This is the 615th movie that I've now seen out of the 1,199 movies on the "Before You Die" list that I'm gradually working my way through.
Original German Title: Die Buchse der Pandora
Director: Georg Wilhelm Pabst
I love my wife. She saw the rental box for this DVD and gives me a nice, sarcastic, "'Pandora's Box'? What is that, porn?"
No, it's not porn. But things do get rather illicit and dark in this movie. And it's done rather brilliantly, I might add. The movie follows the rise and fall of Lulu, a beautiful young woman whose wanton sexuality and lack of morals bring ruin to nearly everyone around her, and eventually herself. At movie's beginning, she uses her wiles to manipulate a reputable, older editor, Dr. Schon, into abandoning his scheduled marriage to another woman. Once married, however, Lulu continues to actively inspire jealousy in others, leading to the death of her husband. This forces her and a few of her hangers-on to flee Germany and take refuge in a rather seedy shipyard area. When she tries to use her sexuality and charisma to evade her debts, her plan backfires and sends her and her two remaining cohorts on the run once again. The three ultimately end up living in a hovel in a poor area of London. Here, Lulu is eventually approached and murdered by a Jack the Ripper-type psychopath.
The description can tell you just how dark this movie is. What makes it great are a few things. One is that I knew almost nothing about this movie. After the first 15 or so minutes, I thought I had the tone and entire plotline fully predicted, being more or less a Sister Carrie type tale, whereby a young seductress ruins an older, established man via his libido. While this does happen, it is really only part of the larger story, which is a more vicious tragedy. I suppose one could argue that there is a certain misogyny running through a story of a young woman who is at the heart of so much pain for those around her, but one could also argue that Lulu's life and death are a cautionary tale against selfish and greedy behavior. This might be a rather conservative message, but the telling of the story is admittedly riveting. The pace is quite brisk, with very little downtime, with nearly every scene moving things along. The movie is divided into seven acts, and by the end of the third, I was fully invested in the outcome.
Another strength is related to the film's seven act structure. Each act takes place in a very distinctive setting and time in the Lulu's wild life. Act one is in the apartment set up for her by her lovers. Two is in the theater, while three is at the wedding reception which resulted from Lulu's sabotage of her doomed doctor lover. And on they go, with each act and setting feeling like a clear chapter in the life of the ever-devolving affairs of a naive and immoral but enchanting young beauty. Many movies have as episodic feel, but very few of them, especially during the silent era, crystallize so effectively. Enhancing this general structure was some outstanding set and costume designs, captured exceptionally by top-notch camera work.
One final standout feature of this movie was it is another of a handful of late silent-era films in which we see more naturalistic acting, rather than the exaggerated variety more common in most movies of the time period (and even, in many cases, for a few decades afterward). Several actors in this movie pull this off rather well, but the feature actor Louis Brooks is the standout. Firstly, she is stunningly beautiful, but that's incidental, if necessary for the plot. There's an alluring, casual air about her manner that I associate with one of my favorite actresses from the very next era - Barbara Stanwyck. Brooks isn't always as smooth as Stanwyck would later be, but she has more natural, authentic magnetism than nearly any starlet that I've seen from the silent era.
When I checked this movie out of my local video store, the eminently knowledgeable clerk stated that Pandora's Box was probably his favorite silent movie. I can now see why. Even if I might not rate it quite that highly, I would still place it in my top 5 of that era.
That's 615 movies down, only 584 to go before I can die.
Director: Georg Wilhelm Pabst
I love my wife. She saw the rental box for this DVD and gives me a nice, sarcastic, "'Pandora's Box'? What is that, porn?"
No, it's not porn. But things do get rather illicit and dark in this movie. And it's done rather brilliantly, I might add. The movie follows the rise and fall of Lulu, a beautiful young woman whose wanton sexuality and lack of morals bring ruin to nearly everyone around her, and eventually herself. At movie's beginning, she uses her wiles to manipulate a reputable, older editor, Dr. Schon, into abandoning his scheduled marriage to another woman. Once married, however, Lulu continues to actively inspire jealousy in others, leading to the death of her husband. This forces her and a few of her hangers-on to flee Germany and take refuge in a rather seedy shipyard area. When she tries to use her sexuality and charisma to evade her debts, her plan backfires and sends her and her two remaining cohorts on the run once again. The three ultimately end up living in a hovel in a poor area of London. Here, Lulu is eventually approached and murdered by a Jack the Ripper-type psychopath.
The description can tell you just how dark this movie is. What makes it great are a few things. One is that I knew almost nothing about this movie. After the first 15 or so minutes, I thought I had the tone and entire plotline fully predicted, being more or less a Sister Carrie type tale, whereby a young seductress ruins an older, established man via his libido. While this does happen, it is really only part of the larger story, which is a more vicious tragedy. I suppose one could argue that there is a certain misogyny running through a story of a young woman who is at the heart of so much pain for those around her, but one could also argue that Lulu's life and death are a cautionary tale against selfish and greedy behavior. This might be a rather conservative message, but the telling of the story is admittedly riveting. The pace is quite brisk, with very little downtime, with nearly every scene moving things along. The movie is divided into seven acts, and by the end of the third, I was fully invested in the outcome.
Another strength is related to the film's seven act structure. Each act takes place in a very distinctive setting and time in the Lulu's wild life. Act one is in the apartment set up for her by her lovers. Two is in the theater, while three is at the wedding reception which resulted from Lulu's sabotage of her doomed doctor lover. And on they go, with each act and setting feeling like a clear chapter in the life of the ever-devolving affairs of a naive and immoral but enchanting young beauty. Many movies have as episodic feel, but very few of them, especially during the silent era, crystallize so effectively. Enhancing this general structure was some outstanding set and costume designs, captured exceptionally by top-notch camera work.
 |
| Lulu's doomed marriage to Dr. Schon falls apart at a break- neck speed. And he's far from the first or last person who will suffer from falling under her unconscious spell. |
When I checked this movie out of my local video store, the eminently knowledgeable clerk stated that Pandora's Box was probably his favorite silent movie. I can now see why. Even if I might not rate it quite that highly, I would still place it in my top 5 of that era.
That's 615 movies down, only 584 to go before I can die.
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