Louise Brooks plays Lulu in the 1929 silent film Pandora’s Box. Directed by G. W. Pabst, the film adapts Frank Wedekind’s Lulu dramas and centers on Lulu’s relationships and downfall.
Lulu is not the name of the ancient Greek woman who opens the jar. She is Wedekind’s theatrical character, carried into cinema through a German production made during the Weimar period. The film’s title comes from Wedekind’s play Pandora’s Box, one of the two Lulu dramas that provide its source.
Brooks’s performance became far more influential after the film’s later revival. Her bobbed haircut, expressive restraint, and modern screen persona made Lulu an iconic role in silent cinema. The performance is frequently cited when discussing the film’s critical rediscovery.
The story contains mature themes of desire, jealousy, crime, and social hypocrisy, but the central identification is straightforward: Brooks is Lulu, not Pandora. The ancient myth supplies a title association, while the film’s narrative is based on Wedekind.