One of the most visually elegant silent films ever made, Cecil B. DeMille's The Cheat was initially banned in several states due to its shocking subject matter. A society lady (Fanny Ward) gambles away Red Cross funds and borrows from a wealthy Asian man (Sessue Hayakawa) on the implied promise of becoming his mistress. This she refuses, and he brands her with a red-hot iron from his collection. The Cheat set standards of acting, decor, frame composition and lighting which were not surpassed for years, even by DeMille. But it is above all the first modern film in terms of its sexually-charged content. To this end, the character of the Asian became itself a "brand"-a source of sexual menace at once feared and desired-and it is to Hayakawa's credit that his later efforts as a producer worked to counter the stereotyped roles he was given as an actor.