Pandora's Box

Original title: Die Büchse der Pandora

IMDb RATING

7.7/10

12K

YOUR RATING

Louise Brooks and József Bottlik in Pandora's Box (1929)

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Tragedy Tragic Romance Crime Drama Romance

The rise and inevitable fall of an amoral but naive young woman whose insouciant eroticism inspires lust and violence in those around her.The rise and inevitable fall of an amoral but naive young woman whose insouciant eroticism inspires lust and violence in those around her.The rise and inevitable fall of an amoral but naive young woman whose insouciant eroticism inspires lust and violence in those around her.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.7/10

12K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 1 nomination

Alwa Schön
(as Franz Lederer)

Carl Goetz

Schigolch

Krafft-Raschig

Rodrigo Quast

Alice Roberts

Gräfin Geschwitz

Daisy D'Ora

Charlotte Marie Adelaide v. Zarnikow - braut Dr. Schöns - Dr. Schön's Bride
(as Daisy d'Ora)

Gustav Diessl

Jack the Ripper
(as Gustav Diesel)

Michael von Newlinsky

Marquis Casti-Piani
(as Michael v. Newlinsky)

Sig Arno

Der inspizient - the Stage Manager
(as Siegfried Arno)

Karl Etlinger

Verteidiger
(uncredited)

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Despite being replaced by Louise Brooks at the last minute for the role of Lulu in Pandora's Box (1929), Marlene Dietrich managed to snag another coveted role. Her removal from "Pandora's Box" freed her up to play one of her most iconic roles, Lola Lola in Josef von Sternberg's The Blue Angel (1930).

Goofs
While the actual identity of Jack The Ripper may never be known he would've most likely been at least sixty years old if he were still alive in 1929.

The actor playing him is clearly in his early thirties.

Quotes
Dr. Ludwig Schön: I'm getting married!
Lulu: You won't kiss me just because you're getting married?

Alternate versions
A 133-minute version, distributed by Janus Films from Film Museum München, was broadcast in America on the IFC channel in 2006. It has an unidentified orchestral score, including a 2-minute overture at the start, and it listed the credits in German, some of which were translated into English. With German inter-titles and English subtitles. This version was released on a British Region 2 DVD).

Connections
Edited into Histoire(s) du cinéma: Fatale beauté (1994)

User reviews108

Review

Featured review

10/10

The best "Lulu"-performance ever!

For his movie "Die Büchse Der Pandora (Panodra's Box)", G.W. Pabst took together the tragedies "Der Erdgeist" and "Die Büchse Der Pandora", forming the famous Lulu-diptych written by German dramatist Frank Wedekind (1864-1918), an important ancestor of literary expressionism, who wrote amongst other works "Frühlings Erwachen" that caused many scandals.

What is congenial about this movie, is not only the fact, that Louise Brooks is doubtless the best Lulu ever seen (in theater as well as on the screen), but how G.W. Pabst managed to amalgamate this two literary masterpieces of the time of sexual liberation in Europe.

It is a real pity, that not more of Pabst work can be reached in the US and that most of his work is not available at all on DVD.