 civilization is a 1916 american pacifist allegorical drama film produced by thomas h. ince, written by c. gardner sullivan, and directed by ince, reginald barker and raymond b. west. the story involves a submarine commander who refuses to fire at a civilian ocean liner supposedly carrying ammunition for his country's enemies. the film was a big-budget spectacle that was compared to both birth of a nation and the paintings of jean-franÃ§ois millet. the film was a popular success and was credited by the democratic national committee with helping to re-elect woodrow wilson as the u.s. president in 1916. the film was also the first to depict jesus christ as a character in a motion picture, leading some to criticize the depiction as in "poor taste." ==prologue== the film opened with a lengthy prologue. in some theaters, the prologue was performed by live actors and an orchestra. it included music composed by victor schertzinger and depicted a peaceful country home, with hills in the distance, a stream and clouds floating peacefully through the sky. suddenly, the boom of a cannon is heard, artillery guns belch fire, and a zeppelin flies over the city dropping bombs. in the smoke, "civilization" is depicted kneeling pleadingly at the feet of a menacing "god of war." soldiers are seen retreating before deadly gas. against these scenes, the film's title cards express the film's anti-war message, concluding with the following comments:"today, the great sorrowful eyes of this same son of god gaze down upon blackened fields, where the mangled bodies of men are strewn as grains of wheat, upon flaming shattered hamlets and stricken firesides. as he listens to the screaming of the shells, the crashing of monstrous guns, all the ghastly symphony of the reddest war mankind has ever known, his heart must recognize the bitter truth in the statement of one of the world's foremost educatorsâ that in nineteen centuries civilization has failed to accept honestly the teachings of jesus christ. this is an allegorical story of a war that has laughed at the world's 
1910s_drama_films 1916_films American_films American_silent_feature_films Black-and-white_films Fictional_civilizations Submarine_films Triangle_Film_Corporation_films United_States_National_Film_Registry_films