3. Intolerance
Intolerance was directed and produced by D.W. Griffith, in 1916 it was when the era masterpiece was written.
What is great about this film is that it tells four different stories with similar themes across a large range of human history, from an early 20th century American drama to the St. Bartholomew’s Day massacre in France during the 1500s.
It was clear from the start of production that a huge amount of money was going to have to be spent on creating sets, costumes and paying extras.
The biggest individual set, and the most expensive was the scale model of the Great Wall of Babylon that was over 300-feet tall.
The exact figures for each set have never been released, but it did take up a large proportion of the overall production budget that rose to more than $45 million when adjusted for inflation.
