Who directed the 1929 German silent film Pandora’s Box?

Georg Wilhelm Pabst directed the 1929 German silent film Pandora’s Box.

Pabst’s film, known in German as Die Büchse der Pandora, stars Louise Brooks as Lulu. It was produced during the late silent era and is associated with German cinema of the Weimar Republic. The story follows Lulu’s relationships, social rise, and eventual downfall, giving the ancient title a modern psychological and sexual drama.

The film adapts Frank Wedekind’s stage works Earth Spirit and Pandora’s Box rather than reproducing Hesiod’s Greek myth. This distinction matters because the movie’s Lulu is a literary and cinematic character, not the mythological Pandora.

Pabst’s direction is frequently discussed alongside Brooks’s performance, especially for its controlled visual style and treatment of Lulu’s changing social circumstances. The film later became a major repertory and restoration title in silent-film scholarship.