like many American films of the time, The Temple of Dusk was subject to cuts by city and state film censorship boards. For example, the Chicago Board of Censors required a cut, in Reel 3, of the scene with the wife at the mantle and her lover on the couch and the first kissing scene between wife and lover where Akira discovers them. [4]

Preservation

With no holdings located in archives, The Temple of Dusk is considered a lost film. [1]

References

  1. 1 2 "The Library of Congress American Silent Feature Film Survival Catalog: The Temple Of Dusk". memory.loc.gov. Archived from the original on March 21, 2023. Retrieved August 12, 2025.
  2. Slide, Anthony (February 25, 2014). The New Historical Dictionary of the American Film Industry. Taylor & Francis. p. 350. ISBN   978-1-135-92561-1.
  3. "Reviews: The Temple of Dusk". Exhibitors Herald. 7 (15). New York City: Exhibitors Herald Company: 36. October 5, 1918.
  4. "Official Cut-Outs by the Chicago Board of Censors". Exhibitors Herald. 7 (19): 44. November 2, 1918.